Built Environment and Lifestyle

RJIF launched an investigation into the contemporary Japanese living environment as the first project in our “Rediscover Japan” project. While Japanese architects are highly lauded, little is known about the residential environment in which “normal” people live.

Once maligned as “rabbit hutches” by disdainful Europeans, Japanese homes deserve a reassessment. Not only has the quality of houses has improved to the point where new builds are superior in quality to the U.S. and European homes they were initially meant to emulate, thanks to a rapid construction turnover that accelerated innovation and technological refinement, but the way people use their homes has also greatly evolved.

As the population shrinks and ages, the countryside hollows out, and people seek to reverse the environmental damage and loss of community wrought by rapid industrialization, new and diverse ways of using and adapting housing are emerging in Japan.

From eco-conscious people living in “zero energy” houses, young people cultivating vegetable gardens in the city, multi-generational communes, wooden skyscrapers and creative crashpads where “sharing” is promoted and ownership discouraged, the range of burgeoning lifestyle movements suggests the stereotype of overworked salarymen stuffed in one-room apartments no longer holds true in Japan.

We are publishing a series of articles framed around interviews with people leading such lifestyles to reveal the often overlooked innovation, creativity and flexibility in Japan’s living environment and to show how these growing movements can be relevant for other countries facing similar social, demographic and environmental pressures.

The Energy Revolution At Home


The exterior of a house using an off-grid energy system installed by local community organization, Fujino Power. (Photo: Sophie Knight)

While Japan’s energy industry is heading towards deregulation and liberalization, local energy projects at a regional level are also spreading. Some communities are already empowering people to choose their electricity provider, by supplying locally-generated energy alongside electricity from the grid of utilities such as Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO). We looked into the various measures being taken at the individual, regional and national levels in response to Japan’s energy problems.

The results of our findings on energy titled “Harnessing the power of community to drive an energy revolution” were published in the Japan Times on June 5, 2015.

The Wooden Metropolis: How Advances in Fireproofing Timber Could Change Urban Japan


The exterior of an apartment built by team Timberize member Mr. Eijiro Kosugi at his architectural firm KUS (Photo: Satoshi Asakawa)

While the industrial and distribution sectors in Japan have both reduced their carbon emissions, there is a lot of room for improvement in the private sector. One potential measure could be increasing the use of wood in construction. Improvements in the technologies used to fireproof timber mean that it has become possible to build mid-rise wooden buildings even in earthquake-prone Japan. A new urban landscape filled with timber rather than steel and concrete may be just around the corner.

The results of our findings titled “Tokyo designers push the boundaries of wooden skyscrapers” were published in the Financial Times’ “House & Home” section on July 3, 2015.

Housing Solutions for Disaster Survivors


Daiwa Lease’s disaster housing block, designed by architect Shigeru Ban (Provided by Daiwa Lease)

Japan, one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries, owns some of the world’s most advanced seismic proofing technologies. However, it became clear after the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis that struck in March 2011 that the supply chain for temporary housing for victims of disasters was insufficient in many ways, including speed. Daiwa Lease, a subsidiary of the Daiwa Group, teamed up with architect Shigeru Ban to solve the problem of how to supply a large volume of housing in a short space of time, by developing a housing unit produced in an emerging nation where it can also be used as low-cost accommodation the rest of the time.  

The results of our findings were published in the online business magazine Quartz on July 9, 2015.

Solutions for the Vacant Home Epidemic


The apartment block in Takashimadaira, Tokyo, where Muji renovated several units. (Photo: Sophie Knight)

Japan has 8 million empty homes, or around 13 percent of its entire housing stock. To reduce the number of vacant buildings, the government enacted a law at the beginning of 2015 to be able to take over and demolish those for whom owners cannot be found. At the same time, several businesses have begun projects to make better use of unoccupied houses, including sharing schemes. Japan’s housing agency, Urban Renaissance, has also teamed up with lifestyle brand Muji to renovate the interiors of aging apartment blocks to attract a new generation of young residents, while real estate company R Fudosan leads the pack in demonstrating the value and charm to be found in secondhand properties.

The results of our findings were published in the online business magazine Quartz on September 14, 2015.

Dealing with an Aging Population At Home


A multi-generation share house in Yokohama. (Photo: Sophie Knight)

How can society adapt to an ageing society? While there are an increasing number of medical services to serve the elderly in their homes in Japan, there are also schemes such as “Grandma Concierge”, a service in which a grandmother cooks nutritious meals and helps with laundry and cleaning at a shared house of people in their 20s and 30s, that recognizes older people can contribute to the younger generation with their energy and wisdom, rather than casting them as passive receivers of care. We looked at various programs developed by both companies and municipal governments to ensure that people live long and fulfilled lives while contributing to society.

The results of our findings titled “A  Greater Share for the Japanese Sharehouse” were published in the Nippon.com on March 2, 2016.

A Healthy Living Environment


The Life Cycle Carbon Minus model house (Photo: Koizumi Atelier)

Japanese houses are built mainly with the hot and humid summers in mind, prioritizing ventilation over insulation to prevent homes from molding. While energy consumption in Japan for temperature control is lower than in other industrialized countries, as people tend to only heat or cool the rooms they are using, homes are dangerously cold in the winter and the difference in temperature between rooms can cause a lethal condition known as “heat shock”. We looked at the “Life Cycle Carbon Minus” (LCCM) house and OM Solar, eco-friendly homes that use little to no active heating while maintaining a stable temperature even in Japan’s extreme climate.

The results of our findings titled “Japan’s house for all seasons” were published in the Financial Times’ “House & Home” section on 13 November, 2015.