When the Forest and Lake Give Back Their Voices: The Akan Eco-museum Weaves a Story of Nature and Ainu Culture Regeneration (1980's-2000's)

When the Forest and Lake Give Back Their Voices: The Akan Eco-museum Weaves a Story of Nature and Ainu Culture Regeneration (1980's-2000's)
In the 1990s, while Lake Akan Onsen was developing as a tourist destination, environmental problems such as the preservation of marimo, deterioration of water quality, and loss of virgin forests were becoming more serious, and a shift away from nature-consuming tourism was urgently needed. Lake Akan Ainu Kotan was also troubled by the commercialization of dances and folk arts as tourism products, making it difficult to see the essence of the culture. The development of the Lake Akan Eco-museum Center was undertaken to address these two issues. The existing visitor center was reorganized to show the origin of the lake, its ecosystem, and the ecology of the marimo, a special natural treasure, using models and videos. Nature observation tours and snowshoe tours in winter were also developed, changing the relationship between nature and visitors from one of appreciation to one of dialogue. Furthermore, the worldview of Ainu culture and oral literature were incorporated into exhib
itions and guided tours, emphasizing the viewpoint that nature and culture are one and the same. The Akan Eco-museum concept is an attempt to reinterpret the region itself as a living museum, placing scientific knowledge and the inheritance of lifestyle and culture in the same framework, and symbolizes the transition to sustainable tourism.