■ Morning cycling
Spedagi is a social design project initiated in 2014 by a designer, Singgih S. Kartono. It is based in Kandangan Village, about 2 hours by car from Yogyakarta City, in the middle of Java Island, Indonesia. Spedagi word means riding bicycle in the morning. It is derived from word-combination of two Indonesian words, Sepeda which means bicycle and Pagi which means morning. Upon village revitalization, we take on account various social issues brought up by the villagers and provide advices from design perspective. Spedagi bamboo bike utilizes bamboo which abundantly grows in the village. Bamboo is used as the main parts, such as the bicycle frame. The bamboo bike then becomes the icon of Spedagi movement. Singgih’s concern upon the village decline crisis due to the worldwide urbanization encourages him to search for the solution. Under the need to explore the solution, International Conference on Village Revitalization (ICVR) was established and is continuously held biannually, both in Indonesia and abroad. The 2nd ICVR was held in 2016 in Ato area, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan.
■ Where we sprouted from
Activities of Spedagi Japan are rooted in the field of eco-design and sustainable design practices, which had been cultivated since the 1990s. The "International Conference on Eco Design" began in 1999 in Japan, continued by the "International Conference of Design for Sustainability (ICDS) " from 2006 to 2016, which then succeeded by Indonesia through he "International Conference on Village Revitalization (ICVR)" in 2014. Spedagi as a movement was born in 2012 and Spedagi Japan was in 2016, along with the 2nd ICVR.
■ Culture utilizing local resources
The centralized population in cities is a global phenomenon. It happens both in highly increasing population areas and also in decreasing population areas, such as Japan. This results in the imbalance of distribution of young people in between the city and the rural areas. Aiming to make a more dynamic movement, a blended community and to effectively utilize the limited land, Spedagi Japan will be a living proof in raising the unique culture of utilizing the distinctive local resources of each region.
1
Developing and running workshop where people gathers in a rural mountain area
In Ato, Yamaguchi City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, we have developed a design studio that utilizes a closed school.
2
Making and manufacturing things utilizing local natural resources.
We use Take which abundantly grows naturally for bicycle frame, etc. We do design development with the keywords of reproduction and circulation.
3
Planning and management of activities to reinforce the local sustainability
We propose a culture of community according to the worldwide agreement in making sustainable civilization at the global level.
4
Providing information dissemination and public relations through international conferences, seminars, workshops to promote our activities.
For the realization of 1 to 3, we held the ICVR international conference and workshops with the Ato area as the field.