Christian Otto

Director’s Report:I contribute an essay titled “Where God, Soil, and People Cross” in the quarterly review of “Worship and Music” No. 203 (published in October 2024 by United Church of Christ in Japan Publishing Section). This issue is a special issue on “Creation and Environment,” and I was asked to write an essay from the “site”. I introduced ARI as the one and only “environment” where God, soil, and people cross, and concluded by saying that in this unique environment, “we should spare no effort to “live together with other … Read more

Last Friday, the Asian Rural Institute held its annual sweet potato harvest. It was a sunny day, and the good weather lifted everyone’s spirits as participants, staff, and volunteers worked together in the fields. The harvest event brought the ARI community together, and everyone enjoyed digging up the bright purple potatoes, which had grown well this season. Throughout the day, laughter and teamwork filled the fields, making the harvest both a productive and joyful occasion. This yearly tradition reminds everyone at ARI of the importance of community and teamwork in … Read more

Director’s Report:In October, in addition to ARI’s biggest event, Harvest Thanksgiving Celebration (HTC), many special lecturers came to our campus to give classes.During the hectic schedule, I was fortunate to travel to give lectures in many places; I went to Keiwa Gakuen University in Niigata Pref., Aoyama Gakuin University (Sagamihara Campus), and Yamanashi Eiwa University in Yamanashi Prefecture. I also gave an online class to the 2nd year students of Keisen Women’s College in Tokyo. The themes were “Servant Leadership” and “Peace from the Soil”. Tomorrow, I will talk about … Read more

ARI recently hosted Tony Rinaudo from World Vision Australia, who held a transformative workshop on Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR). Known for his innovative work in restoring degraded landscapes, Rinaudo shared practical steps on how communities can regenerate land by managing existing tree stumps and root systems, rather than planting new trees. ARI participants, representing rural leaders from across Asia and Africa, learned hands-on techniques to apply in their home countries. Rinaudo’s approach emphasized simplicity, low-cost implementation, and its potential to empower communities facing environmental degradation. By managing natural resources … Read more

HTC 2024 at ARI: A Wonderful Day of Food, Fun, and Community

Director’s Report:On October 4th, I was invited as a speaker for the Chapel Assembly Hour at Keiwa Gakuen University in Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, to give a lecture titled “Peace from the Soil. The audience consisted mainly of about 100 first-year students (plus online attendees). Keiwa Gakuen University is a Christian liberal arts university with about 700 students. Their vision is “contributing to the local and global community by educating citizens with an international outlook who will serve others and lead a sustainable society.” I strongly felt that the university … Read more

Director’s Report:On Tuesday (Oct.1), on a beautiful autumn day with the sky high in the sky, all community members at ARI worked together to harvest rice. It has been about 4 months since the rice was planted in early June. After surviving arecord-breaking heat wave, and receiving much love and care from the farm staff, theParticipants, and the volunteers, all the rice plants were harvested. The total area of ARI’s rice fields is about 1.8 hectares. Already 90% of the rice has been harvested by machine, and only about one-tenth … Read more

Director’s Report:A research project team on Dignity Education led by Associate Professor and Chaplain Jeffrey Mensendiak of Oberlin University visited ARI for three days from September 9. (Dr. Emi Hasegawa, Dr. Akiko Asai, and Dr. Misako Takizawa are the other team members.)Rev. Mensendiak, who translated a book on dignity (Dr. Donna Hicks’ book “Leading with Dignity”) into Japanese, developed his own dignity workshop, and has been conducting the workshop for ARI participants for the past 4 years. This year, in addition to the workshop to the ARI participants, a workshop … Read more

Director’s Report:An article about ARI was featured in the Japan Times on September 2.It is titled “Over half a century, seeds of change grow at a Tochigi farm”https://www.japantimes.co.jp/community/2024/09/02/our-lives/asian-rural-insititute-tochigi-namibia-cambodia-germany/The article describes what this year’s participant from Namibia (pictured) is learning, how the lives of the German volunteers of 2003 and the Cambodian graduates of 2010 have been changed by coming to ARI, and the significance of ARI’s training programs.Medeleine Cuckson, the author of the article, is a British national who stayed at ARI for a three-week Christian group leadership training in … Read more