Shape of the community created by local residents
A city model that continues to change through participatory design

Wise City Model
Tokyu Corporation

This project is set in the WISE Living Lab that was established in 2017 to undertake next-generation urban development for the suburbs led by Yokohama city and Tokyu Corporation. For this newly established facility, the first challenge was to create opportunities for local residents to gather together here, and to gain residents’ understanding of the cutting edge method of urban design through the living lab.

The Wise City Model is a participatory city model that acts as a communication tool to connect residents with their cities. This is both a tool and a system for enabling urban design by residents through the experience of urban development, using the model as a key touchpoint. ACTANT designed not just the model, but also a whole system of activities, including a management flow and workshop programs.

Category
CommunityLiving lab
Site/Year
Yokohama, Kanagawa / 2017
Services
Living lab / Co-creation
Team
ISKW design office (Architect), Fablab Shibuya (Digital fabrication)

Approach

Embodying the living lab’s co-creative character

Based on the accomplishments of preceding research, the concepts of a “participatory model” and “continuously changing information” were drawn, and an overall framework including management flow and stakeholders was discussed. In the final design phase, prototyping was performed through workshops for the model shape and resident participation experience, and the final output form was decided upon, including the model structure and its accessory parts, guidelines for holding activities, and the field map.

Result

Tools for residents to create their towns for themselves

As the model content changes according to the activity theme, we devoted attention to securing wiggle room and flexibility so that participants could create their own new values when shaping the model. The model has a format that is compatible with the structure open to various creative instances and the appearance having a sense of unity as an exhibit piece. We also created a comprehensive guideline so that the model itself and the system for managing it, each imbued with a high degree of freedom, can be handled by local residents on their own.

Point

  • Creating opportunities for a range of activities and sprouting new buds of forming community
  • Supporting an advanced community development approach by Living Lab
  • Designing a learning space that fosters creativity

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