Career change to come back to Japan with substantial USD investments but (potentially) few transferable skills

I’m an unmarried US citizen in my late 30s seeking advice on career paths in Kansai, especially Kyoto, or possibly Nara or Shiga. I previously lived in Kobe as an exchange student for 1 year, and subsequently as an eikaiwa instructor for 4 years in Kyoto. I came back to the states because of some urgent family circumstances surrounding the death of my father, and because I did not (and do not) see eikaiwa as a long-term career path.

That was 10 years ago. Between then and now I attained an MS in Geography and Regional Planning (my BS is in International Studies), got JLPT N1, and have been doing GIS modeling and hazard mitigation work in a federal grant funded position at a state agency for roughly 80,000 USD per year. Financially, I am in a very stable position. I have no debt at all, I'm not a homeowner, and I have roughly $300,000 in index funds. I can also reasonably expect at least $1,500,000 for my half of the inheritance (at present valuation) when my mother, who is currently in her mid-70s, eventually passes. She is in good health, but she is also not a very big spender and has excellent health coverage, so the pace of her portfolio growth has continued largely unabated after retirement and will likely continue to grow even if she lives several more decades.

Reasons for wanting to move back to Japan:

• I never really wanted to leave in the first place, and I had always intended to come back eventually, but family, COVID, and life in general got in the way.

• The situation with the US Federal government. My workplace is almost entirely dependent on federal funding, and my position in particular is directly grant funded. The funds have been allocated by congress, but the way things are going on the executive side these days, there’s no guarantee those funds will ever actually make it to us. That means there may only be a year left before my position is eliminated anyway. I’m also not thrilled about the idea of living in what may be a nascent fascist dictatorship. While I can’t know what will happen a year from now, things are a bit grim right now and I'm looking for a way out.

• I think that by living somewhat conservatively in Japan, with its lower cost of living, it may be easier for me, as someone with a lot of personal wealth and future inheritance already in US index funds, to live a better life than I would be able to in America even if I had a lower salary. This is particularly true as someone with no interest in owning a car or a big house, but someone would like to own a home eventually. I think this may be true independent of my other reasons for wanting to move back, though I wouldn’t consider it reason enough on its own.

• Lastly (and most pressingly), on a recent extended visit, I started dating a friend from when I previously lived in Kyoto. While it’s still early and I know I can’t bank on anything yet, I feel like there’s more potential here than with anyone I’ve ever been with before, so I would like to give this the highest possible chance of success. I really don’t want this to putter out as I know many long-distance relationships have a tendency to do.

What I’m looking for:

Essentially, something that doesn’t make me hate myself. Stability, lowish stress, and some dignity. I don’t need to earn a fortune, but scraping by on the salary of ALT, or eikaiwa instructor, or hotel front desk clerk as I reach my 40s is not really acceptable. Ideally, I would like something with a bit of flexibility, or at least with somewhat normal hours.

Potentially useful experience: The focus of my MS was GIS, Remote Sensing, and sustainable community planning. What I actually do at work is mostly making hydraulic models for FEMA in proprietary USACE software, data processing/QA, and some cartography in GIS. I have some experience with Python and SQL (but I am not a programmer); and I do a lot of work related to hydraulic, hydrological, and civil engineering (but I am not an engineer). I also home tutor two students in beginning Japanese on the side, and have additional teaching experience as a TA in grad school.

I have considered a few options, but I am open to others:

• Kyoto University’s Global Environmental Studies program. Go back for a second master’s, or even a Ph.D., assuming I were accepted. I am worried about my prospects for the Ph.D. program because my existing master’s was a non-thesis option and I have no publications, but I have no qualms going back for a second master’s. This is currently my preferred course of action as I think a degree from Kyoto University could open a lot of doors to meaningful work and it would be related to my current career, however there is no guarantee that I would be accepted and I’m not sure exactly where it would lead in the long run.

• Some other way to further my education. Kyoto University is my primary interest when it comes to post-graduate programs, but I am open to other suggestions. I’m very willing to put more time and effort into my education if it could realistically land me a better job afterward. This includes language schools (again, if I could reasonably expect a decent job afterward). As I said, I do have N1 already, but I know I could be a lot better, and I think I could make a lot of progress with a few months of intensive study and constructive feedback.

• JET CIR. I’m a bit old for JET, and I’m not interested in being an ALT, but I’ve considered applying to be a CIR because I thought it might open some doors. Correct me if I’m wrong on that though. The main disadvantage of this idea is that even if I were accepted, it would be a full 18 months before the position started, and there’s no guarantee that I would be placed where I want to be.

• Something related to tourism. I don’t particularly want to be guide or work in a hotel, but I am open to the possibility that there may be something worth exploring within the tourism industry.

• Some kind of international coordinator position, e.g., at a university. I know these kinds of positions can be in high demand, but it’s still on the table.

• An international school teaching position. I don’t have a teacher’s license, and I’ve never taught professionally in the states, but I do have some teaching experience (eikaiwa, tutoring, and as a GTA) and I don’t mind doing it if it could lead to a stable position.

• Something else entirely?