Living Water-Sustaining the Legacy of Japan’s Biwa Lakeside Water in Contemporary Urban Development
C. Yang (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
Inge Bobbink – Mentor (TU Delft - Landscape Architecture)
Willemijn Wilms Floet – Mentor (TU Delft - Situated Architecture)
W. J. Quist – Graduation committee member (TU Delft - Heritage & Architecture)
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Abstract
Lake Biwa in Japan stands as the nation's largest inland body of water, harboring over a thousand species of flora and fauna. In the past, the hydrological system of Lake Biwa operated seamlessly, with humans, animals, and plants interconnected by water, mutually influencing and sustaining each other, leading to ecological equilibrium.
However, over the past century, Japan has undergone significant transformations, including World War II, economic resurgence, and urbanization. The inner lake has been replaced by farmland, and rigid embankments have been constructed around it. These incremental changes have eroded the once robust system, with human development gradually exceeding the system's capacity. Presently, water no longer serves as a conduit between humans and nature; instead, it is perceived as a threat and a problem. Consequently, water heritage has been gradually abandoned due to its inability to meet contemporary lifestyle demands, obscuring the valuable and distinctive aspects of the land.
As a landscape architect, I am captivated by the former splendor of the site's system and lament the trend of its gradual disappearance. I aspire to reconstruct Lake Biwa's hydro-cultural heritage through landscape interventions, strengthening its distinctive characteristics while integrating new functionalities to create inclusive public spaces