おりしも、米国では「Make America Great Again」のトランプ大統領が就任。英国のEU離脱、各国での保護主義への回帰などの中で、いかに世界のほかの人々とつながりつつ、身近なコミュニティの中での学びを深めていくかの議論が続きました。子育て、地域おこし、環境教育、持続可能性教育、野外教育、国際化などの様々な分野の人々が集まり、「豊かさとは何か」「どういう場所で、どう生きるべきか」などを真剣に考えた2日間でした。
People from city area including from Australia, Bosnia, Canada, and other countries enjoyed rice harvesting workshop.
Gorgeous view from the terraced rice paddies overseeing mountain ridges of 2,000 meter high.Chasing frogs and grasshoppers, a family enjoyed the harvesting works.
People from city area including from Australia, Bosnia, Canada, and other countries enjoyed rice harvesting workshop, a part of \”ABC\” in a rice paddy program, last weekend, 11-12 October in Tochikubo, Niigata.
Those, from 8 nations including Japan, gathered at the community center of the village at 1 pm on Saturday. Mr. FUEKI Akira, one of the local leaders, introduced brief history of the village since \”Sengoku-Jidai,\” or worriers period about 500 years ago.
In the class after the walk, Mr. FUEKI talked about rice faming from business perspectives. According to him, selling price to \”Nokyo,\” or the Farmers Association, is 15,000 JPY per 60 kg, Production from a rice paddy of 1,000 sq. meter would be like 540 kg and total income from one standard paddy would be 135,000 JPY. One family in the village owns 1 ha of the rice paddies in average. So total income to one family from rice would be 1,350,000 JPY although for that farming machines which need millions of yen for each each.
Based on those factors they exchanged opinions over the rice farming and the future of Japanese rural societies.
(Read more on following page)
http://tappo.ecoplus.jp/showart.php?lang=en&genre=2&aid=1148
Yap- Japan Youth exchange 2013 was held from 20th August to 1st of September in Maaq village in Yap with 12 Japanese youth, learning the skills and knowledges of life close to the nature.
Local foods, like taro, bread fruit and fishes filled the dinner table every day.
Yap- Japan Youth exchange 2013 was held from 20th August to 1st of September in Maaq village in Yap with 12 Japanese youth, learning the skills and knowledges of life close to the nature.
5 girls and 7 boys from 16 to 25 year old participated the program.
The group stayed in a village of Maaq, Tomil in Yap island. This was the 6th host of the program for the village which lies in the beautiful seaside mangrove forest.
At the final farewell party, villagers and Japanese participants danced together.
Read more on the following page,
http://www.ecoclub.org/showart.php?lang=en&genre=10&aid=552