Categoria: Seminari e Convegni
Stato: Corrente
22-26 June 2026

Learning from Satoyama: The Japanese Way to Sustainable Built Environment

Castello del Valentino - MAO Torino

The Learning from Satoyama: The Japanese Way to Sustainable Built Environment Festival explores issues relating to the sustainability of the built environment, from architecture to the local landscape, through collaboration between Italian and Japanese experts, academics, professionals and students.
The concept of Satoyama represents the balance between society and the environment in which it is embedded, ranging from the circular use of natural resources which characterizes the traditional rural model, to the contemporary pursuit of ecological sustainability in architecture, and in the management and transformation of the landscape and the city. The theories and principles guiding the design and transformation of the environment will be explored through three activities:

#1 International Seminar
22th June 2026 from 8:30 to 14:00, Castello del Valentino, Sala Zodiaco (Torino)
Sustainable built environment. Research topics and methods
RESERVED to researchers of both university

Jointly organized by Politecnico di Torino (DIST Interuniversity Department of Regional and Urban Studies and Planning, and DAD Department of Architecture and Design) and Waseda University (Department of Architecture, Graduate School of Creative Science and Engineering), this Seminar explores research areas of shared interest among the two universities to facilitate prospective collaborations, namely: Architectural heritage: history, rehabilitation, management; Architectural and Urban Design, Urban and Regional Planning; Structural Design, and Sustainable Building Environment.
It is open to faculties and PhD students.

Scientific coordination:
Ariga Takashi (Waseda University), Cassatella Claudia (Politecnico di Torino DIST)
Scientific and Organising Committee: Cassatella Claudia, Andrea Bocco, Michele Bonino, Marco Santangelo, Magda Bolzoni, Mauro Berta, Mauro Volpiano.

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#2 International Design Workshop
23-26th June 2026, Castello del Valentino - MAO
Designing the Open Museum: from Heritage to Living Courtyard
Open only to students selected by the two universities.

Working on the entrance space, the actual courtyard covered garden, and the relationship with the terrace of the MAO, the participants will explore how a semi-enclosed urban space can become an open, living, interactive environment with the city, where ecological processes and human activities coexist. The project invites students to conceptualize and imagine spaces that are: adaptive and flexible spaces, able to host different uses over time. The workshop encourages a situated and experimental approach, translating Satoyama principles into contemporary design practices and opening new possibilities for public space in the city.

Teaching staff:
Prof. Takashi Ariga, Prof. Keigo Kobayashi, Dr. Mei Komatsu, Prof. Claudia Cassatella, Prof. Michele Bonino, Prof. Andrea Bocco, Arch. PhD Ilaria Tonti, Arch. Giorgia Greco, Arch. Shushanik Ovakimian.
Coordination and Organization
Politecnico di Torino – Departments DAD e DIST Prof. Claudia Cassatella (coordinator), Prof. Michele Bonino (Director DAD), Prof. Andrea Bocco (Director DIST), Arch. PhD Ilaria Tonti (DAD), Arch. Giorgia Greco (DAD)
Info: mao.designworkshop@gmail.com

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#3 CONFERENCES AND FINAL EVENT

23th June 2026 ore 17:30 - 18:30, MAO Torino, Sala Polifunzionale
Open conference: KOBAYASHI Kaigo - Department of Architecture, Waseda University
Cultivating Incomplete Circulations - Mediating ecologies of living and production
Introduction and moderation: Prof. Michele Bonino (Politecnico di Torino)

26th June 2026 - h. 18:00 - 20:00, MAO, Sala Polifunzionale
Presentation of the Workshop outcomes
Welcome and greetings
Dr. Davide Quadrio; MAO Director
YAGI Koji, Consul of Japan in Milan
Prof. Alberto Sapora, PoliTO Vice-Rector for International Affairs
Prof. Giuseppe Quaglia, PoliTO Japan Hub Director

26th June 2026 - h. 19:00 - 20:00
Open conference: ARIGA Takashi, Department of Architecture, Waseda University
Design for Sustainable Urbanism: Learning From the Idea of “Satoyama”
Introduction and moderation: Prof. Claudia Cassatella (Politecnico di Torino)

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Festival curated by:
Politecnico di Torino: Claudia Cassatella, Michele Bonino, Andrea Bocco
MAO: Davide Quadrio
Waseda University: Takashi Ariga

In partnership with:
MAO - Museum of Oriental Art [Turin]

With the organizational support of:
PoliTO Japan Hub [Turin]

Under the patronage of:
Consolato Generale del Giappone a Milano [Milan]
Fondazione per l’Architettura [Turin]


INFORMATION