Eniwa City/Eniwa City Ranch 277-4 Others
Hokkai Gakuen University
Faculty of Law Department of Law Yuka Ozaki 2nd year
Faculty of Engineering, Department of Electronics and Information Engineering Misato Okumura 1 year
Faculty of Business Administration 1 year Arakawa Kodai
Faculty of Law 1 year Mizuki Ishikawa
*Interviewed in October , 2021
Ekorin Village – An Ecological Theme Garden Aiming to Realize the SDGs, Not Just Nature and Animals –
People outside hokkaido may not have heard much, but “Ekorin Village” (Eniwa City), which you may have heard the name of at least once, is a natural environment where animals such as sheep and alpacas live vividly. However, this village was named Ekorin Village with the meaning of not only abundant nature and animals, but also a small community > village< that values the connection < the natural environment and eco-> < the connection with the > of ecology. Ekorin Village is a special place where you can have fun learning about eco. This time, we interviewed staff member Ino about the charm and initiatives of Ekorin Village.
Galaxy Garden
– Scenery that changes with the seasons –
Daffodils in spring, roses in summer, dahlias in autumn, and the ever-changing landscape is Galaxy Garden that shines in photographs no matter where you cut them out. In the garden area using the difference in elevation, 30,000 daffodils are in full bloom from spring to summer, and it seems that the scenery like coming to the world of picture books spreads. 
Source: Galaxy Garden Instagram https://www.instagram.com/p/COjrVP7LoL4/?utm_medium=copy_link (top) https://www.instagram.com/p/CRGI15vhBmG/?utm_medium=copy_link (Bottom) Instead of looking at only one garden, it is made so that new scenery can be discovered by looking at it overlaid with the other garden. Depending on where you focus, your view will change, so it’s a good idea to look at the Galaxy Garden from various angles!
– Turning to buildings –
At Chelsea Treehouse, even in everyday wear, it is photogenic enough, but there are people who enjoy taking photos by cosplaying. In addition, in the garden called “Fun Riverside” at the back of the garden, there is a rat house that appears in the story of “Fun Riverside” (written by Kenneth Graham, 1908). The building has small furniture as if rats really live, and it is fun just to watch it. Even after the flower season is over, one of the ways to enjoy focusing on these buildings is to aim for a photogenicity or to visit to sketch. 
– Consider the environment –
The salvage garden is home to scrap steel and objects created using used bottles. It is elaborately made so that you do not notice that it is scrapped unless you look closely, so please check carefully when you visit this garden. 
Millie, a horse in a gypsy caravan garden, is also made of scrap wood if you look closely. I was able to take the best shot against the background of bright red autumn leaves. 
– Take a break after a walk –
Soft serve ice cream is made from the group company Bocca in Date City, Hokkaido. The aftertaste was refreshing and delicious. The alpaca soft serve ice cream on the right of the photo looks so cute that it’s a waste to eat. The Ekorin village original soft serve ice cream on the left has tomato taste, honey taste, rose taste. The soft serve ice cream in the photo is tomato flavor. Because there is no smell and sourness peculiar to tomatoes, it is easy to eat even if you are not good at tomatoes, and it is recommended. 
~ Recommended time ~
Daffodils in early May (50,000 daffodils planted in total)
Source: Galaxy Garden Instagram https://www.instagram.com/p/CLnmq2Kg1gH/?utm_medium=copy_link Roses 
from late June to mid-July Source: Galaxy Garden Instagram Dalia 
quotes from https://www.instagram.com/p/BzSAL2wA316/?utm_medium=copy_link From September to mid-October: Galaxy Garden Instagram https://www.instagram.com/p/CUT3cRzhiqY/?utm_medium=copy_link Galaxy Garden with numerous different themed gardens. The beautiful world created by Bunny Guinness, one of the world’s leading garden designers, was unfolding.
~Rakudaken~
At the farm restaurant “Rakudaken” in Ekorin Village, you can taste dishes using pork called “Kona Yuki tonton” that is grazing and bred in Ekorin Village. Carbonara, which is thickly sliced bacon, uses “Kona Yuki tonton” bacon with a solid meat quality. The combination of pasta and bacon, intertwined with rich sauces, was excellent and very delicious. Spend a leisurely time eating delicious pasta and pizza while watching the sheep grazing from the window. 
Recommended souvenirs at the Welcome Center
If you visit Ekorin Village, I want to buy it! Here are three recommended products.
~ Roses eaten by Rosbytomoko ~
In Ekorin Village, there is an area called “Rose Field of Rosby”. There, we grow a whopping 4,000 roses to eat. Confitture and syrup handmade one by one with fresh roses are not only good for beauty, but also as a story. Configurtures and syrups can also be purchased in the Welcome Center and online site. 
