JINOWA 土壌回復国際コンソーシアム

JINOWA国際コンソーシアムによる循環型建築プロジェクト「Regenerative Forest -JINEN-」のヴェネチアの土壌回復

The circular architectural project "Regenerative Forest -JINEN'' by JINOWA Consortium for restoration of earth

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hKekYGLtvA

循環型建築プロジェクト「Regenerative Forest -JINEN-」は、JINOWA国際コンソーシアムと日本の建築家・遠野未来氏が2021年5月からヴェネツィアで開始した土壌回復プロジェクトです。

ヴェネツィアのヨーロピアンカルチャーセンター（ECC）で開催されている「JINEN」の展示は、現在の環境危機に対して建築が循環価値につながるかを示すことを目的としています。
JINENには、ヴェネツィア潟の生態系を再生することを目的とした砂丘植物の生物多様性庭園も含まれています。

展覧会が終了する11月以降、JINENは最もエキサイティングな新たなフェーズに踏み出します。JINENのすべての素材を使用して、地域コミュニティと協働し土壌の肥沃度を高めていきます。JINENを分解するというプロセスは、廃棄とは全く違う多くの新しい価値を生み出し、ヴェネチアの地域社会を刺激する大きな可能性を秘めています。
JINOWAは参画企業や団体と協力し、今後はヴェネチアのジュデッカ島での地域の緑地化やエディブルガーデンプロジェクトに役立てソーシャルインパクトを生み出していきます。

The circular architectural project "Regenerative Forest -JINEN'' is a soil restoration project started in Venice by the JINOWA International Consortium and the Japanese architect Tono Mirai in May 2021.

The exhibition of JINEN in the European Culture Center in Venice is dedicated to showing how the process of building can lead the circular value for the current environmental crisis.

JINEN also contained a biodiversity garden of the dune plants that aim to regenerate the Venetian lagoon ecosystem.

From November, when the exhibition ends, JINEN will step forward to the most exciting phase to create new value in the local society and transform all materials as products, education and collaborate with the various initiatives to increase soil fertility and profit in the local community.

In particular, the JINOWA consortium is strongly engaged in soil education through the JINEN: the process of decomposing JINEN has great potential to stimulate the Venetian community to create various innovative values rather than just disposal.

JINOWA put all creativity to maximize the value through Jinen materials transformation to benefit local green and edible garden projects and collaborate with initiatives on Giudecca Island in Venezia.

‘Shifting the society and all business industries to contribute better soil for better future.’ （より良い未来のために、より良い土壌へ貢献する社会と産業への転換）、それが私たちJINOWA国際コンソーシアムがJINENプロジェクトを通じて挑戦していることです。

土を使った作品で海外からの注目を集める遠野未来が2019年に建築家としてヴェネチア市内の文化団体に招聘されました。その際にイタリアに拠点があるJINOWAの設立者となる齋藤由佳子へ相談したのがこの取り組みのきっかけとなりました。

2021年5月にイタリアで土壌回復に特化したJINOWA国際コンソーシアムが設立されました。JINENはそのプロジェクト第一弾として建設されました。

JINENのプロジェクトが行われているヴェネチアでは、世界的な芸術祭「ヴェネチアビエンナーレ」が120年以上にわたって開催される世界的な文化芸術の国際都市であり、水の都市として有名ですが、古代には広大な森が広がり、そのカラマツの丸太を使って埋立地を作り都市を拓いてきた歴史があります。

しかし近年、ヴェネチアは気候変動による度重なる浸水や、オーバーツーリズムの影響で環境破壊が深刻になっていました。その中でも常に地元民を悩ませて来たのは実はヴェネチアビエンナーレ後の世界各国のアーティストが残していく膨大な展示物の廃棄物問題でした。

そのためJINENに携わったメンバー全員が地球環境の再生、都市や建築のあり方について深く考えながら進めました。さらにパンデミックが起こり開催が1年延期され考えが深まりました。結果的に渡航制限はローカルの素材調達をさらに推し進めることを後押しし、JINENは建築物という価値を超えて、土壌の再生を可能にする循環の実践を展示する作品として発展しました。建てるだけでなく、展示が終わった後も、全てを活用し最後は土に還すということを前提に考えられています。

かつて日本においては土に還るというのは終わりでなく、新しい命のサイクルの始まりでした。特に建築においては、湿気も多く朽ちやすい我が国の風土に即して、自然に還る土や木などの自然素材を使用し、定期的に人が手を入れ作り替えることで天災や地震など、変化に柔軟な住まいを可能にし、常に新しさを保つための様々な技術や知恵が職人に継承されて来ました。
これは「常若 (とこわか) 」と呼ばれ、日本の聖地である伊勢神宮に1000年以上続く遷宮の習慣にも明らかです。 建築家の遠野未来は約20年、地域の土・木・人で大地を建築するをモットーに、まさに「常若 (とこわか) 」 の精神で土から生まれ土に還る「生命体」としての建築をつくることに取り組んできました。

循環をよりよくデザインするには、その地域への深い理解が必要だと考えています。循環は世界中どこでも同じステムではなく、それぞれの地域に適した多様性あるものではないかというのが私たちの考えです。

私たちの生活の中にあるすべてのもの、建物、食べ物、衣類など、すべてのものが、日々の生活の中で矛盾することなく循環を生み出すには、起点となる素材を出発点を見直し、使用の終わり側を踏まえたデザインを行う必要があるのです。だからこそまず自分たちの手で土や自然素材に触れ、土は次世代の宝物であることを感じて欲しいのです。

ヴェネチアからJINENを通じて、JINOWAの循環のアイデアを多様な形で実践し、様々なコミュニティの人々にインスピレーションとなるような活動をしたいと思っています。

‘Shifting the society and all business industries to contribute better soil for better future.’ this is the aim of JINOWA and what We are challenging now through a project of JINEN.

