PROJECT

进化思维

学习生物进化的创造性思维方法。已被70多家企业和大学采用,荣获山本七平奖。已翻译成中文、韩文、印尼文等多种语言,传播到世界各地。

HOW

从生物进化中,
将创造性教育体系化。

人类的创造性似乎是一种对自然界来说可以称为超自然的特殊现象。在38亿年生命史中留下痕迹的数千万种生物中,我们无法找到其他展现如此创造性的生物。然而,如果从我们人类也是自然一部分这一观点来看,人类发挥的创造性也应该是自然现象之一。
另一方面,我们有时会从自然物的造型中感受到超越人类的创造性。这是为什么呢?

基于这样的观点,NOSIGNER代表太刀川英辅认为人类的创造性可能是一种接近生物进化的现象,他持续进行着从进化这一现象中构建创造性结构的探索。最终,他系统化了将生物进化结构应用于设计和创新的创造性思维方法"进化思维"。
生物通过遗传,将偶然发生的"变异"和由环境等条件造成的必然"选择"这两个过程反复进行数代,从而实现进化。
如果我们的创造性具有同样的结构,那么实现社会变革的人类发明和创新中的大部分,也应该是从偶然与必然思维的往复中产生的。偶然和必然都没有意志,只要简单地往复就能接近适应。

创造性是一种不依赖于创作者意志而自主发生的现象。基于这样的思考,进化思维将创造性视为一个过程:不受常识束缚地产生疯狂偶然性的"变异性思维",以及从情况中观察必然适应方向的"选择性思维",这两种思维经过数代往复的过程。

展示了生物进化与设计的对比(2016, GINZA GRAPHIC GALLERY)
变异:融合
选择:解剖

长期以来一直研究设计与语言关系的太刀川认为,人类创造性的源泉是「语言」。而掌握生物进化关键的,是与语言十分相似的「DNA」变异。
DNA的复制错误,与语言的说错和听错非常相似。基于这一前提,太刀川提出假说:进化与创造会产生类似的变异模式。

实际上,在各种发明和文化中也能看到与生物进化共通的模式。进化思维将这种相似的模式应用于创造过程,把产生创意的错误「类型」分为9种。

通过像工具箱一样运用「变量」「消失」「融合」「逆转」「分离」「交换」「拟态」「移动」「增殖」这9种变异模式,大量产生偶然的错误,在短时间内高效地产生众多创意。这就是变异性思维。

那么,如何从这些错误中选出好的创意呢?在自然界中,生物对环境的适应是可以观察到的现象。如果学习自然科学家们在漫长历史中培养的自然观察方法,或许就能选择出适应性的创意。

太刀川在考察各种自然科学的观察手法过程中发现,观察只有跨越「时间」和「空间」的4个观点,而每个观点都已确立为生物学观察的体系。于是,他将把握内部构成要素的「解剖」、理解外部环境的「生态」、追溯过去解读进化谱系的「系统」、从FORECAST型和BACKCAST型两种方法考察未来的「预测」这4种「适应」手法系统化,并命名为「时空观学习」。通过从跨越时间和空间的4个观点分析状况,可以理解社会必然的选择压力,从而能够选择出可应对这些压力的强有力的创意。

「进化思考」是运用这些「变异」和「选择」的思考,在两种思考之间往复,创造出能够在漫长时间中生存下来的创造性概念的思考方法。
(在书籍《进化思考》的第一版中,曾用「变异与适应」的往复来表达通过偶然变异和自然选择接近适应的过程,但从改订版开始,为了提高学术准确性,改为「变异与选择」往复的表达方式)

2021年4月,在日本边境一个人口约2000人的离岛——岛根县海士町,首次设立的出版社「海士之风」出版了第一本书,即进化思考的书籍。尽管是从边境地区出版,这本书却在亚马逊商业经济类图书排行榜上获得了第一名的畅销佳绩。发售一周内就达到了第3次印刷3万册的记录,此后更是呈现爆发式传播。

此外,这本书籍还在日本国内获得了众多奖项。其中最突出的是获得了数年一度颁发给代表日本人文科学领域书籍的荣誉学术奖「山本七平奖」。评审委员由解剖学者养老孟司先生、进化生物学者长谷川真理子女士这两位生物学者,以及在社会科学领域活跃的经济学者伊藤元重先生、政治学者中西辉政先生、法学者八木秀次先生担任,真正获得了跨越文理的学术评价。

