AKIYA

Enter this inspiring world of unique beauty and incredible attention to detail in the land of the rising sun. Rooted in ancient traditions and wisdom, yet boldly looking forward, Japan will take your breath away.

Hand crafted by Alex Hartan

akiya~

空き家

a community-driven project to renovate abandoned houses in Japan into creative residencies and interactive habitats.

join the community

Akiya Collective hosts residencies where our community works together to build homes that are in harmony with the local environment. These residencies are voted on, crowdfunded, and sourced by the community, for the community.
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We’re cultivating a network for people to explore an alternative economy, co-habitate with locals, and create experiential spaces in the pursuit of collective flourishing.

our mission begins in japan

by 2030, one third of all homes in japan will be vacant. an aging population and the concentration of youth in urban areas have caused a massive housing crisis in the countryside.

we will purchase and renovate these 空き家 (akiya - “empty home”) into creative residencies and installations that preserve local culture, symbolizing a vote towards rural revitalization.

these homes will serve as bridges to connect the local area, bringing economic opportunity, collaborative practices, and cultural exchange.

our digital citizenship

this isn’t just about renovating a home together; Akiya Collective is about the practice of sustainable co-creation, regenerative symbiosis, and applying these philosophies to other areas of life.

we began by creating an online community. now we're creating a physical space. in order to bridge the two, we need tools for coordination: our digital citizenship.

all sales will go to fund research and renovation efforts of akiyas in our community network*.

*a portion will also be donated to support local initiatives in the town we are in

your citizenship pass includes:

community

lifelong access to our community with IRL perks

the power of community is most potent when manifested in the physical. we’re building a diverse, global community of talented individuals and bringing them together in exceptional spaces around the world, beginning with rural japan.

lifelong access to our community with IRL perks.

we’re building a diverse, global community and bringing them together in exceptional spaces around the world, beginning with rural japan.

mint
01/03

resources

digital resources to assist you in purchasing your own akiya in our networked areas.

we're building a village. and we want you to be a part of it: this could be experimenting with a community home, or buying your own nearby.

digital resources to assist you in purchasing your own akiya in our networked areas.

this could be experimenting with a community home, or buying your own nearby.

mint
02/03

creative genesis

you get to help us determine which akiya regions we explore next, and what kinds of experiences are run inside existing homes

to go fast, go alone; to go far, go together. this is a project that may last far beyond ourselves -- and we are going to have so much fun doing it

voting rights to determine where we go next, and what kinds of experiences are run inside existing homes

this is a journey of co-creation. we invite you to join.

mint
03/03

Join the waitlist

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playbook

01 | playbook
01 | playbook

tsuji residence

1
goal

some stuff here

wow

more wow

< click the arrow for more
see photo
read more

tsuji residence

2
some stuff here

more stuff here

blah

cool cool

see photo

do you want to come create at our residence?

give us your email

we promise we won't spam you... much

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any questions or want to contribute more?

join our discord or slide in our dms at daoakiya@gmail.com

see photo

street lab

about
goal

create NFTs that thrive in both the meta & meat-verse, combining streetwear with sustainable materials to unlock resources to redirect back to healing our planet

hypothesis

if we create sustainable (wearable & digital) streetwear NFTs with a portion of each sale going back towards local sustainable organizations, we can leverage art and community to heal our ecosystems.

< click the arrow for more
see photo
read more

forest ecosystem

experiment 1
experiment theme

within the forest ecosystem, we will be focusing on the mycelium network. this is the oldest representation of how the symbiotic nature of interconnected ecosystems lead to the best chances of our collective flourishing

embodying the bridge

we hope to inspire, educate, and empower all those who are curious about the world of mycelium and what mycology has to offer.

we want to enable others to pursue what they are curious about, connect with other passionate individuals, and feel a sense of belonging while doing Good

see photo

do you resonate with
our mission?

yes
give us your email

we promise we won't spam you... much

thanks! make sure to confirm in your inbox. wagmi
oops! something went wrong - try again :)
any questions or want to contribute more?

slide in our dms at hello@smoothlabs.xyz

see photo

it's easy to purchase a house. it is much harder to integrate well into, and be truly welcome in a community.

through our research, we changed our approach from finding the perfect house, to finding local partners, communities, and networks that would be able to help us integrate into our environment.

here's the open-source playbook that documents our learnings.

this includes akiya available in locations around us, stewards from different areas to act as local ambassadors, as well as information we have discovered in our research, like government stipends and grants available per region.

we'd love to iterate on it and learn alongside you. join our community to stay up-to-date!

our constitution and core ethos

02 | white paper
02 | white paper

our ethos is centered around revitalization through collective creation. how do we turn an empty space into a vibrant and flourishing space for creators, while also preserving historical values?

these akiyas represent blank canvases, a tabula rasa playground for a community to collective define and shape.

here, we experiment on everything from architecture and spatial design to collective ritual setting. join us on this grand adventure!

read more in our whitepaper here.

get involved

03 | contribute
03 | contribute

we're introducing a system where you can contribute to our efforts, and in return, earn time-to-stay in our community house. anyone can get involved in our workstreams, and onboard via our discord.

our community also gathers to engage in thought-provoking discussions on digital creation, coliving, sustainable living, and much more. we also host interactive events such as boardgame nights, speaker series, and language learning sessions.
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if you're a fan of this project and would like to donate, you can contribute financially here. 100% of proceeds go toward the purchase and renovation of akiya. we’re depending on community contributions to bring our collective dream to reality; we greatly appreciate your generosity.

apply for core team

we're looking for 4-5 people to join the dedicated core contributor team for Akiya Collective.

this is for people seriously interested in living in japan, helping out with the rural revitalization crisis, creating more spaces for art + wonder, and getting to do so with a community of brilliant + intentional creatives.

apply here today!

Akiya Collective 2023. made with ❤️
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AKIYA

ENTER