At the Intersection of Culture, Community & Resilience
Jason Takeuchi, AIA, NCARB, NOMA
1 AIA LU|HSW
Resilience is about more than whether buildings survive. Before and after disasters strike, architects must also consider the people, cultures, relationships, and systems that allow communities to recover and thrive. Drawing from lessons in Hawaiʻi and post-disaster areas, Jason Takeuchi, AIA, explores design at the intersection of culture, community, and resilience. Through examples of architectural and planning responses, attendees will examine how indigenous knowledge, local traditions, key infrastructure, and lived experience can shape resilient design. This keynote challenges architects to look beyond buildings as physical space and examine how our profession can strengthen the interconnected networks that create cohesive, responsive, inclusive, and resilient communities.
Jason Takeuchi, AIA, NCARB, NOMA is a fourth-generation Japanese American born and raised in Hawaii. As a mission-driven architect at Ferraro Choi, Jason is passionate about building resilience of his community through stewardship of the unique culture and environment of Hawai‘i. Jason is a proud graduate of Hawai‘i public schools and received a Doctor of Architecture degree from the University of Hawaii at Mānoa.
Beyond practice, Jason served as 2024 Chair of the AIA National Young Architects Forum (YAF) and the Regional Associate Director and Young Architect Representative to the AIA Northwest and Pacific Region. At AIA25 in Boston, he was elected as 2026-2028 At-Large Director to the AIA National Board.
An advocate for the next generation, Jason created AIA Honolulu’s first Student Design Awards as Design Awards Chair and founded the chapter’s Mentorship Program and Emerging Professionals Committee.
Jason is a recipient of the 2018 AIA Associates Award, Building Design + Construction Magazine’s 40 Under 40 recognition, the UH School of Architecture Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumni Award and the 2023 AIA Young Architects Award.