我们希望通过这种进化思考,证明即使从边境地区也能改变世界,同时向世界发出全新的创造性教育理念。

VOICE

进化中存在着各种各样的法则。作者参考这些法则,试图将其作为所谓创新的参考资料。
关于各论部分,只能请读者阅读本书,但运用进化中的诸法则来思考这一构思的新颖性,远远超越了单纯的技巧书籍的范畴。
针对各个项目所举的事例也很生动,作为读物也很有趣。这一点表明作者思考从未停止。地球上三十五亿年生物进化的答案就是现在的我们,而这个过程创造了我们。那么左右这个过程的法则,没有理由不能作为今后过程推进的参考。
作者的方法基本上是类比法,动物行为学家康拉德·洛伦茨在诺贝尔奖获奖演讲中说过,自己的方法只有类比法。在重视所谓"独创性"的学术研究世界里,很少有人这样说。但是在像创新这样重视"独创性"的场合,类比法具有重要意义,本作品在这个意义上是珍贵的,可以说值得山本七平奖。

有限公司 养老研究所 /
东京大学 名誉教授
养老孟司

海士町的风景 摄影师:香庄谦一

《进化思考》的书籍设计是由作者太刀川本人完成的。
考虑到要创造一本能够跨越时代、持续被人们喜爱的书籍,受到在悠久时光中不断堆积的地层启发,决定设计一本具有岩石般风貌和质感的书。这里蕴含着对据说影响了查尔斯·达尔文进化论的詹姆斯·赫顿地质学研究的致敬。
封面采用了具有矿物般质感的浮雕图案纸张"岩肌",并在其上印刷了大理石图案。通过在书口也展开同样的图案,为这本超过500页的著作赋予了厚重而坚实的岩石般气质。此外,通过极力简化装饰的极简设计来统一整体基调,表现出不受潮流左右的永恒魅力。

本书的标题标志是基于"进化思考"的变异模式"增殖""拟态""反转""变量",对"进""化""思""考"这4个汉字进行变化而成的。此外,在取下封套后显现的封面上,使用同样的4个汉字,将适应中"解剖""系统""生态""预测"这4种时空观学习的思维方式进行了可视化呈现。
在标志的印刷上,通过烫印村田金箔的"咖啡棕"箔,营造出从正面看呈黑色、改变角度后呈棕色光泽的效果,演出了如同大理石中镶嵌着暗淡发光宝石般的意象。

在正文的排版中,我们充分发挥了作者兼任书籍设计师的优势,实践了根据图版调整文字环绕的排版方式,致力于提供文本与视觉一体化的阅读体验。采用大理石图案的索引提高了检索性,并设置了促进重读的机制。

这本书源于企业和大学的创造性工作坊,收录了50个促进创造性思维的练习。它不仅仅是一本阅读书籍,更是一本可以挑战创造性思维实践的教科书。尽管是一部超过500页的大作,但本书兼具易读性和实用性,作为"创造性"与"生物进化"的百科全书,是一本可以反复阅读的著作。

进化学校工作坊 

JIDA学生照明展工作坊
未来100年设计(2023年,台湾设计博物馆)
进化思考图书馆(2023, Not Just Library)
创造性教育
升级并超越
不可持续的世界。

WHY

「创造性」只是有才能的
人才拥有的吗。

我们人类为了满足各种欲求,通过「创造性」创造出各种各样的工具,推动了社会的发展。尽管创造性是如此重要的力量,但至今为止「创造性」多被视为先天性的能力,人们往往认为如果没有天赋才能就无法发挥出优秀的创造性。那么,创造性真的是无法学习的吗?

