The importance of environmental education is becoming more evident these days. There are reports of Eco-activities taking place all over Japan at many conferences and symposiums. However, we cannot find out clearly what environme ntal education is supposed to be. Rather, we realize that it is contrary to the hope of many people. The current state of environmental education is, to be frank, at a standstill.
　　　As for me, I have spent a lot of time participating in environment-related meetings in many places for this past year or two, and I feel frustrated that I can't somehow explain what it is. Of course, there is no obvious formula of how environmental education should be implemented. I am honestly glad to receive many wonderful reports from every corner of Japan about environment-rel ated actions children are involved in, and I certainly appreciate their efforts. Yet, these reports also leave me with a sense of discontent - I cannot help feeling the discrepancy we are facing between the "ideal" children pursue and the "reality" adults create. Such activities often tend to be on the shortsi ghted, induction-type basis, taking present environmental issues alone serious ly. I suppose that, particularly in school education, environmental education should give more emphasis to causes of environmental problems fundamentally, from both a physical and spiritual perspective. We should at the same time keep in mind that making new fields of study increase burdens on young students, and if we teach early-aged students complicated global environmental issues, it still remains old fashioned, "knowledge acquisition"-teaching style.

　　　Since environmental education is found in its great diversity, it is difficult for us to deal with it in a holistic way. The center aims to research on how environmental education plays an important role to comprehend the structure of our surrounding environment, providing opportunities for nature observation and fieldwork activities. It is efficient to experience nature itself directly as an original source and to understand that nature has the power to change our life - it will bring children surprising impressions. It also brings students awareness and stimulates sensitivities towards their own environment. By experiencing neighboring nature, they will gain knowledge of the natural history, and they will discover and encounter new aspects of the environment they've never even thought of before. But, to carry out such acti vities essentially, it requires the introduction by experts and leaders, who guide participants appropriately when implementing fieldwork. In this respect, we should contribute to training future teachers who learn profoundly about outdoor education at a special training course. We are currently designating areas at many places in Miyagi Prefecture to provide fieldwork sites not only for school education but also for the local community related to life-long edu cation. In this sense, our center doesn't function in order to find the benefi cial effects of environmental education, nor do we provide rational teaching ma terials for school education. Instead, we sincerely hope that we consider fun damentally the proper way to regard our surroundings and put environmental edu cation into practices.

　　　Our relentless desires are the origins of environmental issues. Pursuing a convenient and comfortable everyday life seriously contaminates nature - it destroys ecological systems with which we must peacefully co-exist, and this causes the imbalance of various natural systems. For the solution, we must take action against the matters individually as well as globally. However, such efforts are, as is often the case, apt to be out of place and don't func tion well, and we experience the same kind of thing in the course of implemen ting environmental education. Now, what prevents us from carrying this out? I may be able to say that it is because of the desire and egotism we humans instinctively have. In addition to the egotism generated from each individual, family, business, community and local government, the present destruction of the environment is deeply rooted in our egotistic attitudes towards the global environment. Human wisdom succeeded in acquiring "physical wealth," in the course of technological progress. However, has that happened along with improv ing "spiritual wealth"? Is pursuing "physical wealth" making our life lose "spiritual wealth"? Isn't it unconsciously changing our mental structure into one that is too egotistic? We hear the slogan of "Nature-friendly," "Environ mentally-friendly" rising in a grand chorus everywhere more than is necessary and environmental education is just a fad of present-day society. Although we know things are tough, we must aim at the goal of transforming our attitudes from "ego" into "Eco."