The Masters of International Cooperation Sustainable Emergency Architecture at the ESARQ-UIC in Barcelona is excited to present this year’s open conference on December 12th titled, Rebuilding Japan: Lessons in architectural response, featuring talks and a roundtable discussion with Japanese architects involved in the reconstruction of Japan during its recent history of devastating earthquakes. How can architects respond in the aftermath of a natural disaster? What lessons can be learned from the last three major earthquakes in Japan? How does the context of a natural disaster affect the role of the architect and the reconstruction process? More information on the conference after the break.
These are the questions addressed by professors Norio Maki of Kyoto University’s Research Centre for Disaster Reduction Systems, Masahiro Sawada of Nagaoka Institute of Design’s Department of Architecture and Environmental Design, and Ikuo Kobayashi of Kobe Yamate University. Each architect will share their knowledge and distinct approach to one of the last three major earthquakes in Japan: Maki’s role in policy-making in the recent Tohoku earthquake, Sawada’s bottom-up approach in the rural case of Nigata, and Kobayashi’s NGO and community-led efforts in the urban case of Kobe.
The professors will be introduced by Moriko Kira, a Japanese architect based in the Netherlands, who met Professor Maki through her work as member of the editorial board of the Institute of Architecture of Japan’s official magazine. Moved by the destruction of Tohoku and motivated by her international experience as an architect, Moriko acts as a cultural conduit between Europe and her native Japan in the effort to spread best practices in disaster reconstruction and promote architecture as a social good.
The group of four architects and professors will be offering this open conference to the public during their workshop in Barcelona with the master students on Urban Regeneration after Earthquake Disaster. As part of the course, students will have the opportunity to work as trainees in Japan to contribute to Tohoku’s recovery plan. Each talk will last 20-30 minutes, followed by a roundtable discussion open to questions from the audience.
