There are various ways to better the environment in temporary housings. Let us make a better day for tomorrow by improving our lifestyle!
Five months have passed since the earthquake. The number of people who are moving to emergency temporary housing is increasing. In this issue, we will introduce several activities that are being carried out to create better living in this type of housing. We hope they will be a hint for you too!
If you talk about your worries and feelings pets
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| ▲“There are also proper manners for taking your pets for a walk. It is also good to know where veterinarian clinics that are open at night are located” says Dr. Terashima. |
Chikura temporary housing (94 residences) is the only temporal housing in Minami-Soma city which allows pets to live with the residents. With the purpose to encourage exchange among residents a “Tea Time Salon” was set up every Thursday, but only a few people attended. One of the reasons people could not attend was because they could not leave their pets at home. On July 28th, they decided to invite Miho Terashima, a local veterinarian to discuss concerns regarding taking care of pets. To Dr. Terashima’s surprise, 17 people attended and various discussions such as how to keep their pet in a limited space, relations with their neighbors and mental care for their pets were held. Kiyohiko Sato from Minami-Soma City Reconstruction Volunteer Center who supported the salon commented, “This salon had many benefits; pet-owners were more confident after Dr. Terashima’s advice and the exchange eased the troubled some minds.” From now on, a monthly salon will be held with the theme of pets and where participants can talk about making rules for pet owners that would help make Chikura temporary housing a better place.
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| ▲Everyone opened their hearts and talked about their worries, “My pet started howling at lightening after the earthquake.” |
Field work of the common vegetable garden
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| ▲In June, 20 people planted corn seeds. We are hoping to harvest it in early September. |
The people who evacuated to Big Pallet Fukushima in Kawauchi-mura, Tomioka-cho in Koriyama-shi look forward to the daily farm work in a communal vegetable garden. This volunteer activity started from previous volunteer work of weeding around the evacuation center which got started with the slogan, “What we can do.” Coming into contact with the soil, people’s faces glowed with excitement and this eventually led to the recruitment of volunteers. This activity was supported by Iwase-Agricultural High School and Suzuki Green Farm. “Now, we are enjoying the joy of growing things together. Next, we would like to share the joy of the harvest together and once our lives have settle down a bit more, we are thinking of discussing how to divide the fields into plots,” said Kinuko Endo from the Otagaisama Center. The first step we take leads to a new circle of friendships and the joy increases. Try to find something near you that will increase your joy.
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| ▲The field is about 30 minutes from the evacuation center. The weeding process is delegated, but when more work is needed, the Iwase Agricultural High school’s teacher who provided the field helps us. |
