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.

Akiya Collective aims to purchase and renovate these akiyas into residencies and makerspaces for researchers and creators who are interested in having space to experiment and learn together in community. We hope that these centers can act as places for research, knowledge sabbaticals, while also helping with the revitalization of the surrounding community.

So far, we have already purchased a community home, and are in process of renovating it. We have also published our learnings in an open-source playbook (how to buy an akiya, how to create culture within communities -- emergent social science research / experimentation, research on how space informs constituent behavior and vice versa). Our community members who are looking to purchase akiya, or start residencies have already benefited and contributed to our document of shared learnings.

We plan to start residencies with partnered organizations (ranging from Desci organizations, to those focused on other creative technologies) next year in 2025.