The research paper analyzes the effectiveness and efficiency of a programming model for green zone preservation. This program is defined as “green workshop,”and being a workshop, each member’s participation, experience, and cooperation are essential. It promotes preservation activity, varying environmental cognition, and evaluation of action, allowing all the members to be aware of their psychological process as forming a community. Those designated sites where green workshops were implemented achieved the goals. Moreover, the members’ psychological profiles and the degree of solidarity among them stood at the very high level, compared with those sites which failed to fulfill the requirements. This research proves that “green workshop” can work effectively for green preservation.

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  Experience learning in the forest for children is one of the most important programs in forest education although little is known about its effect on children’s views toward forests. The present study examines the effectiveness of forest environmental education, namely,“Yamanoko”at the Minakuchi Kodomo-no-mori Nature Museum in Shiga Prefecture. The program is designed for the fourth graders. Surveys were conducted before and after the program to clarify the effects on the students’ views of forests. About 1,000 students answered the surveys. The comparative analyses through statistical tests revealed the following changes in their views after “Yamanoko”: First, the proportion of students who can draw concrete images of the forest, based on their actual sensory experience, increased. Second, the proportion of students who mention the names of those animals and plants that do not live in the neighborhood forests decreased. Third, the proportion of students who dislike forests decreased. In addition, through the “Yamanoko”program, the large number of the students became aware of the important resources from forests, such as water and timbers. “Yamanoko”is effective in deepening and elevating students’ understanding of the forest. It can be a remarkable introduction to forest education.

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