Buildings are positioned according to function, such as the lecture and research building, office management building, gymnasium and chapel

Kobe International University is an economics university founded in 1968 by Hinsuke Yashiro, Archbishop of Nihon Sei Ko Kai (Anglican-Episcopal Church of Japan), and educates 1,200 students. In anticipation of student numbers increasing to 2000 in the future, in April 2002 the university moved from its mountainous location in Tarumi, to the north of Akashi Kaikyo Bridge, to highly convenient Rokko Island.
The roughly square site covers three hectares, and is bordered to the south by a marine park that faces onto Kobe Bay, to the west by a road, to the east by a recreation trail, and to the north by adjoining land.
From the configuration of facilities to the creation of spaces, and extending to facade design, the concept carried through is to incorporate "through-passages." This stems from the "through-passages" in the lines of sight to the sea, and the site features which cannot be experienced at other campuses. In order to establish a "sense of liberation of the five senses including sight" the buildings are segmented by function, into: a lecture and research building, an office management building, a health and welfare building, a chapel, a gymnasium, and clubroom buildings.

The "through-passage" concept is developed not only in the horizontal direction towards the sea (see-through curtain wall), but terraces with a sea view, see-through staircases and atriums in a vertical direction. This concept is not limited to lines of sight, but is recaptured in terms of "through-passages" of breath and air, the flow of people, and the flow of communication, and internal and external "gathering places" were enhanced to support these "through-passages." Results of these efforts are the vast stairways that allow people to sit and chat, and the terraces provided on the corners of the L-shaped lecture and research building.
Additionally, the building's exterior, which was designed based on the image of students who are on the innocent path of learning and have yet to be dyed a particular color, was decorated with high-purity white clay tiles which reflect the deep blue of the sea, the blue of the sky, and the green of the trees, dyed with the sun as it follows the day through the morning light, light during the day, and the sunset light.
In the space outside the building, a tree-lined path has been positioned on the diagonal from the approach facing the eastern recreation trail which is to be put in place in the future by Kobe City, passing through the courtyard in striving towards the sea in between the chapel and the cafeteria wing. To form a slight rise on the otherwise flat island, a crescent-shaped hill planted with three cherry trees was created, which is also acting as an area that looks out over the grounds, and the tower and greened roof of the chapel were constructed so as to appear as if rising up from the earth at the rear of the tree-lined path.