How the LAQDA project supports more comfortable and equitable workplaces for all genders

Our objective at Watashino-Kurashi-Kenkyujo （Research Institute of My Life）is to lead projects that bring about a society where more people can live comfortably regardless of gender.

As part of this initiative, in 2019, we launched the "LAQDA Project" with the goal of ensuring that sanitary products are readily available to those who need them.

(The Q in LAQDA is the Q in Question. We aim to pose problems to everyone in society and solve them together, rather than just making the issues women's.)

To achieve this, we conducted a demonstration experiment to install sanitary products within office toilets in Japan. This project was selected for the "Femtech Support Service Demonstration Project Subsidy for the 2022 fiscal year" by the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

(Seripon was designed to look like a face, with the aim that the installation case itself can communicate with anyone, regardless of gender.)

The project was designed to address the unique difficulty female employees face each month during menstruation, and to promote difficult but meaningful conversations in the workplace to embrace diversity and equity. By initiating the installation of sanitary products within offices, we hope to encourage workplaces to overcome this challenge and support their employees.

（While it may be difficult to discuss concerns related to physical functions, communication can be facilitated by using objects as intermediaries.）

Through this project, we collaborated with 21 local companies to install "Seripon" – sanitary pad dispenser, a simple assembly-type product developed by the LAQDA Project. These dispensers were placed in 28 locations across 12 prefectures, reaching approximately 3,000 people.

（The project took place in 28 locations across Japan.）

In some companies, “Seripon” was installed not only in women's toilets but also in men's toilets and multipurpose toilets, to serve as a "cue" to prompt non-female employees to think about this issue and to lower the psychological barrier to discussing topics that have long been considered "difficult to talk about", such as menstruation.

（left : Women's restroom in Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., center: Men's restroom in KOBAYASHI Pharmaceutical Co.,Ltd., right: Office space of Plaza Create Co., Ltd.)

In addition, we conducted internal seminars in partnership with several companies to discuss how providing free sanitary products in office restrooms can contribute to creating a better work environment.

(top left: "Seripon" assembly workshop at Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd.; top centre: Mr Kimura and Ms Umehara, Plaza Create; top right: TOKYU CORPORATION in-house seminar; bottom left: joint seminar of TOKYU CORPORATION Co., Ltd. , Tokyo Tatemono Co., Ltd.,  and Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., ; bottom centre and bottom right: project participants (Company representatives and installation reciprocity activities)

Through the installation of “Seripon” in toilets and participation in seminars, we have been striving to create more opportunities for discussion about the importance of installing sanitary products in the workplace, irrespective of gender. Moreover, we hope to extend this beyond just female menstruation, as we recognize that individuals face various challenges in their daily work lives. By fostering open and inclusive communication, we hope to create a supportive work environment for all employees.

（Hosted and participated in multiple events and symposiums including SCIENCE AGORA 2022 by Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology)

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>Reference
SCIENCE AGORA 2022：https://www.jst.go.jp/sis/scienceagora/2022/

Watch the Seripon video!