Kousuke Kinoshita
FabCafe Kyoto MTRL Marketing and Production
Kousuke Kinoshita has been the Manager of FabCafe MTRL Kyoto since it's open in 2017. MTRL ("Material") supports material co-creation and innovation at manufacturing companies while FabCafe Kyoto is a technology and innovation-centered place for gatering a diverse community of creators, researchers, and companies. Through the management of online/offline workshops and the production of exhibition projects, Kousuke aims to create a place where chemical reactions occur and implement a contextual design that connects things and concepts from diverse fields.
Judge’s selections
Beyond Mining & Transportation Prize
The Fossilizator
Néolithe
This project shatters the accepted wisdom that stones are something to be mined and transported. The shock was so great that I had to read it twice. There are all kinds of ways to recycle waste, but The Fossilizator is a remarkably far-reaching attempt to establish a sustainable regional economy, one that goes beyond creating new materials out of waste to include other benefits such as local job creation, carbon sequestration, and reductions in mining and transportation. It’s also impressive to create new foundations for buildings and roads using the same fossilization processes that formed the Earth over millions of years.
Data Visualization Prize
Aquaterrestrial Recolonization
College For Creative Studies, Detroit, United States / University of The Bahamas, Nassau, Bahamas / AI.R Lab, United States
This felt to me like a valid approach to saving coral reefs. It uses AI to visualize what coral reefs are supposed to look like in their natural state, so we intuitively grasp the need for conservation and restoration. I’d like to know how this data can be used effectively and how we might design human interventions aimed at reversing the damage done to reefs by rising sea temperatures and pollution. I’d also like to hear more about coral regeneration efforts such as transplantation and cultivation, and how this project might be linked to them in future.
Post-Enlightenment Prize
A drop in the Ocean
Individual
I must admit I was surprised by a concept that encourages us to abandon empty food containers on the beach. Then again, no matter how much we promote enlightened attitudes towards waste management, there will always be people whose behavior we can’t change. This idea could be a shortcut to improving the marine environment through beach-going itself, regardless of individual attitudes towards waste. Implementation seems straightforward as the containers are simple to manufacture and distribute, with economic benefits for restaurants that dispose of oyster shells and factories that make the containers. The system is designed to start small, and I could sense real possibilities here.
Bulk Recycling Prize
Japan’s first craft beer made from disaster stockpiles
CEO
I was taken aback by the idea that disaster stockpiles nearing their end of life could be conceived of as a resource, rather than as something to be disposed of as waste. It was fascinating to learn that stockpiled food such as dry bread and quick-cooking rice can be used as ingredients to brew beers with unique flavors. Even if I don’t know the background to how it’s made, the label makes me want to pick up a bottle and have a taste. I love that simple yet powerful appeal. We want it simply because we want it, which is so important for sustainable distribution.
Versatile Design Prize
open material
openmaterial
I was thrilled by this solution as it applies lateral thinking to a dying technology. Circularity in outdoor advertising is technically feasible but has been hindered by complex structural issues. I love how this solution makes use of existing printing equipment, creates general-purpose materials instead of new products, and is designed with expansion in mind. I also detect a critical gaze being turned on the companies which continue to cover cities with huge advertisements promoting consumption and then immediately throw them away.