[7/25] Webinar: Promoting Nature Positive Actions with Children

Think Nature Inc. (hereinafter "the Company") will hold a webinar for parents and children focused on mainstreaming biodiversity based on inquiry-based learning and citizen science.

— Webinar Information —

◆ Date and Time: July 25 (Sat) 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM

*Entry possible from 9:30 AM

◆ Venue: Online (Zoom)

After applying through our website, we will provide a Zoom registration URL. Please register in advance via Zoom.

◆ Target Audience: Families interested in nature (parents and children), school teachers (elementary to high school), local government officials, corporate sustainability managers

◆ Participation Fee: Free

◆ Capacity: 500 people

Applications will be closed once capacity is reached on a first-come, first-served basis.

*Registration will close on July 24, 2026 (Fri) at 3:00 PM.

Application Form: Please apply from the link below.

https://think-nature.jp/blog/202607-nature-positive-action/

— Background —

・The importance of "visualization" and "citizen science" in mainstreaming biodiversity

Currently, the "sixth mass extinction," primarily caused by human activities, is underway, and the loss of biodiversity has become a serious social issue affecting regional sustainability, children's health, and well-being. The international "Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework" identifies "mainstreaming" biodiversity into social activities as an urgent issue. However, the value of natural capital remains "difficult to see and difficult to articulate," which is the biggest barrier to its penetration among citizens and in educational settings. "Citizen science" is seen as a promising approach to overcome this challenge by involving people in data collection and evaluation.

From this perspective, "DugongsEYE," offered by our company, which integrates the latest macroecological knowledge and AI technology, is expected to be a "tool for mainstreaming" that visualizes biodiversity on a mesh basis and supports people's cognitive processes of "comparing, noticing, and recording."

・Transforming the "norm" through education and outreach

The essence of mainstreaming biodiversity lies in building a society where considering nature as a given becomes the norm. The most reliable and sustainable place to foster this change is in educational settings where children, the next generation, gather. Traditional environmental education often focuses on the skills of identifying and recording the "species" of living things. However, Dugongs EYE starts by providing an overview of the region's nature and encouraging "comparison" of differences based on location and environmental conditions. This design, which begins with a "question," aligns with the "inquiry process" required by the new curriculum guidelines and has the potential to embed biodiversity literacy as "thinking skills."

— Objectives of this Webinar —

Integration of academic knowledge and field implementation

This webinar will explain the "promise of citizen science" where learning outcomes from biodiversity surveys, such as the "Creature Search Competition" for citizens and families, and the "Biodiversity Educational Material Development" for school teachers, are aggregated as "regional nature data" and ultimately connected to administrative and regional decision-making.

Furthermore, our advisors, Professor Kohori (Tokyo University of Technology) and Professor Okubo (Rikkyo University), will provide insights into the importance of scientific knowledge in promoting nature positivity and the significance of disseminating it. For example, they will discuss how the importance of coral reef conservation cannot be fully argued without information on the creatures inhabiting coral reefs, and how scientific evidence enhances the effectiveness of coral reef conservation and restoration actions compared to the past.