AIJ Prize 2026 Practical Achievement Division

Award winner

Professor  KITAGAWA Keisuke (Architecture, Civil Engineering, and Industrial Management Engineering Group)
Researcher KITAGAWA Tamami

Award-winning research

Outstanding Pioneering Contribution to Enhancing Living Environments Worldwide through Instant House

Related Website of the winner

KITAGAWA Keisuke Lab.

Related Website

AIJ Prizes 2026

Outline

The Architectural Institute of Japan Prize Achievement Division is awarded to outstanding accomplishments completed in recent years that have significantly contributed to the advancement of scholarship, technology, and the arts.

Professor KITAGAWA Keisuke and Researcher KITAGAWA Tamami of Nagoya Institute of Technology began this endeavor after encountering a group of elementary school children at an evacuation shelter following the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011. Two elementary school children said, "If you are university professors, you would be able to build us a house right away." This heartfelt remark became the catalyst for their work. Guided by the belief that "it should be natural for people everywhere on Earth who lack enough housing to have access to comfortable and durable homes," Professor KITAGAWA Keisuke and Researcher KITAGAWA Tamami have researched and developed the Instant House and delivered it to people facing housing insecurity both in Japan and abroad.

The Instant House is a structure characterized by a simple construction method whose shape and size can be freely selected according to need. Its light weight allows even a single adult to assemble it with ease. Each unit can be installed in a remarkably short period, ranging from several tens of minutes to a few hours, while providing excellent thermal insulation and soundproofing indoors. It is an architectural solution that excels in affordability, simplicity, speed, technical ingenuity, and versatility.

In recognition of this pioneering contribution to the improvement of living environments both in Japan and internationally through the Instant House, the Architectural Institute of Japan has graciously conferred upon us the Architectural Institute of Japan Prize Achievement Division.

Award Winner's Remarks:

"We are deeply honored to receive this prestigious award for our long-standing series of activities centered on the Instant House, recognized as an "Outstanding Pioneering Contribution to Enhancing Living Environments Worldwide through Instant House." We would like to express our sincere and heartfelt gratitude.
The origin of this work lies in the words spoken by two elementary school children whom we met at an evacuation shelter after the Great East Japan Earthquake: "If you are university professors, you would be able to build us a house right away." That single sentence transformed our work into a mission transcending academic research in architecture. Since then, we have continued our efforts to deliver the Instant House to disaster-stricken areas, refugee camps, and conflict-affected regions both in Japan and around the world.

This award is by no means the result of the efforts of the two of us alone. It is built upon the accumulated passion and support of many people, Professor WAKAYAMA Shigeru, who has guided us continuously since our undergraduate days, numerous professors in Japan and abroad, our fellow collaborative researchers who have walked alongside us in daily research and development; and all past and present members of KITAGAWA Keisuke assistants, and secretaries. We also extend our heartfelt thanks to our families, especially our family, who have supported us unwaveringly, even engaging in discussions that drew upon the expertise of traditional Japanese confectionery artisans when exploring how to increase the air content of materials.

Above all, we wish to express our deepest gratitude to the countless individuals in disaster areas, refugee camps, and conflict zones around the world who have worked with us, shoulder to shoulder, to build the Instant Houses, sharing the unspoken understanding that "by having a home once again, we can walk toward the future with hope," and that "together, we can build a better world and a better society."

We would also like to sincerely thank the President, Board members, and all faculty and staff of Nagoya Institute of Technology who swiftly established Nagoya Institute of Technology Fund immediately after the Noto Peninsula Earthquake on January 1, 2024, enabling prompt support for improving living environments in the affected areas through the Instant House. Furthermore, it is only through the daily support of all members of Nagoya Institute of Technology who continually uphold our challenges in academic research activities such as research, development, invention, and practical implementation, as well as broader social contributions that this work has been able to continue.

That said, we feel that this award represents only the very first step, perhaps the first of ten steps on a long staircase. There is still much, much, much more to be done.

Guided by our unwavering belief in "Realizing a World in which it is Natural for All People on Earth who Lack Housing to Have Access to Comfortable and Durable Homes," we will continue to dedicate ourselves fully, devoting our lives and utmost efforts for the benefit of society. We humbly ask for the continued guidance, encouragement, and support.