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Join Amos Clifford, Jackie Kuang, Nagisa Ono and Other Guides on a 4-Day Immersive Shinrin-Yoku & Japanese Cultural Experience in the Birthplace of Forest Bathing


October 13 - October 16, 2023



It has been 40 years since the birth of shinrin-yoku in Japan. 

The background of birth of shinrin-yoku is not only the richness of the forest, but the unique spirituality and culture that exist in the relationship between the forest and people. 

This fall, we would like to invite our friends from ANFT to the birthplace of shinrin-yoku, "Akazawa Natural Recreation Forest," and “Okutama”, the forest close to the city of Tokyo. 

We hope to deepen our learning together as colleagues who are working on shinrin-yoku globally.

Nagisa Ono

Future with Forest 




Program


Locations of Tour 


Akazawa Forest (Akazawa National Recreation Forest)

  • Agematsu-town, Kiso area in Nagano prefecture
  • Forest of Origin where Shinrin-yoku began
  • People from different countries visit to experience Shinrin-yoku



Okutama

  • Okutama Town: Northwest side of Tokyo
  • 2 hours from central district
  • Forest Therapy base
  • Part of Tokyo Adventure Line
  • Well maintained trails like Toke-Trail
  • Wide variety of programs
  • Hot Springs




IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ

  • This tour DOES NOT count as a training immersion for guides-in-training
  • Cancellation:  Tour price is NOT refundable 60 days or less prior to the start date



What Does the Total Price Include?

  • Lodging for 4-days/3-nights
  • Meals
  • Transportation to and from hotel and sites
  • Shinrin-Yoku Experiences
  • Cultural Activities
  • Translation


General Information

  • Airfare is NOT included and must be secured by participant
  • Recommended Airport: Tokyo
  • Recommended hotel for the night of the 12th -COMING SOON



 

Instructor(s)

Founder

Amos Clifford

Amos Clifford is the founder of the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides and Programs and author of the best selling Your Guide to Forest Bathing (Conari Press 2018). Amos founded ANFT in 2012 and began offering training for guides in 2014. He is inspired by the question, "What can be done to build authentic relationships between as many people as possible with the more-than-human world." He is the primary designer of the Standard Sequence of Forest Therapy taught globally by ANFT and other forest therapy training organizations. Amos holds a BS in Organization Development and an MA in Counseling from the University of San Francisco.

Trainer

Nagisa Ono

Nagisa Ono is a leader in the practice of Shirin-yoku in Japan. She founded Future with Forest Association in 2015 and developed Shinrin-yoku programs which utilized the local forests. She has been working on the development of corporate training programs, providing training for shinrin-yoku facilitators, giving lectures, and writing articles and books on shinrin-yoku. She has guided more than 2500 participants through her shinrin-yoku program so far. From 2019, she has been appointed as one of the committee members of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. She has been actively involved in looking into the possibilities and potentials of shinrin-yoku and national forest policy. Nagisa studied forestry at Tokyo University of Agriculture, and conducted research on wellness and forest.

Mentor, Trainer

Jackie Kuang

Jackie is a trainer and business manager with the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides and Programs. She’s a certified forest therapy guide trained in 2017 at Sugarloaf Ridge State Park and has been guiding regularly in her communities ever since. She’s one of the first guides to pioneer guiding walks remotely via Zoom when the pandemic made guiding in-person unsafe for many months in 2020. Born and raised in China, Jackie came to the United States in 1990 to pursue her PhD in American Literature. She has had a diverse background in various fields such as teaching, translating, marketing, and practicing as a Certified Public Accountant. One of her greatest joys in guiding and training guides is witnessing the transformative impact on participants’ well-being on so many levels. She has co-led over 10 guide trainings worldwide as of 2022 and created a professional development course called Guiding Business Success for trained guides.