Mashiko & Motegi

CODE: NICE-25L-MM

Work:

Volunteers will work on various types of activity related to agriculture such as 1) Maintenance work in satoyama and bamboo forests (bamboo cutting, mowing, building walking trails, etc.), 2) Restoration of abandoned rice terraces and creation of an environment rich in biodiversity (mowing, rice harvesting, threshing, etc.) and 3) Planning and operation of events and children's nature experience activities utilizing satoyama

Accomodation and food

Single room in very big beautiful house, it is called Meizai-an. Cooked by vols. by turn. All basic facilities are provided.

Location and leisure

Location: Mashiko is located in Tochigi Prefecture. Mashiko Town is about a 40-minute drive from Utsunomiya City. The town has an artistic atmosphere and is famous for its traditional Mashiko pottery. The town is also dotted with historical cultural assets and traditional culture, and is located along the Moka Railway line where an SL train runs. Leisure: Work skills training, leadership training, learning about NPOs, etc.

Project hosted by

This project is actively working for SDG2 (Zero Hunger) and SDGS15 (Life on Land), organized together with Tochigi Conservation Corps (TCC). Conservation Corps is long term workcamp programs in USA where 10-20 youth work for local development and environment. About 25,000 vols. join every year. To create similar programs in Japan, TCC was created in 2009 by the leader who was a LMTV coordinator of NICE. In the depopulated and aging mountainous areas of Motegi and Mashiko Towns in Haga County, Tochigi Prefecture, the project aims to revitalize abandoned farmlands and satoyama that have fallen into disrepair due to lack of maintenance by the power of young volunteers. Nurture the youth of the next generation through these activities. From this year, the workcamp is organized also as a part of SCC (Stop Climate Change) projects initiated by NICE with NVDA (Asian network).

Directions to meeting point

Additional comments

Study theme: Volunteer have opportunities learning conservation forest, solving of environmental issues. Participation fee: 36,000 JPY (225 EUR by the rate on 2025 Feb. 14th) of NICE Volunteers fee need to be paid in advance either by Card or PayPal. This is used for the project preparation and coordination such as the transportation of the camp leaders while the meals and the accommodation are provided by the local host by free. Other: Video about TCC. https://youtu.be/0jZPGc7RNdY