Japan

National Legislation

The Act for Enhancing Motivation on Environmental Conservation and Promoting of Environmental Education of 2003 was amended in June 2011, with the embedding of the principles of ESD. It came into full force in October 2012 as the Act on the Promotion of Environmental Conservation Activities through Environmental Education. The purpose(s) of the legislation at the local/grassroots level are: 1) To promote EE through voluntary efforts within the public and private sectors and civil society. 2) To stipulate “the promotion of EE at home, in school, in the workplace and in the community (i.e., in formal & non-formal settings ) geared toward the improvement of citizens' understanding of environmental conservation. 3) Enrich training programmes for teachers (including hands-on approaches to EE), and development of teaching materials and information service” (MoEJ, 2013).

EE in K-12 Education

The Junior Eco Club was launched in 1995 by the Ministry of the Environment. Its aim is to raise awareness of elementary and junior high school students, supporting their environmental conservation activities and promoting various extracurricular “green” activities. Comprised of between 3-20 members, they can receive the “Earth Ranger” certificate after one year of participation. The Japan Environment Association serves as the national secretariat, with a working group that includes  Ministry of the Environment personnel, environmental educators and officials from local government. Eco Clubs also receive support from “Coordinators” – in charge of the Eco-club activities at the local government level; “Supporters” – who supervise the voluntary activities of the children; and a “Supporting Group” – a registry of voluntary experts who can support through facilitation of field activities and give advice in response to request from the clubs. Junior Eco Club fosters peer learning through exchange of information among clubs through the National Secretariat called “Ecological Communication.”

Professional Development

The Environmental Counselor Project is a national registry of individuals to provide advice/ counselling and instruction for environmental conservation activities, based on their experience and knowledge, to civilians and entrepreneurs who wish to undertake environmental preservation activities. They also provide information through the web and compile reports of their activities.