Fostering the Future of the Countryside

Where We Call Home.

Restrictions on entry into Japan due to the pandemic

threw the tourism industry into what felt like a long, cold winter.

Setting his hopes on the recovery of inbound tourism is this president of a local tour company.

Paul Christie, from the UK.

If this goes on, we'll be
out of business by spring 2023.

Neglect over the past three years has accelerated the deterioration of the forests and fields he toured with his customers.

In preparation for the tourists' return,

he acquired a local mountain and set out to restore it - work that could take a hundred years!

Paul places all his bets on restarting his tour business.

We followed his efforts through this trying period.

In Oita Prefecture, the Ota district of Kitsuki City is a small farming village of around 1,100 inhabitants.

Working hard harvesting rice with a local farmer is Paul Christie.

He runs a tour company that caters to visitors from overseas,

and has been putting efforts into rejuvenating the area.

He sees the region's picturesque farming communities - often referred to as "satoyama" in Japan - as its biggest assets.

Paul has had much success conducting tours with travelers from abroad.

The simple walks around local forests and farms are a hit among tourists of a wealthier demographic.

During peak years, Paul welcomed around 4,000 visitors annually.

He used part of his business's revenue to support the rapidly aging community,

helping with things like financing the purchase of farming equipment.

But when the COVID pandemic broke out in 2020, all tours were cancelled.

Paul's company was suddenly forced to put its business on hold.

What are we to do?

All we can do is hold out.

He put most of his twenty-eight employees on a temporary break,

and made use of government subsidy to try to keep the company alive.

When the pandemic broke out,
we thought it'd last six months...

or maybe a year.

We never expected it would
last over two years.

If this goes on, we'll be
out of business by spring 2023.

Over the three-or-so years of the pandemic, the state of the villages, fields and forests

that are the main attractions of his tours has considerably deteriorated.

Once animated with tourists from overseas, the community is gradually losing its liveliness.

Feeling powerless, Paul often went into the woods alone

to do whatever maintenance work he could along the tours' paths.

Over the twenty years since Paul settled down here, he's always counted on the help of a dear friend.

- Hi there!
- Come in!

- Cold, isn't it?
- Sure is!

Seventy-nine-year-old Wakisaka Etsu - "Ecchan" to her friends and family.

Two decades ago, when Paul arrived in the community alone, she warmly welcomed him like he was family.

Since Paul started his business, Ecchan has been inviting the tour participants to her home

where they can experience authentic Japanese countryside hospitality.

We're close friends.

Yeah, not so much mother and son,
but more like close friends.

We tell each other everything.

Ecchan's words of wisdom are a constant source of moral support.

My Mum often said, ‘Be patient.'

‘After the dark night,
morning always comes.'

Yes, but I'm an impatient Englishman.
I'm not good at biding my time.

It's my problem.

I want to hurry ahead.

Yeah, well, I can't wait too long either.
I haven't got much time left.

Ecchan's encouragements always ring true, especially now.

Paul's company is struggling to survive.

Working tirelessly to help keep it afloat is his wife, Mihoko, or "Mimi."

She's the one who solely took charge of procedures for things like

obtaining government support, navigating the firm through the troubled waters.

Bye bye!
Off you go!

Combining work with childrearing and house chores - she's been maintaining quite a balancing act.

It's Ecchan.

- Morning! Sorry for calling suddenly.
- Not at all.

Worried for Chris and Mimi, Ecchan has been calling them more often.

Yes, we will. Thanks.
Don't catch cold either.

Ecchan's like a mother to everyone,
no matter their age.

She listens to us talk about our work,
she'd like to welcome tourists too...

but we can't right now.

She worries she'll start to grow senile
if tours don't restart soon.

But she never lets her worries show.
She's all warmth and smiles.

She's got many things on her mind.
I know it.

But she smiles, and says, ‘It'll be OK.'

She encourages and supports me,
our family, the company...

and everyone around her.