雷蒙德·卡特尔「结晶性智力与流动性智力图表」

2030议程169个SDGs目标的达成情况(2015年时点)

认为自己"有创造力"的日本学生比例

因为在美术课上画画不好等简单的挫折,就放弃自己创造力的人络绎不绝。这种令人遗憾的结果是,根据调查显示,在日本只有8%的学生认为自己是"有创造力的"。
但是,我们真的深入理解创造力了吗?这样想来,我们会发现对于创造力这一现象的结构和训练方法,我们几乎一无所知。如果能够掌握创造力的结构,我们或许就能够后天习得它。

近年来,学校教育开始关注"主动学习"和"探究学习"等尊重学习者主动性,培养不拘泥于学科框架的创造力和探究精神的教育。同时,在商业现场,促进创造性思维的思考方法也开始受到关注。

增加能够产生创造性项目的人才,应该也会促进可持续社会的构建和各种社会问题的根本性解决。为此,我们需要建立能够理解创造力本身并进行系统性学习的理论和教育体系。

动物系统发育树模型
交通工具的系统树模型

WILL

进化思考已经被松下、富士通、积水房屋、庆应义塾大学等日本大企业和教育机构所采用,专家们给予了其世界最强创新手法的评价。此外,它还被同志社大学选为国语入学考试题目等,呈现出巨大的扩展态势。而且,实践这种创造性思维,为可持续发展等新项目带来社会变革的人们开始大量涌现。
另外,日本顶尖的AI专家开始着手开发融入进化思考机制的人工智能,在国内最大规模的栖息环境展示动物园中举办运用进化思考的研习会等,进化思考正在逐渐扩大其影响范围。

然而,真正向自然法则学习创造性教育的项目才刚刚开始。
我们人类在享受科技恩惠的同时持续成长至今,但作为代价,地质和气候发生了大幅变动,生态系统的崩坏正在推进。据说已经进入了人类活动对地球产生重大影响的"人类世"。在已经超越了存在不可逆且急剧环境变化危险性的临界点"行星边界",文明据说只能再维持数十年的情况下,留给我们的时间已经没有余裕了。

人类通过短视地发挥自身的创造性,招致了文明崩溃的危机,但我们在地球上生存下去所能使用的唯一武器,也正是我们的创造性。现在正是我们深入理解创造性的本质,通过最大限度地运用它来解决各种课题,从而实现可持续共生社会的时候。

19世纪活跃的幼儿教育之父弗里德里希·福禄贝尔,通过从自然科学中获得启发的创造性教育思想,对后来的包豪斯等产生了巨大影响,奠定了创造性教育的基础。我们的目标是让包豪斯以后100年来无法改变的创造性教育得到进化。

我们希望通过进化思维来更新时代的创造性教育,以便每个人都能在各自的地方最大限度地发挥创造性,创造出人类重大课题——各种社会问题得到创造性解决的局面。

人类发明的专利图

预约销售开始不久就在Amazon商业·经济书籍排行榜上获得第1位,瞬间决定发售前重印的《进化思考》。唤醒每个人内心沉睡的创造性的新思考方法是什么。


Book information 书籍信息 /
Book Name 书籍名:Evolutional Creativity 进化思考―创造生存概念的「变异与适应」
Publisher 出版社:Amanokaze 海士之风
Price 价格:¥3,300 (Tax Included 含税)
Publisher Date 发售日:2021/4/21


相关网站 /
进化思考特设网站
Amazon
纪伊国屋书店
作者 太刀川英辅的视频信息

The book ” Evolutional Creativity ” was ranked No. 1 on Amazon’s business and economics book rankings soon after it went on sale for pre-order, and was quickly reprinted before its release. What is this new way of thinking that awakens the creativity that lies dormant within everyone?

Related Sites /
Evolutional Creativity Special Site
Amazon
Kinokuniya Bookstore
Message video from the author Eisuke Tachikawa

The Evolution of “Evolutional Creativity” (Updated November 2025)


November 2025: Keynote Speech at the 9th Leadership Summit 2025 in Bangladesh



Eisuke Tachikawa took the stage as a keynote speaker at the “Leadership Summit 2025” held in Bangladesh. Held under the theme “Resilient Leadership – Thriving Amid Uncertainty,” this international conference explored the sustainable and ethical leadership required in a rapidly changing society. Tachikawa delivered a speech on the nature of leadership in addressing social issues and environmental changes from the perspective of Evolutional Creativity.


November 2025: Online Presentation at the 12th Anniversary Commemoration of Typhoon Yolanda


Marking the 12th anniversary of Typhoon Yolanda—which caused some of the worst damage ever recorded in the Philippines—Eisuke Tachikawa spoke at a commemorative event held at Eastern Visayas State University. He delivered an online lecture on “Evolutional Creativity” to approximately 400 participants, sharing creative perspectives on how to confront disasters.


