Everyone’s Park Project ～ A citizen group launched to provide diverse play opportunities for children of all abilities

Parks are places to relax.

There are parks of all sizes and types, and you have probably visited one at least once in your life.

But that is because the park itself “suited you” and “you were able to use it.”

On the other hand, there are people who “want to use parks but can’t.”

“Everyone’s Park Project” is a civic group that advocates and promotes the creation of inclusive playgrounds based on universal design.

It’s a wonderful thing when people can use parks regardless of whether they have a disability.

So, what exactly is an “inclusive playground”?

We looked into the group’s origins, its regular activities, and other topics of interest.

What is the Everyone’s Park Project?

The Everyone’s Park Project is a civic group working to promote parks where all children, regardless of whether they have a disability, can play and learn with a variety of friends while freely expressing their abilities.

Since activities like these are often associated with nonprofit organizations, it was surprising that this was a “civic group.”

The group is led by Yanagida Koji, a professor at Kurashiki University of Science and the Arts.

It also consists of Hayashi Takushi, a teacher at Okayama Prefectural Okayama Higashi Special Needs School, and Yato Yoko, a former special needs school teacher.

Its main activities can be broadly divided into the following three areas.

They do not directly “build parks on site (through construction or installation).”

For example, they advise local governments and others who ask for help, such as “We’re building a new park and would like your advice” or “Could you review these plans?”

We can’t introduce all of their activities, but let’s take a look at some examples of what they do.

[Research] Surveying the needs of diverse users

For needs assessments, they conduct interviews with users such as the following:

• Local groups of children with disabilities and their parents
• Disability organizations
• Special needs schools
• Organizations providing services to children with disabilities
• General parenting support groups

Every child has the right to play. (Article 31 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child)

However, physical and social barriers in existing parks have caused children with disabilities to miss out on valuable opportunities to play.

Local governments, playground equipment manufacturers, and designers responsible for creating parks have not had a sufficient understanding of these children’s needs.

You might think it would be enough to survey the needs of disability-related organizations.

But what happens then? You end up with a park that has only play equipment that children with disabilities can use.

It might seem like a good example, but it creates another problem.

It would deprive all children, including children without disabilities, of opportunities to meet and grow alongside a diverse range of peers.

Only when children with and without disabilities play together can they deepen their understanding of one another.

That is why they survey the needs of a wide range of people, organizations, and groups.

When they first began their activities, they reportedly interviewed disability support groups and various parent-child groups in Kurashiki as well.

They heard heartfelt comments such as, “Parks don’t welcome us,” and “It would be great to have a park where children with disabilities can play together with others.” Some were surprised, saying, “I didn’t know a park where children with disabilities can play together was even possible.”

But they say they still hear these same comments frequently today.

And that’s no surprise: according to Yanagida, the situation in parks has barely changed in more than 10 years.

[Consider and Share] Sharing a variety of information

The Everyone’s Park Project shares the results of its research and other information online and in books.

For online information, they created an official website.

It features a wealth of information in sections such as the following:

• User Surveys
• My Thoughts and Everyone’s Thoughts
• Learn About Parks | Examples from Overseas
• Learn About Parks | Examples from Japan

The site introduces parks in Japan and overseas as examples of inclusive parks, with plenty of images to make them easy to understand.

The writer had assumed, “They must have asked local collaborators to take photos and conduct interviews,” but that wasn’t the case.

In fact, all the photography and interviews are carried out in person by the three members, who travel to the sites during their holidays and other free time!

I was surprised when I heard this during the interview.

As a guide to creating playgrounds in parks through universal design, they published a book with exactly that title.

It includes a wealth of practical information, building on the content of their official website.

The book is intended for professionals involved in planning and designing park facilities, as well as their development and management.

It is also intended for children with disabilities and their families and support workers, people in parenting and community-building nonprofits, and others interested in creating playgrounds.

What particularly stood out to the writer was the “Universal Design Playground Checklist” included as a resource.

I thought it was wonderful that they had created a system that enables people to put the information into practice, rather than simply providing it.

What is an “inclusive playground”?

By the way, what exactly is an “inclusive playground”?

The Everyone’s Park Project website describes it as follows:

An inclusive playground is a place where all children, regardless of whether they have a disability, can play and learn with a variety of friends while freely expressing their abilities.

Everyone’s Park Project: Concept

As mentioned at the beginning, the Everyone’s Park Project aims to promote this kind of playground.

It may not be widely known, but there is reportedly a playground in Kurashiki City built around a similar concept.

It is the “Rehabilitation Plaza,” located outdoors at the Kurashiki Health and Welfare Plaza in Sasaoki, Kurashiki City.

It was originally built so that people with disabilities could also receive rehabilitation outdoors.

It was completed in 2001 after input from a variety of people, including the head of a Kurashiki wheelchair users’ group, people involved in developmental support, and teachers at what was then a school for children with disabilities (now a special needs school).

It was also designed to be a place where people with disabilities could interact with members of the general public, including young children and older adults. Specific features include the following:

• [Raised flower beds] The beds are slightly elevated, so people can touch the flowers and enjoy their fragrance up close while remaining in their wheelchairs
• [Gate] Features help people with visual impairments know they have arrived at the Rehabilitation Plaza, for example through the “scent of flowers” and the “sound of leaves”
• [Slide] People using wheelchairs can access it via a ramp; its design allows people to slide down lying on their stomachs or side by side with others

“It was right nearby all this time!” I was amazed.

I was also surprised that the Rehabilitation Plaza was built before terms like “inclusive” became a topic of discussion.

I felt it was such a shame that “only people who already know about it know about it.”

Inclusive playgrounds had not spread widely in Japan, but apparently they have continued to evolve overseas and are becoming popular.

Next, we spoke with Yanagida Koji, representative of the Everyone’s Park Project, about the group’s activities and parks.

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