Media coverage of Japanese architecture the past twenty years has largely been dominated by the works of SANAA, Sou Fujimoto, Junya Ishigami, and their contemporaries. Their skillfully designed, ethereal white spaces and structures, have proved well suited to being exported in an increasingly visual culture. 'Communal Ecologies', on the other hand, highlights an emerging generation of young architects pursuing a very different vision. They strive for an architecture that is rougher, more dynamic, and deeply rooted in social and ecological engagement. With a growing interest in community and network building, and a reevaluation of architecture’s connection to nature, they are developing critical methodologies for practice, and are reimagining the role of the architect in the process.