November 2025: Delivered a Special Lecture to Graduate Students at Minerva University


At Minerva University—known for its unique educational model that involves learning while moving between seven cities worldwide and having been selected as “the world’s most innovative university”—Eisuke Tachikawa delivered a special lecture on “Evolutional Creativity” to approximately 20 graduate students majoring in “Decision Science.” Students from diverse backgrounds, including current politicians and corporate leaders, visited the Yokohama studio of NOSIGNER—the firm led by Tachikawa—and the lecture lasted three hours due to a lively Q&A session.


October 2025: Presentation at the “Cities of Design Subnetwork Meeting” Conference Hosted by the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN)


Eisuke Tachikawa spoke at the “Cities of Design Subnetwork Meeting” hosted by the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN)—which aims to harness culture and creativity for sustainable urban development—at the Bandung Institute of Technology. He participated in a panel discussion themed “Creative City 2.0,” exchanging views on approaches to creativity based on “Evolutional Creativity” and the future of cities adapting to climate change.


September 2025: Keynote Speech at the International Design Conference (IDC) 2025 in the Philippines


Eisuke Tachikawa delivered a keynote speech at the International Design Conference (IDC) 2025, organized by the Design Center of the Philippines, the government agency responsible for promoting design in the Philippines. Invited as a keynote speaker to the conference, which featured a diverse lineup of speakers including consultants, designers, researchers, and business executives under the theme “Holding the Whole,” he delivered a keynote address on creativity education based on “Evolutional Creativity” and the ideal form of cities adapting to climate change.


July 2025: Received the Highest Academic Award from Bandung Institute of Technology


He was awarded the “GANESA WIDYA JASA ADIUTAMA Award,” the highest academic honor bestowed by the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) in Indonesia for outstanding contributions to knowledge and education. This prestigious award is granted to only two individuals following a rigorous selection process from candidates nominated by each faculty; he was selected based on a nomination from the Faculty of Art and Design (FSRD).


November 2024: Publication of the Indonesian Edition of *Evolutional Creativity*


The Indonesian edition of the book *Evolutional Creativity* was published by the Indonesian publishing house “SiMPUL” under the supervision of the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), one of Indonesia’s leading universities. 
Additionally, to commemorate the book’s publication, an exhibition and commemorative lecture were held at the ITB Design Center, and an exhibition and workshop were also held at the Jakarta art space “ Dia.Lo.Gue. ,” run by graphic designer Hermawan Tanjil.


April 2024: 3rd Anniversary of the Publication of “Evolutional Creativity”


“Evolutional Creativity,” systematized by its proponent, Eisuke Tachikawa, after years of exploration, has continued to evolve even today, having received a wide range of feedback—including support, encouragement, criticism, and suggestions—from many people since the first edition of the book was published.
Furthermore, a reader community formed by over 100 enthusiastic readers remains actively engaged, and the principles of Evolutional Creativity are being put to practical use in the work and daily lives of its practitioners.




March 2024: Lecture at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry for Stanford Business School Students


Tachikawa delivered a lecture on Japanese design and Evolutional Creativity to approximately 30 students and faculty members from Stanford Graduate School of Business at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. This lecture was part of the school’s study tour to Japan, a program designed to explore the relationship between Japan’s rapid economic growth and design, as well as the current state of startups.


December 2023: Publication of *Evolutional Creativity [Expanded and Revised Edition]*


With biological supervision provided by evolutionary biologist Masaki Kawata (Professor by Special Appointment to the President at Tohoku University),  *Evolutional Creativity [Expanded and Revised Edition]* —the result of over a year of discussions with various experts—has been published. Taking into account the criticism and feedback received regarding the first edition, this revised edition has been expanded with new content from the perspective of creativity. It has grown by 50 pages to 560 pages, evolving into a book that is even more readable and substantial.


October 2023: Paper Presentation at the World Design Assembly International Conference


At the  “World Design Assembly (WDA)”  organized by the World Design Organization (WDO)—the first time the event has been held in Japan in 34 years—an international conference (Research and Education Forum) was held. A  paper  based on the expanded and revised edition of *Evolutional Creativity* was accepted, and I presented it. Additionally, Tachikawa, who serves as the Chairman of JIDA—one of the founding organizations of the World Design Organization—was listed as a member of the conference’s executive committee and was elected to the WDO Board of Directors in an election held during the conference.


