News

Why not enjoy your “first climb of 2026” in the rich forests of Nasushiobara at ARI?On 1/17(Sat), during ARI Friends Day, we will hold a “Tree Climbing” experience where you can climb safely using specialized ropes and saddles! The world viewed from the treetops is sure to be full of new discoveries! You will wear professional safety gear and receive a lecture on how to climb, so beginners can participate with peace of mind. With the cooperation of the local “JUN TREE SERVICE Co., Ltd.,” professional Arborist® instructors will teach you carefully, so first-timers and children … Read more

On January 17, as part of ARI Friends Day, ARI will host a screening of a recent documentary about Native American rights and protesting nuclear proliferation. Ways of Knowing is a 25-minute immersive documentary about Navajo resilience to protect health, tradition, and land after enduring extensive uranium mining by the United States government, beginning in the late 1940s and lasting until the 1970s. Eight decades after the Manhattan Project which birthed the nuclear-industrial complex, Navajo and other Indigenous communities of the American Southwest continue to suffer from contaminated land and waterways, … Read more

On Tuesday, December 16, an interview with Osamu Arakawa, Director of ARI, and Debora, a graduate from Indonesia who now serves as a volunteer, was published in the morning edition of Shimotsuke Shimbun. The article appeared as the seventh and final installment of the series “Forms of Peace: Tochigi 80 Years After the War – Lingering Scars, Inherited Pain.” We deeply appreciate that the newspaper chose to focus not only on Japanese perspectives but also on the voices of people from countries once invaded by Japan, and that they selected ARI in … Read more

Want to take a break from your daily work or studies for a while?Thinking about how you want to live your life?Want to encounter things you’ve never experienced before? Volunteering at ARI is a perfect opportunity for you! Why not take part in our work while living an agriculture-centered life in a multicultural community? There are many ways to get involved, including farm work, cooking, office work, and more! Duration: 2 months to 1 year (preference given to those who can stay 9 months or longer)Start period: Late March is … Read more

Last week’s community event brought us up to the Nasu mountains, where we enjoyed snow-viewing. For many of our participants, it is the first time to experience snow and being in such cold temperatures – the second the less pleasant one. All community members enjoyed playing in the snow, building snow-people and some snowball fights. In the view of the white environment suddenly the joy of playing like a child gets reawakened in everyone. This was rewarded with hot chocolate and the great view. To warm ourselves up we gathered … Read more

From Dec 1st – Jan 31st

Participants, who had traveled by bus from Minamata to Hiroshima (The final training location of this trip) for the entire day, visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum the following day, November 20. They first heard from legacy successor Ms. Sachiko Hiraoka. She shared about her aunt Sadae Sasaoka’s experience of the atomic bomb. She was 13 and happened to be at home when the bomb dropped 3.5 kms away. She shared the horrors her aunt saw, of the pain of losing family members, and the hopelessness of war. Ms. Hiraoka … Read more

Hello from ARI. Starting this week, we are launching a new series on our Facebook and Instagram Stories, capturing daily life on the ARI campus through photos! “Daily Life” at ARI: A Charm That Captivates ManyWe often receive wonderful comments from volunteers and visitors to ARI, such as: “I love the life and atmosphere here.” “It’s so healing to see the fields and the changing seasons.”Therefore, to share this charm with more people and convey what ARI is like “right now,” we decided to deliver photos that capture ARI “in … Read more

Today, the fall Used Book Market started! Best sellers, paperbacks, picture books art books, and many more, all donated from across Japan, will be available for 100 yen and up. On November 1, 3, and 8, come enjoy Indian curry and chai produced by our skilled ARI chef. Fall is the season for reading. Why not seek out new words in the quiet former Missionary House, away from the noisy world? Fri, October 31 – Sat, November 8 *Closed on Sun, November 2 OPEN11:00-16:00 Venue: Former Missionary House (adjacent to … Read more

ARI conducts evacuation drills three times a year for the entire community.For many international participants and volunteers, this is their first experience with disaster preparedness training.Therefore, learning how to respond when a disaster strikes is critically important. That day, following an evacuation drill, we conducted a shelter management simulation based on the scenario that ARI campus became an evacuation shelter. We thought together about the responses required in an emergency, using a game-like method.