Architecturally Thinking about the Reunification Process

Growth

After a few weeks of research concentrating on the historical context between both Koreas, I have begun to make the first few steps to designing the overall framework behind how I would begin approaching the problems that I believe are surrounding the Korean Reunification. Thinking about a architectural intervention on the DMZ or in Panmunjomshouldn’t be interpreted as an abrupt solution where a building is slapped down at a location.

The research surrounding the understanding of the North Korean, and what they would have to learn to successfully assimilate themselves into modern day society was and should be very humbling, whilst the design of the project itself will be hard and radical. This balance led to what I believe is a step towards rooting a proposal firmly into the foundation of reality rather than withering away as just a preposition.

Close in, to Further Out

This article I posted last week highlights how a unified Korea should utilize its own cryptocurrency to tackle many of Korea’s problems when faced with reunification, with one of the most important issues being how it should focus on itself and leave other countries not involved with whatever’s going on inside Korea’s rebuilding process.

After Korea has condensed its strength and has worked out their infrastructure from the inside, Korea has begin to expand outward and reach out to the other nations as a NEUTRAL nation, where no one can pin a side politically on the unified Korea as a nation.

Check out the full article on UnityCoin here!

One Step at a Time

Earlier today, I posted about the process of how the reunification process would work, where it would require multiple stages, and the design would have to go through an evolution each time, similar to an incubator.

There would be a passport system implemented, where the participants are first carefully selected, and experts/scientists/government officials would keep close watch over how the buildings function, and contemplate which amenities are required.

The scenario is imagined to be essentially an experiment at first, where the seed is planted as only a housing and educational facility that is situated in Panmunjom, or Peace Village. It would hold at minimum 100 people and the people residing in this facility would be carefully monitored, with observations and results recorded.

Once the first experiment is successful, the seed would slowly grow bigger, growing into what would be similar to a cul-de-sac, where it consists of multiple facilities, additional amenities, and planting a few trees here and there. It would hold to anywhere around 500-800 people, and is entirely justified by the results of the facility and the speculative success of the previous stage.

Transportation and Urban Transformation

The next stage would replicate the size of basically a neighborhood, where transportation routes would begin to be considered, and further amenities would be added. With around 60,000 people bustling about, and with its size it can establish itself as an icon or monument between both countries, containing both North and South Koreans.

As the growth project reaches its peak, it will become a large tree, equivalent to a mini-city with a population of around 500,000 people, it would become large enough to bridge the Kaesong Industrial Complex with what used to be Panmunjom together. Major transportation routes go through this city, and it would firmly establish itself as a hub for reunification between the Korea’s.

Implications

This kind of step-by-step system tries to find that balance between taking a risk, but also minimizing that risk. It does not funnel all of Korea’s resources, but more of a project / experiment based on trust. One problem with post-reunification is that North Korea’s lifestyle has been so different from other more modern day societies such as the United States or South Korea, therefore the most logical thing to do is to create a hub where North Koreans can learn about the world, what things they were taught incorrectly, and how the facility begins to essentially un-condition whatever propaganda was jammed into their heads during the lower points in North Korea history.