September 2023: Exhibition Held at the Taiwan Design Museum


Coinciding with the publication of the Taiwanese edition of the book *Evolutional Creativity*, an exhibition by NOSIGNER titled  *DESIGNS FOR THE NEXT 100 YEARS*  was held at the Taiwan Design Museum, managed by the Taiwan Design Research Institute. In addition to an exhibition focusing on the projects NOSIGNER has undertaken and the social issues behind them, a section dedicated to “Evolutional Creativity” was included. Furthermore, with related initiatives such as the “Evolutional Creativity Library”—a collection of valuable documents by natural scientists who influenced Evolutional Creativity—it became an opportunity to introduce “Evolutional Creativity” to the people of Taiwan from diverse perspectives.


September 2023: Publication of the Taiwanese Edition of “Evolutional Creativity”


Following the Korean edition, the  Taiwanese edition (Traditional Chinese version) —translated from the draft manuscript of the book *Evolutional Creativity* currently undergoing revision—was published by the Taiwanese publisher Shuangxi Publishing. This book, which largely reflects the content of the revised edition project we have been working on since 2022, garnered significant attention, including being selected as a September featured title at the popular Taiwanese bookstore Eslite.


June 2023: Publication of the Korean Edition of “Evolutional Creativity”


The  Korean edition  of “Evolutional Creativity,” translated from the manuscript currently undergoing revision, was published by the Korean publisher Next Wave Media. As the book’s first overseas publication, it received a significant response, including numerous positive reviews from readers on book sales sites and coverage in media outlets and blogs.


May 2023: Presentation at a Conference Hosted by UNESCO-MGIEP


Tachikawa was invited to speak at the conference “Education for Flourishing in a Mixed Reality,” organized by UNESCO-MGIEP (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development), which brought together renowned scholars, researchers, teachers, policymakers, and representatives from the private sector from around the world. He delivered a presentation on “Evolutional Creativity” during the “Design Thinking and Creativity in Education” session. This conference was also the first international conference based on the Sustainable Flourishing Goals.


March 2023, August 2023: Lecture at the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), Indonesia


Tachikawa delivered a lecture on Evolutional Creativity at the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), Indonesia’s premier institution of higher learning. Due to the positive reception of this content, it was decided to publish an Indonesian-language edition of “Evolutional Creativity.” Following the  special lecture  held in March, the lecture delivered in August served as the inaugural session of the newly established “Design Leadership” program, which aims to cultivate leaders capable of making a social impact through the power of design.


March 2023: Chaired the “Thinking About the Future of Higher Education” Forum


Eisuke Tachikawa served as chair of the “Thinking About the Future of Higher Education” forum, organized by the Benesse Educational Research Institute, where members engaged in cutting-edge educational practices discussed the future of university education. After four rounds of roundtable discussions with committee members, a proposal outlining a vision for university education that envisions a hopeful future was compiled. Under the new educational guiding principle, “ GROWING AMBITION—Students, Embrace Ambition ,” the proposal put forward a new model of university education that fosters the “ambition” to drive social change, along with a creative curriculum designed to realize it.


November 2022: Received the “Shu Yamaguchi Award” at the Pen Creator Awards


Eisuke Tachikawa received the “Shu Yamaguchi Award” at the “ Pen Creator Awards ,” established by the monthly magazine ‘Pen’ to honor the year’s most active creators, including artists, creative directors, and musicians. His recommender, author and public speaker Shu Yamaguchi, praised him, stating, “It was truly groundbreaking in that he comprehensively structured the phenomenon of biological evolution—a process whose effectiveness has been proven—and linked it to the principles of innovation.”


November 2022: Appeared in an NHK program for a dialogue with anatomist Takeshi Yoro


He appeared alongside anatomist Takeshi Yoro on the popular NHK program “Switch Interview,” in which two people working in different fields visit each other’s workplaces and conduct a dialogue while “switching” between the roles of speaker and listener. In the second part of the program, I invited Dr. Yoro—who has spent nearly 60 years since his student days exploring “the forms of living things”—to the NOSIGNER studio. While introducing the concept of “Evolutional Creativity,” I spoke about my work as a designer who has pursued form through various approaches.


