Every October, ARI holds HTC (Harvest Thanksgiving Celebration). This year, it will take place on October 17th (Sat) and 18th (Sun). HTC is a day to share the joy of the harvest with everyone and God, and for the participants,
From Feb 16–18, ARI hosted a 3-day NVC (Nonviolent Communication) workshop for our staff, led by Nozomi Kuriyama and Mari Saito from NVC Japan Network. Marking our third year of learning NVC, it feels as though we’ve finally stood at the “starting line.”
NVC is a way of connecting that moves beyond judgment or criticism. Instead, it focuses on listening to our “Feelings” and the underlying “Needs”—the things we truly value. As we grow older, it becomes harder to listen to our inner voices, often making it difficult to nurture relationships where everyone’s needs are honored. The journey starts by noticing our own biases and shifting our perspectives. By changing ourselves, our relationships transform, and eventually, so does the world.
The key is to breathe and mindfully savor our true selves. When we connect with our deep needs, we find healing and the joy of acting from the heart.
We look forward to seeing this practice create a ripple effect throughout the ARI community—a cycle of life centered on honoring each other’s true needs.
At 12:30 PM, staff, volunteers, and participants finish their morning work and gather in the dining hall, ready for a good meal.
Today’s Menu:
From the fields and poultry houses to the kitchen, this nutritious lunch is prepared by many caring hands. We share, we appreciate, and we say “Itadakimasu”—savoring the life we receive.
We are thrilled to announce that ARI has been awarded the “Grand Prize” in the General Category of the 15th Kubota-Mainichi Earth Future Award.
This award honors organizations and individuals tackling the 21st-century global challenges of “Food,” “Water,” and the “Environment.”
Osamu Arakawa, the Director of ARI, explains why nurturing rural leaders is so important:
“According to research by UNEP, the peasant food web—small-scale farming villages spreading organically like a spider’s web—supports 70% of the world’s population by using limited resources: only 25% of the world’s farmland, 10% of fossil fuels, and 20% of agricultural water.
None of us can survive without the producers who create our food and a healthy environment. The true foundation of our society lies in these small farming villages—what we call Satoyama. This is why empowering grassroots leaders who work in these rural areas is of paramount importance.”
🎥 Online Livestream Announcement
Commemorative Report Meeting Date & Time: Feb 14 (Sat) 14:00–16:30 (JST)
Stream URL: https://youtube.com/live/Esh_i9X7f8Y
ARI will continuously commit to building a world, “That We May Live Together.” Please help us spread this joy by sharing this post with your network!
On February 7th and 8th, a two-day activity report session by Ms. Naomi Iwamoto from Japan Overseas Christian Medical Cooperative Service (JOCS) was held at ARI and UCCJ Nishinasuno Church. Despite the cold snap that hit over the weekend, many people attended. We listened intently to the profound life stories Ms. Iwamoto shared, as she spoke about each child by name.
In Bangladesh, children with disabilities often have no choice but to be tied to a pillar in their homes, kept locked away, or left to wander the streets during daytime. A child’s disability is frequently blamed on the mother, leading many women to be divorced and forced into lives of extreme economic hardship.
We learned that tying a child to a pillar is not an act of abuse; rather, it is the only way a mother can ensure her child’s safety while she is away at work. One can only imagine the immense relief these mothers felt when a daycare center was established after their voices—pleading for a safe place to entrust their children—were finally heard.
The current situation surrounding people with disabilities in Bangladesh is a reality that could also occur in the home regions of the participants at ARI. It was a vital opportunity for us to deepen our understanding of these challenges.
We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to Ms. Naomi Iwamoto and the JOCS staff for providing us with the opportunity to hear such invaluable stories.
Did you know that Japanese can also enroll in ARI? Many people might imagine that our participants coming from overseas. However, we actually welcome Japanese participants as well!
To help you learn more, we’ve put together a clear and simple FAQ covering what you can study at ARI, tuition fees, required English proficiency, and the career paths of graduates. Please take a look!
For details regarding international participant recruitment, please see the following page: Admissions – Asian Rural Institute
Q1. What can I learn at ARI?
You will gain the essential skills to become a Rural Leader. This means becoming a leader who is rooted in the local community, respects local resources and the environment, and serves to improve people’s lives and solve regional issues.The Curriculum: Three Core Pillars
ARI curriculum is built on three pillars: Servant Leadership, Foodlife, and Learning Community.
