Project Gakko Reborn

Scattered along the 3.11 Densho Road in Tohoku, Japan, stand the remains of tsunami-damaged school buildings—now preserved as powerful memorials. These structures withstood the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami, thanks to Japan’s commitment to building schools with extra resilience, recognizing their importance to future generations.

Though no longer able to serve their original educational purpose, these schools have been reborn as poignant monuments. Their scarred walls and abandoned classrooms now educate the public in a different way—bearing witness to the devastating force of nature and reminding us never to take disasters lightly.

This series focuses on the current state of these memorial sites, especially the classrooms, and aims to raise awareness of the meaningful efforts by local communities who continue to care for and preserve them.

We also hope to inspire travelers to visit these powerful yet often overlooked places in Tohoku. By drawing interest away from Japan’s over-touristed cities like Tokyo and Kyoto, and encouraging deeper engagement with rural areas, we not only help ease tourism congestion but also support regional economies that were deeply impacted by the disaster.

In a profound sense, these spaces continue to serve as places of learning—not through textbooks, but through memory, loss, and human resilience.