Jeonbuk Province Expands 'Healing Forest' Forest Welfare Facilities

Relieving Stress, Boosting Immunity, and Alleviating Depression

Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province is continuously expanding public healing forests within the province to help residents recover physically and mentally and to improve their quality of life.

Jangsu Healing Forest Leaflet. Provided by Jeonbuk Province

According to the province on August 1, a "healing forest" is a forest welfare facility that utilizes therapeutic elements provided by forests?such as phytoncides, natural sounds, and scenery?to relieve stress, boost immunity, alleviate depression, and promote mental and physical stability.

Currently, the main public healing forests operated by the province are the Green Jangsu Healing Forest in Jangsu County and the Wido Healing Forest in Buan County. At these facilities, professional healing instructors are stationed to provide a variety of customized forest healing programs, including forest trail walking, singing bowl meditation, and relaxation breathing exercises.

In particular, the Wido Healing Forest presents a new model for island-region healing, thanks to its unique environment that combines a maritime climate with forested areas. Construction and design work is currently underway to establish healing forests in the Ayangsan and Haksan areas, which are adjacent to the city centers of Jeongeup and Jeonju. In the future, it is expected that more residents will be able to benefit from forest healing, both because of the proximity to urban areas and the diversity of available programs.

National forest healing facilities are also being established in the Jeonbuk region. The National Iksan Healing Forest is currently in trial operation for hikers ahead of its official opening, and the National Jinan Plateau Forest Healing Center is scheduled for official opening in October after a monitoring operation in September.

The Jinan Plateau Forest Healing Center is the second national forest healing facility to be established, following the one in Yeongju. It plans to offer specialized programs that utilize the pristine natural environment of the plateau and healing foods.

Song Kyungho, Director of Forest Resources, said, "We will continue to work to enhance residents' immunity and quality of life by expanding the creation of healing forests and strengthening the foundation for forest welfare."