Purpose

The Kiyosato Educational Experiment Project (KEEP) is an organization dedicated to education, outreach, and service to others. Paul Rusch founded KEEP in 1938 with the vision of a place for communal learning, enrichment and development. KEEP continues to honor that vision as we address the current needs of society. Today, as in the beginning, we offer innovative and thought provoking programs.

Food

When Paul Rusch returned to Japan after WWII, he found the people of Kiyosato eating potatoes and grains reserved for the animals, as the high altitude of the Yatsugatake Highlands makes growing rice impossible. Understanding the need for Kiyosato citizens to become self-sufficient, KEEP introduced dairy farming with imported Jersey cattle from American donors. The milk produced on the farm was distributed free of charge to local schools as part of KEEP's outreach to the region.

Today, KEEP's Ohio Experimental Farm is a busy educational farm with programs for school groups, agricultural internships, and public classes for those interested in learning more about dairy farming. Our restaurants use KEEP Jersey milk products in their food preparation. The Farm Shop and the Jersey Hut sell KEEP's milk, yogurt, ice cream, and other food products to visitors. Many people in Japan order items directly from the KEEP web site (Japanese only).

Shokuiku is another way that KEEP attempts to educate visitors about food. Translated as "Food Education", shokuiku is a national law enacted in June 2005 that KEEP's programming actively supports. The Japanese government's goal is to increase awareness of the relationship between food consumption and production and encourage healthy lifestyles. One example of shokuiku activities at KEEP are the place cards in dining areas that explain where and how the food served was produced. KEEP uses local produce as much as possible in food preparation.

Health

Health is not merely the physical state of the body; health extends to spiritual and social issues as well. Health is not just the health of one person, but the health of the community, of humans and animals alike. To promote universal good health, KEEP encourages healthy lifestyles and promotes the protection of a healthy environment. KEEP visitors can reflect upon issues of health and wellbeing when:

• riding one of the rental bikes from Seisen Ryo
• exploring the walking and hiking trails
• camping at KEEP or staying at Seisen Ryo hotel and conference center
• participating in an environmental education program
• visiting one of KEEP's three museums: the Paul Rusch Memorial Center, the Yatsugatake Nature Center, or the Yamane (Japanese Dormouse) Museum. The Yamane Museum is the only museum in Japan of its kind dedicated to education and preservation of this unique creature's threatened habitat.

Faith

Rooted in the Christian faith, KEEP provides a venue for all people to express and develop their faith. The Christian ideals of prayer and service to others deeply influenced KEEP's founder and leadership. Today, KEEP welcomes people of all faiths to come together in pursuit of deeper spirituality. The stunning natural beauty of the Yatsugatake Highlands is a wonderful place for a spiritual retreat.

St. Andrew's Church was built in 1947 and today has over 200 parishioners. The unique Anglican church showcases Japanese architecture and aesthetics: the floors are laid with tatami (woven straw) mats, the stones used for walls came from the nearby Kawabata Gorge, and shoji (rice-paper) screens cover the windows. There is a hiking trail with statues of the 12 Stations of the Cross through the woods behind the church.

Just as the church was used for community meetings in the early days of KEEP, today the church continues service to the community in many ways such as hosting music concerts for the public several times a the year. The Annual Church Bazaar in October is a popular community event. The church's rector, Father Muto, is active in the Anglican Church of Japan's national peace and reconciliation outreach work.

Hope for Youth

KEEP developed from a Christian youth retreat center dedicated to teaching leadership skills. In 1957, St. John's Nursery School was founded at KEEP. The curriculum at St. John's focuses on more than just childhood development. The teachers at St. John's instill a sense of wonder for the nature surrounding the students, encouraging the children to take responsibility for the environment.

The Farm School was started as an educational as well as agricultural opportunity, to teach local youth a trade in order to support their families. The Matsumoto Youth Camp was created as a place of respite for children who had lost parents in the war, to take them out of the post-war squalor of Tokyo and introduce them to the healing spirit of nature.

Current youth programs at KEEP encompass all forms of agricultural and environmental education. Year round programming is designed for all age levels. Students at the primary, secondary, and university levels take part in programs on the environment, farming, and the care of livestock in both day programs and overnight camps. One indicator of the programming's impact is the high number of program participants who end up working in the field of environmental education or nature preservation.

History

Kiyosato Educational Experiment Program (KEEP)

Paul Rusch's visionary commitment sustained KEEP's growth from the initial construction of Seisen Ryo in 1938. Journeying from Kentucky in 1925 to assist in the rebuilding of the Tokyo and Yokohama YMCAs, Paul Rusch discovered a land, a people, and a cause that would become his life's work. To learn more of Paul Rusch and KEEP's history, please click here.

