A society where both people and pets are happy. [18]What Kyoto City is currently undertaking regarding pets.
Recently, we had the opportunity to invite a guest speaker to an actual Design with Pet Project session and hear their insights. Who did we invite? It was a representative from Kyoto City (to be precise, from the Animal Welfare Division of the Kyoto City Health and Medical Services Department).
Why did we invite someone from Kyoto City? Many might find this surprising. Kyoto is famously known as a major tourist destination, right? It's a city many of you have likely visited at least once. I, too, initially struggled to envision how Kyoto and pets could be connected and was deeply curious about their initiatives.
For instance, I speculated that Kyoto might be a pet-friendly prefecture with a high pet ownership rate compared to the rest of Japan. However, when I actually looked into it, Kyoto's ranking in terms of pet ownership alone didn't seem particularly high.
Furthermore, in terms of being a pet-friendly prefecture, the image of it being a place to visit with pets wasn't as strong as the image we humans have of it as a tourist destination.
So, how are "Kyoto" and "pets" connected, and what exactly are they doing?
Actually, Kyoto City is putting considerable effort into animal welfare initiatives. I learned this for the first time myself: this April, it was decided that the prefecture and city would jointly establish the "Kyoto Animal Welfare Center (tentative name) 'Animal Land Kyoto'".
The center's core concepts are:
・A place to feel the preciousness of life through animals
- A place to learn the proper way for humans and animals to interact
- A place to promote coexistence between humans and animals through human development and environmental creation
It is planned to become a central facility for animal welfare in Kyoto, featuring an emergency animal hospital operating at night, a grooming room, and a dog run. Additionally, the "Kyoto City Animal Welfare Charter" was drafted last December, based on submissions from Kyoto citizens.
I became interested in why Kyoto City initiated such efforts and had the opportunity to hear about it firsthand. Among the points discussed, the most striking was:
"Kyoto is a city rich in cultural heritage. Yet, many places do not allow pets inside. This is such a waste. I believe it would be wonderful if pet owners' awareness improved, and in the future, like cities around the world, we could take our pets to various places."
The Design with Pet Project operates under the desire to realize a society where people and pets coexist. Connecting with various organizations sharing this same vision has undoubtedly been an opportunity to truly appreciate the importance of advancing activities with shared goals but from different perspectives.
Looking globally, there are numerous examples of coexistence realized in ways distinct from Japan's. While the environmental contexts differ, we aim to draw inspiration from these successful models and collaborate with diverse organizations like this one to achieve a society where humans and pets live together harmoniously.
The Kyoto Animal Welfare Center is scheduled to open in April, so if you have the chance, please take a look at Kyoto City's initiatives!
Kyoto-ani-love supporters club
Kyoto Animal Welfare Center (Provisional Name) Mascot Characters (Left) Kyo-chan and (Right) Miyako-chan
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Rei Nagi
Dentsu Inc.
Currently active as a member of the "Think Pet Project," a project aimed at developing solutions for the pet industry. Also serves as a researcher for Dentsu Inc.'s Youth Research Department (Dentsu Wakamon), promoting relationship building and development with students. Engaged in diverse areas of work, from project management to concept and strategy planning, product development, space development, and new business development. Co-author of "The Youth Divide: Dentsu Inc.'s Communication Strategies for the Future" (MDN Corporation, 2016).
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