In 2019, Japanese architect Tono Mirai was invited by a cultural organization in the city of Venice. This initiative was born when Tono requested to be consulted by Yukako Saito, the founder of the JINOWA consortium based in Italy.

In May 2021, the JINOWA international consortium was formally founded and JINEN was built in Venezia as the first project.

The exhibition of JINEN in the European Culture Center in Venice is dedicated to showing how an artistic and science-based process of building (careful choice of material, slow construction and, eventually, breaking-down processes) can powerfully represent the circular values (both human and ecological), urgently required in order to address our current global environmental crisis.

For the city of Venice, Tono Mirai translated the complex concept of JINEN (“occurring naturally by itself” in Japanese) into an installation in the raw-earth building, stimulating thoughts on a lifestyle in perfect harmony with nature that unites the origins not only of Japanese culture but of every human civilization.

JINEN also contained a biodiversity-rich garden, being the temporary home to unique dune plants that aim to regenerate are characteristic of the Venetian lagoon ecosystem. Bringing those plants back to their “home”, symbolize a closed nutrient cycle and enrichment of the soil.

Venice has been developed as the centre of art by Venice Biennale for more than 120 years and recognition is always by the unique city of water.
In recent years, however, Venice citizen has been suffered from frequent flooding due to climate change, and over-tourism hit the serious environmental damage.

One of the problems that had always been claimed by the locals was the tremendous amount of waste of exhibits left behind in the Venice Biennale.

For this reason, all the members involved in JINEN were continuously concerned about the regeneration of the environment and the advanced role of cities and architecture because the exhibition has postponed for a year due to a pandemic.

Yet the travel restrictions consequently become a positive thinking trigger and enable us to the re-consider whole process to develop more locally. The initial idea was brushed up to the next level to create the value of a JINEN as not building but as a holistic exhibition of the practice of circulation to regenerate the soil worldwide.

The JINEN project is the premise that all materials should be returned to the soil. That is why We applied careful consideration even in the decomposition process.

Historically in Japan, the idea of the return to the soil was not the end of life but the beginning of a new cycle. In the case of traditional architecture, in particular, the use of natural materials for building such as soil, straw and wood, all are easily decayed under the high humidity in Japan. However, the regular and constant care by artisan enables to maintain the condition fresh. Japan has been invented the most appropriate circulation system matching to the geography to overcome frequent earthquake and natural hazards, that allowed the artisan to inherit a variety of techniques and wisdom of use nature for long years.


This is evident in the practice of "Tokowaka", the relocation of Ise Jingu over 1000 years. Ise Jingu is one of the most holy shrines in Japan to be rebuilt every 20 years to keep its spaces vital and refreshing.

Tono Mirai respects the spirit of "Tokowaka" - has been working to create architecture as a living organism that is born and returns to the earth.

We believe that the circulation design is required a deep comprehension of the regionality. It should not be a mono universal system but appropriate in each community by ourselves.

That is included everything in our lives, buildings, food and clothing, all need to be designed from the end of use to rethink the starting point of producing the material with no contradiction in the daily cycle of life.
That is why we want people to physically touch the soil and natural materials with their hands and feel that it is a treasure for future generations.


Starting from November, when the exhibition ends, JINEN will move on to the next exciting phase: rather than simply breaking down this unique artwork, the JINOWA consortium has agreed to use the occasion as an opportunity to imbibe new values among the local society, and transform all materials as products for aesthetic and educational use, and to launch several workshops and new collaborations for a range of initiatives — all in the spirit of increasing soil fertility, celebrating biodiversity and local ecosystems, and re-insert social-ecological values among the local community.

In particular, the JINOWA consortium has a strong commitment to soil education through the JINEN: the process of decomposing JINEN has great potential to put back soil nutrients in various places of the Venetian community, and enhance a sense of belonging and care for nature, which goes even beyond disposing of material in an ecological way. Eventually, we also envision that JINEN will serve as a gateway to initiative a new project - local green and edible gardens, and link with existing local initiatives on Giudecca Island in Venezia.

We at JINOWA with our trans-disciplinary and multiethnic and international human members - from Japan, Italy and Germany - are proud to bring to the JINEN project a plethora of creative new ideas, in oder to achieve a real transformation in two ways: 1) by maximizing the use of simple and natural materials through our technical expertise by 2) harnessing collaboration among organizations and individuals that share a common vision - a vision of living together on a healthy planet, healthy land and healthy waters.


From Venice, JINOWA wants to deliver the various practice of circulation as a hint for the future of services and products for the new global society.
That is why we want people to physically touch the soil with their hands and feel that it is a treasure for future generations.

https://jinowa.org