NREV jointly investigates urban planningwith Japanese and Vietnamese university students

Summary

• Nomura Real Estate Vietnam, in collaboration with Japan Women’s University and Ho Chi Minh City University of Architecture, held a workshop on urban planning.
• Under the concept of “Living with Nature,” the participants studied the living environment of Tan Da area and proposed urban and architectural design ideas.
• This article is published with permission from NNA Co., Ltd., a provider of Asian economic and business news.
• The original article was published on March 27, 2026, on the official NNA website: https://www.nna.jp/

【Background / Details】

Nomura Real Estate Vietnam recently co-organized a workshop for students in collaboration with Japan Women’s University and Ho Chi Minh City University of Architecture (UAH). UAH is a prestigious architecture university in the south. This is the first time that the university has co-hosted a workshop for students with a Japanese developer. A total of 31 students from both universities surveyed apartment complexes in Thanh da, Ho Chi Minh City and proposed urban planning and architectural design to enrich the area while preserving existing livelihoods. Nomura Real Estate Vietnam will consider reflecting the students’ proposals in actual properties.

The implementation period is 9~18 days. World-renowned architect Satoko Shinohara and Vietnamese housing researcher Nam Phan also participated as lecturers. Nobuhiro Inudo, co-president of the Japanese architectural design firm Studio Anettai (Ho Chi Minh City), and Joshua Treadway, assistant professor at the University of Central Florida, were also present to give lectures and comment on student proposals.

The participants were 30 Japanese and Vietnamese students studying architectural design, and history, all of whom were applicants. They were divided into five groups of mixed Japanese and Vietnamese. The groups investigated housing complexes in the surrounding Thanh Da area and presented urban planning and housing design with the theme of “living in nature”.

The five groups proposed an urban model that makes use of existing buildings while living in harmony with local residents and nature. A plan to renovate an existing house inspired by a devise to encourage interaction between residents and a traditional Japanese technique called “kintsugi,” which uses lacquer to repair damaged parts of ceramics., and presented ideas for introducing urban agriculture rooted in local communities.

Tomotaka Yoshida, head of the design department of Nomura Real Estate Vietnam, who organized the workshop, evaluated the students’ presentations as “high quality overall.” He says that the proposal using handwritten drawings and models is a different approach from conventional condominium design, and it was a good opportunity to think about urban sustainability, including the coexistence of nature and architecture.

Vietnamese housing complexes are characterized by ambiguous boundaries between public spaces, with potted plants placed in corridors and expanded by residents. A student from Japan Women’s University who participated said, “I was inspired by the open space and the life that is closely related to nature.”

Nomura Real Estate Vietnam has signed an industry-academia collaboration partnership with three architectural universities in Vietnam, including UAH, in 25 to conduct joint research on urban and architectural design.