Activity Report; Dandelion Survey West Japan 2025’ in Ama Town

Oki Islands UNESCO Global Geopark operates under the mission of ‘bringing the local community together to work towards sustainable regional development through education, conservation and tourism, thereby contributing to the sustainable development of the entire planet’.

With this in mind, as part of our educational initiatives, and specifically as a programme aimed at the island’s children, we are working to enhance their understanding of Oki’s geological formations, unique ecosystem, and human activities by incorporating play and learning activities tailored to each developmental stage. To accomplish this, we are developing an educational framework that utilises the Geopark, producing and rolling out educational content suitable for schools and other settings, and enhancing our system for arranging guest lecturers.

Given that our organisation’s office was previously located solely in Okinoshima Town, our activities have, until now, been concentrated primarily in Okinoshima Town (The Dōgō Region) amongst the four Oki Islands. However, we have decided to take steps to further promote our activities and school partnerships in the Dōzen region, including Ama Town, Nishinoshima Town, and Chibu Village. To begin with, building on our existing connections through the establishment of the Ama Town facility at the Oki Islands UNESCO Global Geopark Entô hub and accommodation, which we have been working on since the previous financial year to strengthen our partnerships within Ama Town.

This was the first installment of our activities, centred on the question of: ‘What can our organisation do to ensure that the time and spaces available to primary and secondary school pupils after school become environments that foster more spontaneous questioning and learning?’

Thus, we carried out the ‘West Japan Dandelion Survey 2025’ with primary school pupils in the lower years at the ‘Amakko’ after-school club, located on the grounds of Keisho Nursery School in Ama Town.

Event date and time: 21 May, 2025, from 15:30 until 16:30

Event locations: Ama Town Keisho Nursery Grounds

What is the West Japan Dandelion Survey?

This was a citizen-led Dandelion Survey, overseen by the West Japan Executive Committee, which was held from March 1 to May 31, 2025.

This survey is conducted every five years; the data collected from various locations is analysed and collated by experts in the field, and the results are published on the website and in reports by the ‘Dandelion Survey; West Japan Executive Committee’.

There is an endemic species of dandelion that grows in Oki, which is why this specific field survey held great significance to the participants. Throughout this survey, the participants were able to deepen their understanding of both the nature of Oki, and the endemic species that grow in the area. Furthermore, the goal of raising participants’ understanding of nature conservation was successful. By encouraging local residents-more particularly children- to take part in the survey, we were able to draw their attention to the current state of the wildlife that exists in their surrounding areas, providing an opportunity for them to consider ‘what is the condition of our wildlife like now?’ And ‘how should we protect this from now on?’. By collaborating with local educational institutions to create learning opportunities, this initiative offers a chance to deepen people’s connection with nature and foster an Awareness of nature observation, both of which our organisation has actively participated in the past.

Although there were few dandelions on the grounds, the children who took part searched high and low for them, eventually finding some and observing them closely. They also spotted a flower called ‘cat’s ear’, which bears a striking resemblance to a dandelion, and came to realise for themselves that “this isn’t a dandelion!”. It provided an opportunity for them to take an interest in the diversity of nature right on their doorstep, something they might never have noticed without careful observation. We intend to continue these activities in the hope that the dandelion survey we conducted with the children will lead to the creation of opportunities where spontaneous questioning and learning are encouraged.