On August 1, 2024, the Ministry of the Environment announced the winners of this year’s Animal Protection Week Poster Design and Painting Contest.
This year’s theme is “Let’s Think Together, Children and Adults, About Us and Animals” and “Gratitude for People Involved with Animals”.
The Ministry of the Environment and the Animal Protection Week Central Event Committee hold an annual poster contest to raise awareness about animal protection and proper care for animals.
In order to deepen understanding and interest in animal welfare and proper animal care among the general public, the Animal Protection and Control Law (Law No. 105 of 1973) established the annual Animal Protection Week (September 20th to September 26th) based on Article 4 of the law. By widely soliciting designs for the poster for this Animal Protection Week, they aim to raise awareness of the week and of animal protection and management among the general public.
The theme of the design paintings, “Children and adults thinking together: us and animals”, is based on the idea that learning how to interact with animals from a young age will lead to a better understanding of animals and the role they play in shaping the future of society. We hope that this will provide an opportunity for children and adults to think together about people and animals, focusing on children’s feelings towards animals and the relationship between people and animals.
For this year’s competition, based on this theme, they also called for works that expressed “gratitude towards people involved with animals”.
During the entries period from April 16 to June 5, 2024, we received 340 entries from all over the country. The winners were chosen at a judging committee meeting, which was held on June 28 , with the participation of intellectuals.
The Grand Prize (Environment Minister’s Prize) was awarded to Mai Seo, a resident of Ibaraki Prefecture, and the winning poster will be used for this year’s Animal Protection Week.
The winner, Mai Seo, commented on her work,
“The peace that dogs give us is irreplaceable. Of course, when you have a dog, you need to show it love, but I also wanted to express my wish that you will be able to protect the happiness of having your dog for as long as possible by making sure you give it the right vaccinations and look after its health.”
In addition, five people were awarded for their excellent work.
Saki Endo (Tottori Prefecture), Ayumu Kunitou (Kyoto Prefecture), Erika Sugamoto (Tottori Prefecture), Kota Nozaki (Kagoshima Prefecture), and Kanaho Hatakeyama (Chiba Prefecture).
To all the award winners, “Congratulations!”
The World Dog Alliance aims to create a world where it is common sense to take good care of dogs and cats, even if we don’t have a set period of time called Animal Protection Week!