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 The beginning of this was in the year 1999. We received a letter from one of the participants in the 1st Yamada Bee Farm Honeybee Fairy Tale and Picture Book Contest which we sponsor. Inside with the letter was a clipping from a newspaper in Hokkaido of a wind-powered electricity generating system that used the combined power of honeycombs. To my surprise, the designer was a friend of mine! He established the Hokkaido Natural Energy Research Center and was working hard to develop techniques for natural energy. His enthusiasm equaled that of that of mine and we had the same idea. It seemed completely natural that my interest in working with nature as a beekeeper, in harmony with nature, could be improved even further.
It is said that the theme of the 21st century is "to live together with nature." While we may be improving civilization and strengthening our economy, it is coming at the cost of destroying nature. However, we are facing this problem head on. Humans and nature are deeply connected. As much as we hurt nature it will certainly come back to hurt us. As we live among nature, I have from bees how they respect nature. It is my interest, as a bee farmer who would be incapable of work if the environment were destroyed, to see to it that the loss inflicted upon the environment is as minimal as possible, and to develop the techniques and wisdom for a new culture in the 21st century.
As a symbol of this, I have been thinking of the design of windmill generators.
On top of the various mountains that overlook Kagaminocho you can find windmills turning about. It is our great pleasure to show these to children. The windmills, working like bees in a hive, are gifts just as the bees will be to the next generation of children. |
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| Hideo Yamada, President |
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In Kagaminocho's Danjyoyama Park located in Okayama Prefecture, visitors can see the "Beehive Windmill" project that was designed by the head of the Hokkaido Natural Energy Research Center. There are 22 small propellers built to work together like a beehive, a unique style. The windmills generate electricity efficiently even with weak winds and make minimal noise even as they cut the wind. This is a special attribute of our windmills. The beehive-style windmills in place are the first to be in use domestically.
We received 685 entries for our contest to name the beehive windmills. After a difficult decision, the winner was an elementary school child, Momoka Hatano, from Kagaminocho who named the windmills "The Windmill Friends." She gave the reason for her name as the following: "As the windmills move because of the wind, they turn together like friends. It is much like the cooperation amongst people with people or people with nature."
On October 28, 2000, a ceremony was held in honor of completion of the project, and "The Windmill Friends" began their turning as a pleasant autumn breeze blew through. |
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