News

It’s that time of year again! ARI’s biggest annual event, Harvest Thanksgiving Celebration (HTC), is coming soon.We recently held our first planning meeting, and participants shared many exciting and creative ideas. This year’s HTC is shaping up to be another joyful and lively two-day celebration.Save the date: October 18 (Saturday) & 19 (Sunday).Everyone is welcome come join the fun and celebrate the harvest with us!

At ARI, a PRA (Participatory Rural Appraisal) class was held, where participants were divided into groups based on their home regions to discuss challenges faced in their communities. PRA is a method often used in development work, where local people identify problems and think about solutions using their own knowledge and experiences.In the class, participants also worked on organizing the “causes” and “effects” of the issues they discussed. One common topic raised by many groups was waste management. Participants shared how inadequate waste disposal has led to river and soil … Read more

On June 22, two participants, two training assistants, and one staff member visited UCCJ Nakameguro Church in Tokyo for “ARI Sunday”. At the service, Beri, a participant and pastor from Indonesia, shared her sermon based on her experiences in her country.After the service, we enjoyed a gorgeous lunch prepared by church members. There, each participant was asked to share about their country and their work.The families who served as the two participants’ host families during the recent Tokyo Homestay Program also joined us for a happy reunion.We would like to … Read more

Special session

The other day, a participants-led community event was held with the theme “Enjoy!”Despite having only a short time to prepare, the participants came up with creative ideas and worked hard to organize fun games and delicious food.On the day of the event, the venue was filled with smiles and a warm, welcoming atmosphere.We are truly grateful to all the participants who made this wonderful time possible.Thank you so much!

Originally published in 2020, we are republishing this piece to coincide with the upcoming issue of Take My Hand, containing updates from graduates in Sierra Leone. Get to know these four Participants during their time in Ghana. by Yukiko Oyanagi, Associate Director At the end of March 2020, when participants began to arrive in Japan, we heard the news, “Ghana closed the border. Four Sierra Leone students were left behind!”  Participants from overseas come to Japan after receiving a visa from the Japanese embassy in their country. Sierra Leone does … Read more

a farm without ducklings?

Shimpei Murakami

by Joyce Ray, ARI Volunteer Originally written in 2023, we are republishing this text to accompany the upcoming issue of Take My Hand, containing updates from graduates in Sierra Leone. Get to know Ami from her time at ARI in this article. Aminata “Ami” Conteh’s passion for women’s empowerment shines whenever she talks about her vision for the ten villages where she works. As a Field Officer with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Sierra Leone, Ami helps develop a feeling of community among the villages of many tribes and cultures, … Read more