Voice of a Graduate: “ARI is not just about organic farming and leadership; it is first and foremost a place where you grow as a human being. Through dialogue with others and yourself, I gained a foundation for how I want to live my life. I highly recommend ARI to anyone who wants to share values and grow together in a diverse community.” (Chigira Hasumi, 2017 Graduate)
Q2. What is the difference between a Participant and a Volunteer?
Participants join the Rural Leaders Training Program on equal footing with international participants. You will attend all lectures and practical training and share a room with international participants for the most intensive experience. Volunteers work in various sections—such as the farm, kitchen, or office—to support the community life and the training program.
Voice of a Graduate: “Having experienced being a participant, an graduate intern, and a staff member, I felt the most intense discussions and dialogues happened when I was a participant. Sharing diverse perspectives with people from different cultures remains a wonderful memory.” (Ryo Maki, 2019 Graduate)
Q3. How much is the tuition?
For the 9-month training:
Q4. I’m not confident in my English. Is that okay?
English proficiency is not a criterion for selection. However, since all training is conducted in English, we recommend studying before you join. What matters most is your attitude and willingness to communicate, rather than fluency or technical skill.
Voice of a Graduate: “I was worried about my English, and it was hard when I couldn’t express myself at first. But my classmates encouraged me. Since no one is a native speaker, everyone tries their best to understand each other.” (Moe Koyama, 2009 Graduate)
Q5. What are the career paths after graduation?
Our Japanese graduates are active in a wide range of fields, including international cooperation (such as JICA), local farming, community development, education, welfare, and the private sector.
Voice of a Graduate: “The learning at ARI is incredibly diverse and goes far beyond agricultural techniques or rural development. From my personal experience, I believe what you learn at ARI can be fully applied to fields like social welfare and education as well.” (Makiko Nakamura, 2008 Graduate – Special Needs Education Assistant)
“The dialogues and discussions I had with fellow students, staff, and volunteers were invaluable. Through those conversations, I was able to think deeply about international and cross-cultural understanding, peacebuilding, servant leadership, and self-understanding. That unique environment is directly connected to my current career.” (Yuta Kimura, 2020 Graduate – Government employee)
How to Apply
We offer campus tours upon request, so please feel free to contact us.
We are also recruiting long-term volunteers for the next academic year: https://ari.ac.jp/volunteer/
Thank you for your continued support of the Asian Rural Institute.
Recently, we experienced technical difficulties that resulted in unstable access to our website and the unavailability of certain pages and payment functions. We are pleased to report that system recovery work is now complete, and all services have returned to normal operation.
We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and concern this caused, particularly to those of you who were considering making a donation during our campaign period.
All systems are currently operating normally, including the following:
ARI Winter Donation Campaign Credit card donations are now fully operational. Although the official campaign period has ended, we are extending the availability of the donation page for a limited time for those who were unable to access it during the outage.
ARI Main Website All content, including news updates and activity reports, is now accessible without issue.
We welcome your continued warm support and thank you for your patience. We look forward to your continued partnership with the Asian Rural Institute.
Asian Rural Institute
In wintertime, the ARI campus typically gets quiet. Participants have returned home, the farm fields are frozen, and ARI community members recharge while preparing for the next class.
This year, however, the ARI community was abuzz with a different type of learner: college students from St. Olaf College, based in Northfield, Minnesota, USA. Undergrads specializing in environmental science and Japanese area studies, the students came for a winter session special class on environmental issues in Japan, and ARI played the host for two weeks of the course.
St. Olaf students learned about the history of ARI as an institution and its environmental philosophy grounded in sustainable, regenerative farming. They got hands-on experience exploring soil health, such as when they made their own natural fertilizer, bokashi, a technique they hoped to apply on the St. Olaf campus when they return.
The students also visited the Nasu region to study elements of Japan’s environmental history. ARI staff brought them to important sites along the Nasu canal, which first opened the region to agricultural development over 150 years ago, and to several regional farms of varying sizes. The students learned the background and current status of Fukushima prefecture and the impacts of the nuclear power plant meltdown, and heard about the history of organic agriculture in Japan.
Their stay at ARI was not simply a study trip, however. The students joined in all aspects of the ARI community life, including helping cook meals and assisting with farm work. They cleaned carrots, treading on wheat, and more. They enjoyed the ARI life so much, they ended their two weeks stay by hosting a pizza party in the ARI dining hall, Koinonia!
