Kobe City: Aina Elementary School: First Experiential Learning Experience in Rice Cultivation in Four Years

Press Release (May 15, 2023)
Kobe Municipal Aina Elementary School
As a small specially accredited school, Kobe Municipal Aina Elementary School is committed to hands-on learning as one of the pillars of its educational activities. All students at the school learn to grow rice with the aim of deepening their interest in the local environment and traditions, and to interact with local people. The program was canceled due to the Corona disaster. The rice farming experience, which was suspended due to the Corona disaster, will be resumed for the first time in four years.

1. Outline

(1) Rice Planting
Date: Wednesday, May 24, 2023 from 10:00 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. (light rain permitting)
Location: National Akashi Kaikyo Park Kobe District Aina Satoyama Park (Aina Aza Tashiro, Yamada-cho, Kita-ku)
Contents:
(1) Introduction ceremony
・Words from the children’s representative
・Story from Aina Satoyama Park
・Special nonprofit corporation Aina Ikumi-no-kai Story from Aina Satoyama Park
(2) Rice planting

(2) Rice harvesting
Date: Wednesday, September 27, 2023 from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. (light rain permitting)
Location: National Akashi Kaikyo Park Kobe District Aina Satoyama Park (Tashiro, Aina, Yamada-cho, Kita-ku)

2. Other

<Reference> National Akashi Kaikyo Park Kobe District Aina Satoyama Park
National Akashi Kaikyo Park is a national park with an overall planned area of 330 ha, consisting of two districts, the Awaji District (Awaji City, Hyogo Prefecture) and the Kobe District (Kobe City), which were established to accommodate wide-area recreation in the surrounding area centering on the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge. The basic philosophy of the park is “Harmonious coexistence of nature and people, and human interaction. The concept of the “Aina Satoyama Park” in the Kobe District is “Satoyama Culture Park. The first phase of the park opened on May 28, 2008, as a park where the satochi-satoyama landscape of the region is preserved and regenerated, and where anyone can easily experience satochi-satoyama culture in the suburbs of a large city.

<Reference> NPO Aina Ikumi-no-Kai
In Aina Satoyama, the peach garden of Kobe, we pass on and nurture the wisdom of satoyama to all people from children to adults. This year marks the 15th anniversary of our activities to pass on the rich nature, traditional skills, and charm of the satoyama through pesticide-free cultivation, environmental conservation, and food education. And we aim to contribute to the development of local society and culture.