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Maki - family camp

Code: 20251107-75af-4815-a261-a8979b78128a Copied

Japan Farming Environment Manual work Social work Teenagers Farming Environment +4 Fixed dates

About the project

Maki - family camp

📝 Detailed information

🏢 About the local organisation

This project is actively working for SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDGs 10 (Reduced Inequalities), organized together with Kyodo Gakusha (since 2000 here), a cooperative community where people with various backgrounds such as mentally disadvantaged, people who are tired of city life, who want to learn farming, who want to live in the nature, etc. They have 5 communities in Japan incl. Maki and grow animals and vegetables in an ecological, organic way. Maki is located in a very isolated area (not accessible for cars and we have to walk 4 km in the mountains!), so it once became an abandon village in 1970s and then, was revived by Kyodo Gakusha. Over 10 people were living till several years ago, but less and less in these years (almost nobody in the winter), so vols. are needed even more! *Outcome of this project: In 2025, we had 20 STVs for 4 short term workcamps and 3 LMTVs from 9 countries who greatly contributed to their protecting the houses, farming and caring animals that was difficult to finish by the time they needed without volunteers! See the long-term goal of this project as Local SDGs made by the previous project leader at https://www.slideshare.net/nice-workcamp/2019-ep3-188767935 (only in Japanese, sorry, but you can still enjoy the pictures!)

💼 What the programme involves

Volunteers mainly work for organic agriculture (cultivation, seeding, weeding, harvesting, taking care of goats, cows and chicken, making their feeds) and also carrying the things from the town to Maki, renovating the houses and trails on the way, constructing a hut, reconstructing the neighboring traditional house owned by the ex. inhabitant and destroyed by snow, help the house works especially cooking, etc. It's important and necessary to actively join the daily meeting and actively share the collective life. Be ready to work for quite a long time (06:00-18:00 with some brakes) and hard. It'd be surely good exercise to make your body more healthy!

🏠 Accommodation on site

Volunteers will live in the main house that is a very beautiful cultural heritage and equips the basic facilities such as water, electricity, kitchen, toilets and a bath room! Single room can be provided. They will have meals, meetings and social life with Kyodo Gakusha members. Meals will be cooked by volunteers together with the members by turns. Sleeping bag is not necessary. There is no wifi.

📍 About the location

Maki is located in the beautiful place near “Japanese Northern Alps“, at about 900 meters asl. and there is something remained here that most of Japanese areas have lost in modernization. Other activities - Exchange program, Excursion on a free day (possibly to Hakuba, a famous tourism spot), etc.

⚠️ Requirements

Motivation letter is needed! Volunteers need to have some Japanese speaking skill (manage to have basic daily conversation) and high motivation and patience to keep hard, long and important work in the very isolated, natural place, to respect the way of the local host and to learn and speak Japanese language is needed. No special skills nor experiences are needed.

ℹ️ Additional information

Study theme - Similar type of communities in each country and their networking Participation fee - 36,000 JPY (200 EUR by the rate on 2025 Nov. 3rd) for MTV (30-182 days participation) and 72,000 JPY (400 EUR by the rate on 2025 Nov. 3rd) for LTV (over 182 days participation) 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 staff/ camp leaders, visa invitation cost, publications, etc. while the meals and the accommodation are provided by the local host by free. Other - The first and last 2 days are On Arrival and Evaluation Seminars in Yokohama or Osaka. The popular documentary film for this place was broadcasted in 2015 at arayashiki-movie.jp/en/.

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📷 Project photos

Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
Maki - family camp
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📅 Available sessions

NICE-26L-MK02

04/04/2025 at 00:00 → 28/06/2025 at 00:00

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 1
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NICE-26L-MK03

04/04/2025 at 00:00 → 09/08/2025 at 00:00

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 1
♂ 0/0 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26L-MK04

04/04/2025 at 00:00 → 20/09/2025 at 00:00

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 1
♂ 0/0 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26L-MK07

16/05/2025 at 00:00 → 28/06/2025 at 00:00

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 1
♂ 0/0 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26L-MK08

16/05/2025 at 00:00 → 09/08/2025 at 00:00

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 1
♂ 0/0 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26L-MK09

16/05/2025 at 00:00 → 20/09/2025 at 00:00

Closed
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♂ 0/0 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26L-MK12

27/06/2025 at 00:00 → 09/08/2025 at 00:00

Closed
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♂ 0/0 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26L-MK13

27/06/2025 at 00:00 → 20/09/2025 at 00:00

Closed
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♂ 0/0 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26L-MK16

08/08/2025 at 00:00 → 20/09/2025 at 00:00

Closed
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♂ 0/0 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26V-0824A

14/09/2026 at 00:00 → 19/09/2026 at 00:00

Open
Volunteers registered 0 / 6
♂ 0/3 ♀ 0/3

NICE-26V-0914A

14/09/2026 at 00:00 → 19/09/2026 at 00:00

Open
Volunteers registered 0 / 6
♂ 0/3 ♀ 0/3

NICE-24L-MK03

20/04/2024 → 25/08/2024

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 2
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NICE-MakiAUTO-EXTAUTO-EXTAUTO-EXTAUTO-EXT

31/12/2025 → 30/12/2026

Closed
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NICE-24L-MK05

20/04/2024 → 17/11/2024

Closed
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♂ 0/1 ♀ 0/1

NICE-24L-MK04

20/04/2024 → 06/10/2024

Closed
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♂ 0/1 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26S-0601A

01/06/2026 at 00:00 → 13/06/2026 at 00:00

Open
Volunteers registered 0 / 6
♂ 0/3 ♀ 0/3

NICE-24V-0219A

19/02/2024 → 23/02/2024

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 8
♂ 0/4 ♀ 0/4

NICE-24L-MK14

24/08/2024 → 17/11/2024

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 2
♂ 0/1 ♀ 0/1

NICE-24L-MK08

01/06/2023 → 06/10/2024

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 2
♂ 0/1 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26V-0112A

12/01/2026 → 17/01/2026

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 2
♂ 0/1 ♀ 0/1

NICE-26V-0202A

02/02/2026 → 07/02/2026

Closed
Volunteers registered 0 / 2
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ℹ️ Key information

Age required

18–99 years old

Solidarity donation

18000.00 JPY ≈ 102 EUR

French tax residents may be eligible for a tax reduction of up to 66% of their costs (membership, plane tickets, solidarity donation).

📍 Location

Nagano, Japan

Japan

🌍 Location info

Local currency

Japan Yen (JPY / ¥)

Exchange rate

1 JPY = 0.005641 EUR

Rate as of 31/05/2026

Timezone

Japan Standard Time

Local time: 21:45 (12/11/2026)

✅ Features

🏠 Accommodation

Collective

🗣️ Languages spoken

English Japanese