Location

KEEP is located in the Yatsugatake Highlands, about two hours west of Tokyo and three and a half hours north of Nagoya. KEEP is accessible by car, train, and bus. The nearest train station is the Kiyosato stop on the Koizumi Line. The nearest JR station is Kobuchisawa on the Chuo line. Yamanashi Kotsu bus company offers highway bus routes from Shinjuku to Kiyosato.

KEEP is 1,400 meters above sea level. Mountain views in each direction enhance the beauty of the four seasons. Four national parks are visible from KEEP's grounds. There is abundant hiking, biking, bird watching, and other outdoor activities in summer that are followed by skiing, sledding, snowshoeing, and other outdoor sports activities in winter.

For a map of KEEP and the Kiyosato area including hiking trails, click here. For hiking trail descriptions, please click here. These files are Adobe PDF format. Please visit the Adobe web site here if you need to download Acrobat Reader.

Contact

3545 Kiyosato, Takane-cho
Hokuto-shi, Yamanashi-ken
407-0311 Japan
Tel: 0551-48-2114
Fax: 0551-48-3575
E-Mail: keep@keep.or.jp

When dialing Japan from outside the country, please remember that there is a fourteen hour time difference between EST in the U.S. and Japan. Please call before 8:00 AM or after 5:00 PM EST. To dial Japan, please prefix the number with 011-81-, and drop the first 0 of the Japanese telephone number.

KEEP Leadership

Board of Directors

• Chairman: Tsutomu Kanai; Emeritus Chairman of the Board, Hitachi, Ltd.
• CEO: Akiyoshi Kato; former Chairman, NEC Computer Systems
• Executive Director: Minoru Masaki
• Managing Director: Takao Okemoto
• Managing Director: Tadashi Kawashima
• Advisory Director:  Tetsuro Kuroda
• Members:
• Rikizo Asakawa, President, Paul Rusch Society (Kiyosato)
• Tetsuo Chino, Executive Council, International Christian University
• Satoshi Endo, Bishop, Episcopal Church of Japan, Yokohama Diocese
• Tsuguya Fukui, Director, St. Luke's International Hospital
• John Kitagawa, President, American Committee for KEEP, Inc.
• Mitsuhiko Komiyama, Hokuto City Tourism Association
• Yoshiko Koshimizu, President, Hokuto City Chamber of Commerce
• Nobuhisa Matsudaira, President, Japan Committee for KEEP
• Nagamasa Mitsui, President, Yamanashi Lighthouse
• Shigeyuki Okajima, Chairman, Environmental Education Forum of Japan
• Hideitsu Ohashi, President, Rikkyo University
• Masashi Shirakura, Mayor, Hokuto City
• Yasuhiko Terauchi, President, Brotherhood of St. Andrew in Japan
• Taka Wakao, Head of Wakao Ballet School
• Shinichi Yoshizawa, Advisor, Yamanashi Chuo Bank

Councilors

• Osamu Abe, Head Board Member, ESD-J
• Jyoji Funaki, President, Moegi no Mura
• Masashi Fujimori, President, Fujiizumi
• Kenkichi Ishiguro, Executive Director, Yamanishi Equine Promotion Center
• Kaname Komiyama, Chairman, Yamanishi American Football Association
• Noboru Kuraishi, Vice President, BSA in Japan
• Akio Matsuzaki, Advisor, Morinaga & Co., Ltd.; Chairman, Angel Foundation
• Mutsuji Muto, Former Head Chaplain, Rikkyo Gakuin
• Masahito Natori, President, Marumasa
• Naoshi Oka, Managing Director, Yamanishi Volunteer Association
• Eiji Osawa, Honorary Director, Yamanishi YMCA
• Toshihide Shimazu, Chairman, Koshu Rehabilitation Group
• Sumiyo Shimazu, Former Director, Kiyosato St. John's Nursery School
• Yasuko Shimura, Journalist
• Makto Sunagawa, Special Advisor, KRI International Corp.
• Noboru Tonegawa, Hokuto City Council Member
• Masumi Uematsu, Honorary Advisor, Asahi Beer Co.
• Heizo Yamagata, President, Japan American Footbal Association
• Yoshihiro Yamanaka, President, Hollywood Beauty and Fashion School
• Takemasa Yoneyama, Honorary Advisor, Asahi Beer Co.

Advisers

• Shigeru Kobayahi, Former President, KEEP
• Shigeaki Hinohara, President, St. Luke’s International Hospital
• Ikuo Hirayama, Hirayama Ikuo Silkroad Museum
• Chisato Igaya, Vice President, IOC
• Kenji Itayama, President, Yokufukai
• Koji Kakizawa, Former Foreign Minister
• Satoshi Omura, Head of The Kitasato Institute
• Sumio Ozawa, Former Mayor of Nagasaka
• Yujiro Sato, Head Adviser, Rikkyo Club of Executives & Professionals
• Yojiro Takamuro, Former President, Yamanashi Broadcasting System
• Makoto Uematsu, Primus, Episcopal Church in Japan