Our young members like to joke that on the welcome evening of 23 August 2023, hearing the older students speak so confidently on stage, they learned the North-5 No Butts action had begun back in 2019 — and they were deeply moved.

At the rallying call of their mischievous friend, five young members willingly formed “No Butts 4.0.” Building on the foundation handed down by their seniors, and with a mentor’s companionship, the whole team put their advocacy and international skills to work and began their first Wilderness Action Forum.

Thanks to the mentors’ generous sharing, the parents of No Butts 4.0 understood that the forum cannot rely on the mentor-child relationship alone — the parents’ companionship matters just as much. A modern teenager’s schedule rivals a company CEO’s; without parents’ help, this relay of environmental action could fizzle into a sprint rather than becoming a sustainable long-distance run.

Through the compounding interest of time, I have watched these children’s abilities grow: focused figures picking up butts on the street, shy advocacy to legislators in Parliament, the courage to present in English on international stages. Most importantly, six families have shared the journey. Because of these young people, environmental action has become parent-child co-learning and global citizenship — no longer theory, but a “wilderness in present tense” certified even by Japanese newspapers and NHK after our exchange. Come and be an “environmental verb” with us!