Zenbird Editorial TeamThe DAC Mirai Support Cultural Foundation held a forest education trial tour for children in Akaigawa Village, Hokkaido, in March. The programme is titled “Mori-iku Ridgeline Hiking,” and was organised in collaboration with the Mori-iku Project Planning Committee.
The “Mori-iku” (Forest Education) concept utilises forests as educational spaces where children can directly interact with and learn about nature during the process of forest maintenance. This way they’d be able to create a sustainable society where people and forests grow in coexistence.
Even living in rural areas, modern children have limited opportunities to enter local mountains and forests. Providing opportunities to walk through the snow-covered landscape lets the programme foster “Kyodo-ai,” or a deep-seated love for one’s hometown.
The tour featured Keizo Funatsu, a world-renowned adventurer known for his trans-Antarctic crossing by dog sled, as the lead instructor. Interaction with Funatsu is intended to stimulate curiosity and cultivate a spirit of challenge among the youth. Participants engaged in snowshoe trekking around the facility and enjoyed sliding down slopes. The revised programme also included an Iron Dog experience, where a snowmobile pulled sleds, and an indoor Adventure Class.
Post-event surveys indicated that all participants, consisting of elementary and junior high school students from Akaigawa, gave the programme the highest possible ratings for satisfaction and recommendation. The children expressed excitement about walking through the remaining snow with peers and speaking directly with a professional explorer.
The Mori-iku Project Planning Committee and the DAC Mirai Support Cultural Foundation plan to expand these activities in the coming years. This trial tour serves as a lead up to the full-scale launch of the Mori-iku business scheduled for the next fiscal year.
[Reference] PR Times (Japanese)
