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Kobayashi Lab
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A lab exploring what architecture can do in a Japan with a shrinking population.
AboutAbout the lab
Seeing an unstable era in a positive light.
The Kobayashi Lab studies what roles architecture and cities can play in Japan, where the population is shrinking.
Through diverse surveys and analyses, the lab explores the possibilities of new architecture and living spaces from both theoretical and practical perspectives.
Targeting towns in Japan and abroad, the lab holds workshops and exhibitions in cooperation with local residents and other universities.
Key terms
- Shrinking Society
- A society in which the population declines and the scale of the economy and cities also becomes smaller
- Fieldwork
- A research method in which researchers visit a place in person and conduct observation and interviews
- Workshop (WS)
- An activity in which students go to a site and learn through surveying and making
NewsLab news
An undergraduate student placed 3rd at Sendai Design League 2026, Japan's national graduation design competition
An undergraduate student received the Jury Prize in the Student Category of the 1st Setouchi International Architecture Design Implementation Competition 2025
A master's student received the Grand Prize in the Student Category of the 1st Setouchi International Architecture Design Implementation Competition 2025
A master's student was selected in the Tohoku Chapter round of the Architectural Institute of Japan Design Competition for FY2024
ResearchResearch themes
The Kobayashi Lab studies what roles architecture and architectural thinking can play in society, cities, and living spaces, using Japan, where the population is shrinking, as its setting. Focusing on towns and industrial sites in Japan and abroad, the lab explores these possibilities through surveys, analysis, and workshops.
*Illustrative imageAn Exhibition on the Meaning of Machi-koba
Based on research that began in 2024, the lab held an exhibition exploring what lies behind the word "machi-koba" (small neighborhood factories), such as their ties to the local community and a way of life in which home and workplace are one.
*Illustrative imageFood and the City Workshop
As a "Food and the City" research group launched with Nihon University and Saga University, the lab held a joint workshop of the three universities in Bangkok and studied urban landscapes related to food, such as food stalls and markets.
*Illustrative imageInternational Symposium on Machi-koba
This was the first symposium of the "Machi-koba Project," conducted jointly by Waseda University, Sophia University, and the University of Ottawa. Reports on interviews and field surveys about machi-koba were presented.
*Illustrative imageCreating a Hub for Exchange with Technical Intern Trainees
In Tosa, Kochi Prefecture, this project involves the spatial design and construction of a hub where technical intern trainees and local residents can interact. The lab handled work such as making fixtures and building a wheelchair-accessible ramp.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Kobayashi Lab consist of faculty and doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students.As of 2026
- Associate ProfessorKeigo Kobayashi
VoicesStudent voices
Compiled from answers by students who were in the lab. Ratings and reviews reflect individual students' experiences, not the lab's official views.
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Empty seats” ProjectManhattan / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- An Exhibition on the Meaning of Machi-koba: “Tamanoi saw-tooth roof factories ac (4)” Asturio Cantabrio / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Food and the City Workshop: “FishBall-ChickenStick-Sausage IMG 7461” Per Meistrup / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- International Symposium on Machi-koba: “Tin Can phones TMW.agr” ArnoldReinhold / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Creating a Hub for Exchange with Technical Intern Trainees: “Yoorala Street Community Garden, plots 2” Aliceinthealice / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (渡邊研究室): “Mangrove roots in the Laguna de La Restinga” Wilfredor / CC0 (cropped)
- Related lab (田中研究室): “Kintsugi on broken Kyūsu lid-top oblique PNr°1258” D-Kuru / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (宮本研究室): “Government Center Study models ( )” City of Boston Archives from West Roxbury, United States / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (吉村研究室): “Tiny house, Portland” Tammy / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
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