본 연구는 명상숲 조성·운영에 대한 학교와 지자체의 인식을 조사하고자 명상숲 우수사례로 선정된 학교의 교사 45명과 명상숲이 조성되어 있는 전국 지자체 담당공무원 153명을 대상으로 설문을 실시하였다. 학교교사는 명상숲 조성의 필요성에 대해 중요하게 인식하고 있었으며 환경미화를 위한 필요성을 가장 높게 꼽았다. 명상숲 조성 면적, 명상숲 조성 후 학교환경, 명상숲 활용에 대해 대체로 만족하는 결과를 보였지만 명상숲 유지관리에 대해서는 만족도가 높지 않았다. 또한 명상숲의 효과적인 활용을 위해 지속적인 유지관리의 필요성이 가장 높게 나타났으며 프로그램을 진행할 전문인력에 대한 요구도 높게 나타났다. 지자체 담당공무원도 명상숲 조성 효과로 학교환경 개선을 가장 높게 인식했으며 명상숲 조성 및 운영 활성화를 위한 지자체 역할로 관련 부처·기관과의 협력, 유지관리 지원의 필요성을 높게 인식하고 있었다. 따라서 명상숲의 조성 및 운영을 활성화하기 위해서 학교와 지자체의 긴밀한 협력체계를 구축하고 유지관리 방안 마련이 시급한 것으로 나타났다.

The aim of this study was to investigate whether the schools and local governments were aware of the creation and operation of school forests. A survey was conducted of 45 teachers of schools selected as having the best practices in the school forest and 153 local government officials within the district where the school forests were built. The school teachers attributed the necessity to create school forests to the importance of beautifying the environment. The results showed that the area in which the school forest was created, the school environment after the school forest was created, and use of the school forest were generally satisfactory, but maintenance of the school forest was not somewhat unsatisfactory. Additionally, the results indicated that continuous maintenance was necessary for the effective use of the school forest, and there was a great need for professional personnel to conduct the maintenance program. Furthermore, local government officials recognized that beautification of the school environment was the best effect of creating the school forests. They also realized a great need for local government’s support of a maintenance program and its cooperation with related ministries and agencies to create and operate the school forest. Thus, it is crucial to devise measures for maintenance and to establish a system by which schools and local governments can work closely to promote the creation and operation of these school forests.