Every April 21 is "Science Day," a time to reflect on the importance of science and technology. While science often brings to mind cold laboratories or cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), the great discoveries in scientific history have generally begun with careful observation of and questions about nature.
In this context, an arboretum is more than a mere space for displaying plants. It is a vast "outdoor laboratory" that proves the history of heredity and evolution — the origins of life — and seeks solutions to the climate crisis. It is also a treasure trove of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education.
Arboretums are at the forefront of biology education encompassing ecology, genetics, and evolution. The intricate symbiotic relationships among plants, insects, and animals form the basis for understanding the complex mechanisms of ecosystems. The diverse species preserved in arboretums are the products of "evolution," accumulated as they adapted to their environments over vast stretches of time. The "genetic" information they contain is a core asset that will shape the future bio-industry and food security. Students can grasp the essence of life science not through printed text in textbooks, but by witnessing the variation and adaptation of living plants in motion.
Arboretums are also sites of nature-based education where visitors can directly experience carbon neutrality and climate change adaptation, global challenges of our time. Learning the mechanisms by which plants absorb atmospheric carbon, and observing how they alter their traits and adapt in response to the climate crisis, has a more powerful educational impact than any textbook or simulation. Science, once encountered only in theory, is revealed as a matter of survival directly linked to our lives.
In particular, "Newton's Apple Tree," rooted at Sejong National Arboretum, adds to the symbolism of such science education. Seeing a descendant of the apple tree that inspired Isaac Newton, the father of modern science, students explore the point where physical laws and biological growth intersect. Education delivered in storytelling form — exploring how physical conditions such as gravity and light affect photosynthesis and plant growth — enables interdisciplinary thinking that breaks down boundaries between academic fields.
Arboretums must now evolve from "gardens to be viewed" into "laboratories for inquiry." Cultivating the ability to interpret the wonders of nature through a scientific lens is the very foundation for nurturing future science talent. The government and the education community must spare no policy support so that the ecological and scientific assets arboretums provide can be connected to systematic educational programs.
This Science Day, visit a nearby arboretum with your children. The moment they discover the intricate blueprint contained in a single leaf amid the quiet of the forest, seeds of science — dreams of becoming future Newtons and Darwins — will begin to sprout in their hearts.