Weeks later, Paul received the first good news in a long while.

It came from Mr. Hashimoto, who's been working with him to enliven the region.

- Hi, long time no see.
- Good to see you again.

Born here, Hashimoto had been living in Tokyo when he was inspired by Paul's work,

and decided to move back to his hometown.

They now collaborate to refurbish vacant houses.

He has news of a major development.

The care facility building we were
checking out the past couple years.

Things are moving forward.

More and more firms
are interested in joining.

- I'd like to show you around the site.
- Absolutely.

Hashimoto has set his sights on an unused elderly care facility building.

He obtained permission from the local government to use the location at minimal cost.

He rallied four Tokyo-based firms to join the initiative

to create a center that'll foster projects to use the region's resources and promote local businesses.

We'll come together to share ideas
and find uses we'd never imagined before.

I now realize how much work
he's been doing.

I'm so happy.
It will invigorate the region even more.

It certainly invigorates me even more!

Then, last October, the government began to ease its restrictions on entry into Japan.

Tourists from around the world reappeared throughout the nation.

Tour bookings are on the rise at Paul's company, too.

For 2023, we have about
450 more reservations.

- For the year?
- Yes.

- I can only smile.
- It's great.

At last, Paul's tours are about to restart,

but there's something he's been wanting to do beforehand.

This is a mountain he acquired to help ensure the region's posterity.

The area's been deteriorating over the past few years.

Paul is planning work to restore the forest to its former glory over years and generations to come.

I want it to become lusher than ever.

It'll take years, most likely decades...

or even centuries,
but we'll do it little by little.

We've cut the grass along this path.

We'll be taking the first tour members
on a hike along it.

The day before the tours restart.

Paul and his employees have come to clean up the company's office where the hike will begin.

This place brings back memories.

Let's clean it up and
get it running again.

Many cobwebs.

Paul's family, friends and staff thoroughly tidy the place up to get it ready for the big day.

This was my very first office
here in Japan.

It has a historical significance
for our company.

I want to treasure it with everyone here.

The day has finally come, with bright autumn sunshine.

Good morning.

- At last.
- Yes, I'm excited. It's a fine day.

Off I go!

The participants have gathered up at the freshly-reopened company headquarters.

The five tourists from countries including the US, Canada and Switzerland

are about to set forth with Paul as their guide.

For the first time in three years, the hike through the countryside begins.

This time, he starts by showing them the current deteriorated state of the forest

caused by the decrease in human activity that stems from the declining population.

"I mean, in sixty years, this is the sort of tree it should become.

This one.

It's probably sixty years...fifty, sixty years."

"And here, all of these have been blown down."

"And you see a number of years ago."

"So, this is what I'm saying, if you can leave it three hundred years,

all these plantations will disappear and it'll be a completely different forest."

"Do people ever go out and, like, seed scatter?

‘Cause they're saying that's one of the best regeneration tools."

"Uh, we'll try it!"

Next comes the main part of the tour...

They reach Paul's mountain.

"And we're slowly exploring more and more.

It's a big property, so, we're...

To do it all at once, it's quite difficult.

But we're seeing what trees were already there besides the plantation trees."

The gradual regeneration of the forest.

Paul hopes the tour members will come again to see his work's progress.

"...and we have this view! So, we're gonna try and lighten the view up."

"...the trees and the landscape is very different? They have a great future."

Now, time for a visit to Ecchan's home.

- Hello everyone! Welcome!
- Hi Ecchan!

"This.. this is Ecchan, who..When I moved here twenty years ago,

we soon became firm friends and her husband and Grandma were still around then..."

Come on in!

She too had been impatiently counting the days.

I'd been waiting to welcome you.
I'm so glad the tours restarted!

She treats them to some mandarin oranges from her orchard.

"They're so fresh...and not super sweet."

"Very nice to peel."

Once again, Ecchan's home is filled with the laughter of happy tourists.

