A Multiscale Regenerative Design Approach Toward Transformative Capacities: The Case of Shimokitazawa, Tokyo

Hiroki Nakajima ()
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Hiroki Nakajima: Department of Urban Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 17, 1-24

Abstract: Regenerative design (RD) is attracting attention as a concept that goes beyond sustainability. However, RD has been criticized as an overly theoretical and abstract approach. This study constructs a multiscale RD approach in urban areas by combining the theoretical frameworks of an adaptive planning approach based on the complex adaptive systems (CAS) theory and transformative capacities (TC) through the case study of Shimokita-Senrogai. The study’s main contribution is to materialize the process for a multiscale RD approach in urban areas, where it is difficult to reach consensus among diverse stakeholders immediately. The main finding is identifying the necessary conditions for implementing an RD approach that enhances TC by adapting to urban uncertainties from global climate change to local civic dynamics through the agency of more-than-human actor networks. Based on these, this study proposes a methodology to visualize actors, their activity ranges, bases, and ecosystemic flows across multiple territorial scales beyond the development site and its vicinity.

Keywords: regenerative design; complex adaptive systems (CAS); transformative capacities (TC); machizukuri (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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