~ Tomato juice of Tomato Forest ~
It is a very rich tomato juice using tomatoes from “Tomato Forest”, which makes you feel “life” in Ekorin Village and gives off a particularly strong presence. It is delicious even if you drink it as it is, but it is also recommended to use it for soup when cooking. Vending machines can be purchased at the Welcome Center and vending machines in the Welcome Center. 
~ Ekorin Village Original Set ~
It is a set that assorted Ekorin village original products. It is more a bargain than buying one by one. The contents are “3 bags of potato chips, 2 pork curry, 6 tomato juice, 2 hoshiryu beer, 1 set of rose jam & syrup, 1 original coffee, 1 tomato caramel”. It can be purchased in the Welcome Center. ※ The combination of products may 
change depending on the time of year So far, we have introduced the facilities of Ekorin Village. Although I could not introduce it in detail this time, there are other “Green Ranch” where you can see animals, “Tomato Forest” which has been certified as the world record as “the largest tomato tree in the world”, and it is recommended.
SDGs – Remembering that you are supported by nature every day –
~ Do you know the SDGs? ～
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs: Sustainable Development Goals) are international goals for achieving a sustainable and better world by 2030, as described in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted unanimously by member countries at the United Nations Summit in September 2015, as a successor to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) formulated in 2001. (Source: What is the SDGs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?) |JAPAN SDGs Action Platform | Ministry of Foreign Affairs (mofa.go.jp) The SDGs have set 17 goals for the environment, poverty, education, gender, etc., but we will introduce some sdgs initiatives being carried out in Ekorin Village in order to reduce the burden on the environment.
– Goal 7 “Energy for Everyone and Clean”, Goal 13 “Concrete Measures against Climate Change” and “Tractor Energy Sources” –
Household tempura oil is collected from elementary schools in the nearby Shimamatsu area and recycled into BDF (biodiesel fuel). Biodiesel fuel is used for tractors and also for the YOSAKOI Soran Festival held in Sapporo City. 
~ “Beer Kasu” ~
We use beer kasu from a beer factory in Otaru and Zenibako of Aleph Co., Ltd., a company that operates Ekorin Village, to generate some electricity through biogas power generation. In addition, food residues can be used as fertilizers in fields because chemical fertilizers are not used in Ekorin Village. 
– Goal 12 “Responsibility to Make Responsibility” –
The garbage produced at surprise donkeys and restaurants in the park is fermented and dried with the garbage crushing drying processing machine “Zero Wonder” installed at each store, reduced to about 40%, and then transported to 13 cooperating farms nationwide and reborn as compost. Items with various manures, such as animal straw in Ekorin Village, are stirred, aged, fermented, converted into fertilizer, and recycled. The implementation rate of food waste recycling, etc. in Aleph Co., Ltd. is very high at 94.6% (FY2020). 
– Goal 15 “Let’s protect the richness of the land”, Goal 17 “Let’s achieve the goal through partnership” –
Surprise donkeys and plates used in stores in Ekorin Village reuse rubber trees that have been collected from rubber raw materials. Because it polishes and reuses the damaged one by using it, there is no waste from the beginning to the end. The reuse dish is a little thinner than the original dish, but I hardly feel any difference. The restaurants in Ekorin village use a lot of reused dishes, so it would be interesting to take a look at them when you eat. 
Q&A asked by the person in charge
~ What is the charm that other sightseeing spots in Ekorin village do not have? ～
Well-maintained gardens, which serve as a link between living and natural areas, are where you can enjoy the scenery, experience crafting sheep grazing in the village, entering old rivers and forests, and camping in sheep farms.
~ What do you want to appeal most to people outside hokkaido? ～
It is also close to New Chitose Airport and is easily accessible to Sapporo, but it is a place where you can easily enjoy the scenery typical of Hokkaido, such as a lot of sheep grazing. 
Ekorin Village has a variety of attractions, including beautiful scenery, a ranch where animals live, and environmentally friendly activities. It is also close to New Chitose Airport and expressway interchanges, so please stop by when you come to Hokkaido. < Facility Information > Address: 277-4, Eniwa-shi, Hokkaido Phone number: 0123-34-7800 (09:30-17:00) ・ Admission to Ginga Garden & Midori No Farm is charged. Adult (high school student or older): 1200 yen Child (junior high school student or younger): 600 yen 65 years old and over: 1000 yen ・ Access information A free shuttle bus is available from JR Eniwa Station. For details, please check the official website (http://www.ecorinvillage.com/).