June 2022: Project to Launch Revised Edition of


A project to publish a revised edition has begun, aiming to further refine the book as a method of creative thinking and accurately incorporate scientific insights. For this revision, we invited Professor Masaki Kawata, a professor on special assignment to the President at Tohoku University and an expert in evolution and ecology, to serve as supervising editor, accompanying the evolution of the “Evolutional Creativity” book. A new book by Professor Kawata explaining evolutionary biology was recently published, so please take a look at that as well.
For the author as well, this was an invaluable opportunity to deeply re-learn evolutionary biology from such a distinguished expert as Professor Kawata.


May 2022: Dialogue with Nobel Laureate Dr. Akira Yoshino


At an event commemorating Asahi Kasei’s 100th anniversary, I had the honor of engaging in a dialogue with Dr. Akira Yoshino (Asahi Kasei Honorary Fellow), the inventor of the lithium-ion battery and Nobel Laureate in Chemistry. The video of Tachikawa’s lecture on “Evolutional Creativity” and his dialogue with Dr. Yoshino was streamed to approximately 40,000 Asahi Kasei Group employees. This event not only fulfilled Tachikawa’s long-held wish to engage in a dialogue with Dr. Yoshino but also served as an opportunity to convey the message to everyone at Asahi Kasei that “it is the ‘curiosity’ and ‘knowledge’ of each individual that enriches imagination and shapes the next 100 years.”
Dialogue Video: “AK Talk Vol. 2: Between ‘Creation’ and ‘Imagination’ — Asahi Kasei”


March 2022: Appeared on NHK E-Tele’s “Night of Radical Modifications: Engineer Training School”


Eisuke Tachikawa appeared as a “Design (Creation) Instructor” on NHK E-Tele’s popular program “Night of Radical Modifications: Engineer Training School.” With the theme of “Magic Modification of a Blender,” he led a brainstorming workshop to create a “blender that shoots juice far away,” introducing the nine “mutation” patterns from “Evolutional Creativity” as hints for generating ideas. 
Official Article: How to Generate “Ideas” Learned from NHK’s “Magic Modification Night” Episode 7: “The Long Jump of the Cleaning Robot”
 


February 2022: Received a Special Award at the “IT Engineer Book Awards 2022”


In the business book category of the  “IT Engineer Book Awards 2022” —an event where IT engineers select recommended books—*Evolutional Creativity* was selected as one of the top 10. Furthermore, I was presented with a Special Award by art director Yumiko Hidaka, who participated as a special guest.


2022–2023: Adopted in School Entrance Exam Questions


Excerpts from *Evolutional Creativity* were adopted as material for entrance exams at several schools, including as a topic for the Japanese language entrance exam at Doshisha University.


November 2021: Winner of the Yamamoto Shichihei Prize


We received the  “Yamamoto Shichihei Prize” , an academic award given to works in the humanities and social sciences that demonstrate imaginative concepts and accessible expression.
While “Evolutional Creativity” has garnered attention as a method for fostering innovators and driving innovation, winning this prestigious Japanese academic award—whose selection committee includes anatomist Takeshi Yoro, evolutionary biologist Mariko Hasegawa, economist Motoshige Ito, political scientist Terumasa Nakanishi, and legal scholar Shuji Yagi—has allowed it to gain recognition from an academic perspective as a new way of thinking that unravels creativity from an evolutionary viewpoint.




April 2021: Publication of the book *Evolutional Creativity*


We published this book with the aim of conveying the concepts and methodology of Evolutional Creativity to a wide audience, including the business sector, and encouraging its application to idea generation across all fields, such as business development, design, and art.
The book *Evolutional Creativity*  was published as the first title by “Ami no Kaze,” a publishing house based on a small, remote island in the Oki Islands of Shimane Prefecture.
Packed with a wealth of photographs and illustrations on biological evolution and human creativity, as well as 50 “Evolutional Creativity Works” that readers can practice while reading, this book—which comprehensively covers the concepts and practical methods of Evolutional Creativity—became a bestseller. The Evolutional Creativity methodology has spread to major corporations and educational institutions and has even been adopted in entrance exams for universities and high schools.




Pre-Publication History


“Evolutional Creativity” is a concept that Tachikawa had been nurturing for many years prior to the book’s publication in 2021. Below is a summary of the journey leading up to the publication of *Evolutional Creativity*.