Thank you so much.
Take care, and come visit again.

Feels like we've met before.

Let's meet again.

"She's such a warm lady, so..."

So long.
Bye bye!

Paul's back.

His cheeriness has returned.

It's been a while.
Thank you!

Some customers want to join the project.

Everyone can do their part
to help revitalize the region.

But rather than individually, we'll get
real results by working together.

This project to regenerate the forests,
and help them regain their richness...

will take place over many years.

I have to fulfill my part and pass
the torch to future generations.

We have to focus on creating foundations
on which the next generation will build...

to keep the project alive and moving.

That way, I can die with peace of mind.

Two months since the tours restarted.

Today, Paul and his family are on his mountain to plant some sawtooth oak saplings.

In about twenty years, their wood will be used as charcoal or to grow mushrooms.

Children grow to eventually support their family, and grandchildren are born

- such is the cycle of life in the rural village community.

They plant the trees with hope to create a sustainable and abundant forest that will last for generations.

When Ecchan first approached me,
I'd never imagined that 20 years later...

our project would have grown
to such a scale.

I've had such a fulfilling life
over the past 20 years.

And because it's been so fulfilling...

I must give back to the people
and community that've helped me.

Let's work for the region's future!

This is where we call home!!

Hi! I'm Adhikari Santosh.

I'm a car mechanic in Tokyo.
Leave all your car problems to me!

Edogawa, Tokyo.

This car maintenance center
near central Tokyo employs 25 workers.

9:30 a.m.
work starts.

This red liquid is engine coolant
that keeps the engine from overheating.

It's leaking.

It's because the radiator is worn out.

Let's raise the car.

Santosh is in charge of vehicle repairs.

He's preparing to replace
this car's radiator.

I first have to remove some parts in front.

As I work, I look carefully
and think of the best way to proceed.

There was some leaked coolant in here.

So, I'm draining it.

Let's start the engine.

It works.

He does a final clean up,
and the car is ready to go.

Shall I do the double check?

Filter, OK!

- Can you check?
- Nice and tight. OK!

In charge of the maintenance department,
Santosh oversees the staff's work.

Several cars come in every day.
We mustn't make the customers wait.

I assign work according to skills.

It's a lot of responsibility.

You can't slack off today...

with the camera rolling!

A car lover since childhood, Santosh
attended a technical college in Japan.

There are many Japanese cars in Nepal.
They're durable.

So, I came to Japan
to learn technical skills.

In 2018, Santosh found this job.
He'd gotten married a few months earlier.

The physical work was tough at first.

Whenever I felt stressed, I'd talk
about it with my wife after I came home.

But I love the hands-on work,
so I'm enjoying myself.

This is our manager.

He's so kind and teaches me a lot.

I've much respect for him.

I moved here from a different branch
a year ago.

I was impressed by Santosh's passion
and dedication to his work.

He has to teach younger staff...

so I taught him how to teach.

I feel he's grown so much.

As I watched everyone make progress,
I gained confidence.

At times, we disagree on something.

But we always talk about it
and eventually reach an agreement.

He has a strong sense of responsibility.

He's got much more potential.

This car had a defective side mirror.

I'll return it to the customer.

Santosh does a final check
with the customer.

Please try it.

It works! Thanks.

Drive safely!
Thank you!

We get all kinds of cars every day.
Sometimes we can't find the problem.

So, I'm very happy
when I can solve an issue.

And the customer's happy
when they get their car back.

It's the best part of my work.

My treasure is my certificate
of completion.

He passed the national mechanic test, and
can do government-run car inspections.

There's content on legal issues.

I added notes on Japanese vocabulary
that's more difficult.

Like special terms for
‘light vehicle' and ‘bicycle.'

I'd study until late at night for the test.

In the future, I want to do
car-related work in Nepal.

I believe that if you work hard,
people will notice it.

Your efforts will be recognized.