Building an Ishibadate Foundation Yourself: Steps, Tools, and Honest Warnings
A step-by-step look at self-building an ishibadate stone foundation — excavation, charcoal and gravel groundwork, setting stones — with honest advice
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English versions of EKAM blog articles
Rain Gardens: A Regenerative Answer to Kanto’s Flood Risk
As flooding hits Kanto again and again, rain gardens let homeowners hold stormwater on their own property. A regenerative landscaping take on urban fl
Why Learning Regenerative Landscaping Basics Pays Off for Homeowners
You don't need to be a professional to read your own land. Regenerative landscaping basics help homeowners spot yard problems and storm and earthquake
Why Learning Regenerative Landscaping Pays Off for Professionals
Regenerative landscaping turns contractors into diagnosticians who justify higher rates. The logic, plus a roadmap for building the skill on real job
Ishibadate Abroad: Can Japan’s Stone-Foundation Timber Framing Work Overseas?
Can ishibadate, Japan's stone-foundation timber framing, be built overseas? Similar methods worldwide, building codes, seismic proof, and low-carbon t
Ishibadate and the Japanese Spirit: Why Pillars Rest, Unfixed, on Stone
Why does ishibadate rest pillars on stone without fixing them? Explore the Japanese view of nature behind buildings that stand for a thousand years.
Disaster Recovery’s Two Timescales: Balancing Speed and Certainty in Rebuilding Ground
Emergency response protects today; true restoration protects the next decade. A real case where traditional pile-and-stone construction was chosen for
How to Assess Your Lot’s Ground Risk: Valley Fill, Ground Surveys, and Reading the Report
Your lot's earthquake ground risk can be researched before disaster strikes. How to identify valley fill and cut-fill boundaries, the two main ground
Why Rain After an Earthquake Is So Dangerous: Shaken Slopes and Landslide Warning Signs
A slope that survived the shaking can fail in the next rain. What happens inside a shaken slope, the typical sequence of slope failure, landslide warn
Ishibadate: Why Japan’s Stone-Foundation Timber Buildings Release Earthquake Energy
In traditional Japanese ishibadate construction, columns rest on foundation stones without anchors — and temples built this way have stood for over a