Masumi Sato, 46, pins a rosette reading ‘Congratulations!’ on her son Eita, 15, one of the only two students at Yumoto Junior High School, on the day of his graduation ceremony, in Ten-ei Village, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, March 13, 2023. Aoi Hoshi, 15, and Eita, who have been together since three, are the last two graduates of Yumoto Junior High, a public school established in 1947 that in its prosperous years sent out more than 50 graduates, but with only a few enrolments expected in the coming years, the village decided to close the school for good, with some parents and villagers say that the school closure should have been avoided. “I’m worried that people won’t consider this area as a place to relocate to when there is no junior high school,” said Eita’s mother Masumi, who is also an alumnus of the school. REUTERS/Issei Kato