2021: Collaboration with NHK’s TV Program “The Direxon”


We collaborated on a project for NHK’s TV program  “The Direxon” , working on “Asobo!”, a project that used “Evolutional Creativity” to “evolve” disaster preparedness drills. We provided creativity education based on “Evolutional Creativity” to members who had experienced the Great East Japan Earthquake during their junior high school years, supporting them in brainstorming, concept design, and content creation.


August 2020: “School of Evolution” Launches


An online course was launched through the voluntary efforts of Takashi Yamada and other members who had studied Evolutional Creativity. The “School of Evolution” began as a course designed to plant the seeds of creativity across various sectors of society. This school is a training program that helps participants refine new ideas for business creation through lectures and workshops on Evolutional Creativity.
The “School of Evolution” has attracted a diverse group of participants, including corporate executives, employees aiming to drive innovation, and school teachers and public servants seeking to engage in creative practice. To date, the program has produced approximately 1,000 graduates.
The program is offered to a wide range of participants, from corporations and organizations to individuals, and is utilized for product development and human resource development. Many graduates continue to meet weekly to explore creativity education through Evolutional Creativity.


2019: Began writing the book *Evolutional Creativity*


After meeting Mr. Abe and Mr. Harada at “Kokuri! Camp,” they decided to launch the publishing house “Ami no Kaze” in Ami Town, Shimane Prefecture. They approached me with the idea of making *Evolutional Creativity* their first book, and thus began a three-year writing process.
September 2018: Paper on “Evolutional Creativity” Published in *DIAMOND Harvard Business Review*
A paper of approximately 10,000 characters summarizing the overview of “Evolutional Creativity” was published in  *DIAMOND Harvard Business Review* . Although the concept was still in its early stages, this marked the first opportunity to articulate the philosophy of “Evolutional Creativity”—which draws lessons on creativity from the process of biological evolution—in written form.


2018: Launch of the “Evolutional Creativity” Workshop


Having gained many insights through the exhibition, Tachikawa developed “The Grammar of Design” and launched “Evolutional Creativity,” a workshop designed to learn the creative process from biological evolution. At the first workshop held at “Cocri! Camp”—a gathering of leaders and experts from various sectors and fields—he met Takashi Yamada, who would later launch “The School of Evolution”; Yuji Abe, the publisher of *Evolutional Creativity*; and Eiji Harada of Eiji Publishing. Subsequently, the workshop was held at various companies, and “Evolutional Creativity” began to be adopted as an innovation methodology.


September 16–October 31, 2016: Exhibition “No-Designer: Form and Reason”


Tachikawa, who had become interested in the creativity of natural forms—which possess no language—that surpasses that of humans, began exploring the commonalities between biological evolution and human creativity. In the exhibition “No-Designer: Form and Reason,” held at the Ginza Graphic Gallery (ggg), he presented works that contrasted evolution and creation, delving into the reasons behind forms and methods for conceiving design.


2012 Began teaching the course “The Grammar of Design”


After entering the workforce and fully committing to his career as a designer, Tachikawa began teaching “The Grammar of Design” at Musashino Art University, a course that expanded upon the content of his master’s thesis. The course, which later expanded to include sessions for working professionals, gained a strong reputation, leading to its adoption at the University of Tokyo’s i.school and its application in innovation initiatives at various companies.


2006: Wrote Master’s Thesis “Linguistic Cognition of Design”


The origins of Evolutional Creativity lie in Tachikawa’s master’s thesis, “Linguistic Cognition of Design,” which he completed while studying architecture as a graduate student. Focusing on the process by which ideas and concepts emerge—a topic he had long been interested in—the thesis examined this process from a linguistic perspective, based on the assumption that language serves as the trigger for inspiration.

INFORMATION
What
Evolutional Creativity 
When
2016-
Where
Japan
Scope
Branding / Branding Strategy / Logo / Edition / Business card / Motion logo / Promotional items / Infographics / Photograph / Book cover and inner page design / Exhibition / Poster / Concept Development
Award
  • The 30th Shichihei Yamamoto Prize​​​​​​​2021
  • ITB GANESHA WIDYA JASA ADIUTAMA2024
SDGs
  • 質の高い教育をみんなに
  • 働きがいも経済成長も
  • 気候変動に具体的な対策を
  • 海の豊かさを守ろう
  • 陸の豊かさも守ろう
  • 平和と公正をすべての人に
  • パートナーシップで目標を達成しよう
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