廃校 - Haiko Summit

"Haiko"  means "Closed Schools" in Japanese term.

Japan is now suffering from national low birth rate and high migration of the youth to the cities, leaving the schools in villages abandoned, and finally forced to closed.

There are around 8 Haikos in Yamaguchi Prefecture today, the buildings and infrastructure are still so good, the surroundings are still so natural and untouched. The best part is, the elderly people are still so young in mind and heart to share whatever possible to bring us, the young, back to these villages again.

They even created The Haiko Summit, in order to bring back life to these closed schools in the villages. They are gathering ideas from wherever and whoever possible to help waking the Haikos up again. I am beyond blessed to be trusted a chance to help them gather ideas on designing these Haikos into a new center where people will love to gather around villages again. If any of you would love to help them, just leave them a message of your young and fresh ideas, even if their site is in Japanese, they do understand English well.

Honestly, being a youth in this room had trully brought shame to myself and my generation. I know our generation are mostly born in the cities, not in villages. 

I know our generation are in love with convinient stores, not in ricefields and rivers. But we should also know, that our earth was basically born out of the nature, not out of the industries.

Therefore, let us respect and help those who knows this earth better, the elderly and eventually, the earth itself. We may be the young today, but we will be the old like them too, one day.

Thank you for reminding us to believe in life beyond the inconvinience. I am sorry for making you experience the convinience of my generation, we call it: your first-time-ever-selfie :D


Contact them at:
https://www.facebook.com/yamaguchiclosedschoolsummit/
http://openhouse.co.jp/


JP.09.10.2016
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#JapanLifeLesson

廃校 - Abandoned Treasures in an Abandoned Place

Every day is a story and every person is a story teller.

If you cannot record, just take photo.
If you cannot take photo, just write.
If you cannot write, just draw.
Whatever you do, keep a track of it.

Because you will never know,
That after 30 years,
Some random kids may find your story so inspiring.




Yasuhiko Tanaka, whoever you were, you're rock! Thank you for sketching the history in details. Your sketches have successfully taught my generation patience and proofed that pictures really do speak a thousand words.
@ Ato Bunko, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan

JP.24.09.2016
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#JapanLifeLesson

Eventually Everything Connects

Thanks to this durian lady. Without her, I may not remember I had a blog to continue.

"Sis!"

Sounds like I'm going to shop on an online shop, right? But that's how we call her, Fransisca Callista, that is her name, at least that is what I read on her Facebook. 

2014

By that time, I still had no idea why I joined this ICVR (International Conference of Village Revitalization) and ICDS (International Conference of Design for Sustainability) in Temanggung, Central Java, a place I even never know existed on this island. All I can remember was that I had a huge curiosity on sustainability, and I still had no idea why this urge had never left me since I entered my university life. This was the reason I took Sustainable Design class in my interior design majoir, and this was the main point that brought to ICVR & ICDS. It never crossed my mind that a simple conference registration form had successfully brought my memory back to 2011, a year of crazy decisions.

2011

As I write this down, I recall that interior design was never truly my calling, but sustainability always had, since 2011. People said that finishing high school is nice, because afterward you can just choose to learn only what you love, in a simpler classes, in your own major of passion, which worldly known a university life. I remember applying a sustainability-related majors in some public university in Indonesia, I also remember granted a full-scholarship abroad for an environmental design major, the only thing I loved back then. But since I never granted the permission to leave home too far, so I browsed for a closer one, and I found one here in Surabaya, a city up north just two hours away from my home at Malang. Why interior design? Trust me, simply because it was the only major under The Art and Design Faculty which did not sound so hard, and I need only to pass a surprise drawing test (which I had no idea it was exactly the test day when I submitted my form). If I pass the test, my parents are going to pay for me, to draw people's houses all day long, for four years, and I will get a degree for that. Seriously, why the hell not?

2016

This year I met this Sis once again. Unexpectedly, exactly in the same place where we first met last two years ago. I guess the love of sustainability has brought us back again. We had helped Spedagi built up this Pasar Papringan with other volunteers, a market as a village responsibility and as a bamboo forest revitalization. We had shared many things during the event and Sis told me one day, "Promise me one thing before you go home. Follow your passion, keep sketching, explore sketchbooks, share what you have, make a blog, whatever! Try everything you love. And if you have your blog published, make sure I have the link". Now everything is starting to make sense, the puzzle is completed. Joining that conference was the best thing ever. Because it led me to this Sis. Because it led me to realize that eventually everything connects. Guess what, it led me to this old blog I had since 2007. 

That day I wrote as an escape from my crazy life. 
Today I am writing this down, not to escape it again. 
As life is crazy anyway, so I will write anyway.

SBY.07.03.2016

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