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This lecture/workshop/dinner party series' aim is to learn from farmers, truly savor the fruits of their fields, and to enhance life skills which have been lost because of our modern lifestyles.

To this extent, the life skills discussed here refer to developing our own "feeding grounds." What exactly are these "feeding grounds"? It is a term coined by our first guest speaker Tsutomu Itokawa. Every animal in the wild has, without exception, their own feeding grounds which, as a matter of survival, they fight to protect. Human beings as animals buy food in order to feed themselves. But have we ever stopped to think about fighting to protect the sellers and producers of our food? To care for our "feeding grounds" mean to protect these people. Maybe we should not remain stuck, unthinkingly, in the routine of buying our food based only on how cheap it is.

In this lecture and workshop series we are going to think about how we can, without the need to fight, and by listening to those who grow it, ensure the safety of our food. We would like to find new forms of self-sufficiency by going beyond the relationship between consumers and producers. To start your own small-sized farm may be one way...

Those who have already started farming, those who would like to start farming, and those who would rather not, but have an interest in food, should definitely take part in this lecture and workshop series.

We will visit a field that Ryo Yoneda (coordinator of this lecture series) and hanare's gardening group are currently cultivating. There is a lot to do in the fields at this time of the year. Mr Itokawa will also join us on-site to teach us more about the practicalities of growing vegetables.
Meeting place: Kokusaikaikan station at 10:00 (we will all go together from here to the field in Iwakura)

Instructors:

Tsutomu Itokawa:
A graduate of Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Mr Itokawa started to run the Hatake Café Oishi café after leaving for Hyakusho shogakkou. He is a representative of the Hatake Club and a research group that studies agricultural self-sufficiency. This year, as part of his quest for self-sufficiency, he has moved to Keihoku-cho in Kyoto City to cultivate new farmland.

Co-ordinator: Ryo Yoneda
Born in 1975. Through his experience and research of the Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage, he believes that a good understanding of our environment is necessary to cultivate a sense of internal autonomy inherent in all of us. From 2007 - 2009 he conceived and organized the farming related event "Yui no ta uji" where participants received a salary of 2 "go" of rice in lieu of wages. He is a resident of the shared house Tsuru Murasaki which has a shared open space attached to it.

Conceived and organized by : Ryo Yoneda, Michiko Yoshimura

How to participate: Send an email mikko(at)hanareproject.net, including your name, contact details, details of farm experience (yes or no) .

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English Text Translated by Takaaki Yamane and Sandra Stevens