ARI is deeply grateful to St. Olaf for visiting our campus and breaking bread with us as part of their studies.
If you’re interested in planning a study program at ARI for you or your students, contact us today!
To our community and partners,
Thank you very much for your continued understanding and support of our school’s activities.
We have recently detected unauthorized access (malware infection exploiting a system vulnerability) on some of the web servers operated by our school. In response, we have performed an emergency shutdown of the affected servers, prioritizing the safety of our users. We sincerely apologize for any concern or inconvenience this may cause.
We would like to report on the current status and our subsequent actions as follows:
1. Incident Overview and Timeline
On January 27, 2026, we identified unauthorized behavior that exploited an inherent vulnerability in our website’s operation system (CI/CD tools). We immediately disconnected the affected servers from the network and conducted a detailed investigation.
2. Scope of Impact and Safety of Personal Information
Due to this incident, the following site was temporarily inaccessible:
Special Campaign Site (Note: The campaign period ended on January 31.)
Important Note Regarding Donation Information: Our investigation has confirmed that sensitive data, including donation records and credit card information, is managed on a completely separate system from the affected servers. Therefore, no data leakage or tampering has occurred. Please be assured that your information remains secure.
3. Future Measures
While we are currently working on restoration, we are not merely performing a simple recovery. To transition to a fundamentally more secure and high-performance environment, the affected services are currently set to “Under Maintenance.”
We take this incident very seriously and are committed to further strengthening our information security management systems. We appreciate your kind understanding.
Sincerely,
Asian Rural Insititute
Watch all our online events again!
Join the ARI life with family and friends!
We're looking for on-campus volunteers
This is where the community gathers to share meals and fellowship together. More than just a dining hall, it also serves as a venue for events, meetings, and learning activities. Koinonia is a Greek word meaning “fellowship” or “sharing.”
At peak times, meals are prepared for as many as 100 people at once. Students, staff, and volunteers all take part in cooking and meal preparation. The kitchen is not only a place for preparing food but also a space for learning, serving others, and building relationships within the community.
Participants attend classes in these classrooms throughout the training program. The library contains a wide range of English and Japanese books, audiovisual materials, and magazines covering agriculture, social issues, community development, and many other fields of study.
Participants and volunteers live in separate dormitories for men and women. The dormitory includes shared lounges, kitchens, showers, and laundry facilities. Wi-Fi is not available.
The poultry facilities include free-range chicken coops and a brooding house. More than 400 chickens are raised, producing over 80,000 eggs and approximately one ton of chicken meat each year.
Participants learn a variety of pig farming techniques through hands-on practice. Both deep-litter and concrete-floor systems are used, and manure is recycled into biogas and fertilizer.
Goat milk (over 200 liters annually) and meat are used for food, while manure is used as fertilizer. During the day, the goats roam freely in the pasture.
The forests surrounding the campus are managed through selective thinning for firewood and charcoal production. Leaves and other organic materials are collected for use in agriculture.
On 2.5 hectares of farmland, approximately 100 varieties of vegetables and crops are grown without chemical fertilizers or pesticides. The entire community helps manage the fields as part of its commitment to learning and self-sufficiency.
Rice is cultivated in paddies both on and off campus. Various organic rice-growing methods are studied and practiced, including weed control and fertilization using ducks.
The workshop is a space for repair and recycling activities. It contains machinery, welding equipment, woodworking tools, and a variety of materials.
Livestock feed is produced here using both manual and mechanical methods. Continuous efforts are made to improve feed quality and sustainability.
The first floor houses the reception area and administrative offices, while the second floor contains staff offices and the Director’s office. The Farm Shop (Agricultural Training Room) is located adjacent to the building.
The shop offers ARI-grown produce, processed foods, books, and handicrafts from the home countries of ARI graduates.
The facility serves as the hub of agricultural activities at ARI. It includes classrooms, storage for tools and farming materials, and facilities for drying and storing crops.
Originally a 100-year-old traditional farmhouse, the chapel has been renovated into a place of worship. Daily morning gatherings are held here, along with meditation, dialogue sessions, gospel choir practice, and other community activities. Oikos is a Greek word meaning “home.”
This facility is used for producing and storing processed foods such as cookies and jam. The ground floor also contains a poultry processing facility.
Fish are raised for both food and agricultural purposes.
