The Future Design Institute is an independent research laboratory established by the Kanazawa Institute of Technology in 2003 to investigate the changing nature of communication in the home environment, creativity, and design strategies for the future. It brings together artists, scientists, creators, and thinkers from many disciplines for collaborative research and discussion.

Located in Tokyo's Harajuku district, the FDI is an multidisciplinary, open think tank devoted to basic design research. Our areas of interest include:

--Design of the home environment and home technology

--Spatial design that encourages communication.

--The role of the hand in learning and creation

--Sustainability

Through joint research projects, design, discussion, exhibition, and writing, the FDI seeks to discover how to encourage openness, stimulate creativity, and balance rational organization and creative chaos in the environment just as we would balance them in our imaginations.  With the participation and expert input of colleagues from many fields, we have developed a far-sighted approach that takes advantage of an artistic process of suggestion and intuition, guided by science and a deep consideration of culture and technology.

Our award-winning work has been featured in the National Geographic Documentary “Tokyo: Living Small in the Big City,” on NPR, and has been profiled in Time, Newsweek, and other prominent publications. The director is the author of several books including Just Enough: Lessons in living green from traditional Japan,  The Genius of Japanese Carpentry, Small Spaces, The Japanese Dream House, and The Very Small Home

We welcome you to the Future Design Institute.