Guidelines and practices for nature-based activities with young children tend to lack a comprehensive approach to early childhood education for sustainability

This study examined if nature-based activities in Japanese early childhood settings can be regarded as a useful approach to environmental education (EE). Another aim of this study was “to provide snapshots of Japanese early childhood education for western-centric research fields.” This aim relates to the lack of publications about Japanese education written in English. Three types of early childhood settings were examined: forest kindergartens, Skogsmulle outdoor programs, and formally registered early childhood education programs. This study also briefly compared Australian early childhood policies and settings to the Japanese approach to EE and education for sustainability (EfS).

The national guidelines for formally registered early childhood services in Japan indicate that the focus of the required nature-based activities is on child development versus EE or EfS. The forest kindergartens offer many more opportunities for fostering ecological ways of thinking for global sustainability, and their nature-focused activities are more closely aligned with both EE and EfS. Other characteristics of Japanese forest kindergartens reflecting alignment with EfS include a child-centered pedagogy and community engagement. The Skogsmulle programs, while similar in some ways to the forest kindergartens, have three characteristics which set them apart from forest schools: (1) a focus on environmentally responsible behaviors, (2) the learning of ecological concepts through direct exploration and observation in nature, and (3) learning about sustainable living. These characteristics also reflect alignment with EfS.

A comparison of Australian documents with Japanese documents revealed more similarities than differences regarding nature-based activities. Both documents fail to reflect empowered images of children; both view natural elements more as tools for children’s development than as “foundational to the living systems within which humans are enmeshed”; and both reflect limited educator understandings of sustainability and pedagogical skills. These areas of concern indicate that neither Japan nor Australia exhibit a comprehensive approach to EfS at the early childhood level.

To ensure that nature-based activities contribute to EE for sustainable futures, three recommendations are offered: (1) Conduct a critical analysis of educational policies, including curricula and prevailing theories to align them more closely with a comprehensive view of EfS for young children; (2) Improve both pre-service and in-service teacher programs to build sustainability knowledge and pedagogical skills; and (3) Establish professional networks across the varied nature-based activity programs and service types “to transform existing nature-based activities into effective EE/EfS approaches and practices for global sustainability.”