Principal Mikio Watanabe, 54, waves a crossing warning flag as Eita Sato, 15, and Aoi Hoshi, 15, arrive at Yumoto Junior High School, where they are the last two students, on the day before their graduation and the institution’s closing ceremony, in Ten-ei Village, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, March 10, 2023. Yumoto Junior High is a public school that was established in 1947 and 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. “People are very disappointed that there’s no longer a source of culture, and that the place will be quieter without children’s voices,” said Watanabe. REUTERS/Issei Kato
