Musunde,tsunaide.

Ouchiyama Zoo, in Mie Prefecture where we live, is a rare privately run zoo in Japan.

More than ninety percent of its animals came here because they had nowhere else to go: injured wildlife, animals from zoos that closed, animals that might otherwise have been euthanized. The zoo takes them in and keeps them alive.

Feeding and treating the animals, caring for them every day, and creating a better environment for them takes the support of many people.

We live in Mie ourselves, and it is because of our own connection with this place that we wanted part of our wedding celebration to go to the animals who live here.

We would be glad if your 'congratulations' also reached the lives in the region we call home.

Donations go toward food, veterinary care and daily care for the rescued animals, and improving their living environment.

Chiisana Inochi no Kaeru Ie takes in children who cannot be raised at home because of disabilities, rare diseases, or medical care needs, and connects them with families through adoption and other means. Its central aim is to create a “home to return to” for babies left behind in hospitals because of a disability or illness, whose parents cannot be reached or who cannot obtain consent for medical treatment.

It also offers parenting consultations for children with disabilities or medical care needs, support for families struggling with child-rearing, and emergency respite care.

For us, the birth of our son and the start of our life as three changed everything.

To become a family.

To have a safe place to come home to.

Learning that there are children for whom none of this can be taken for granted, we wanted the gifts marking this milestone for our family to reach those children too.

Donations go to the “Fund to Help Babies”, covering the organization’s operating costs and the children’s living and medical expenses.

And the last of the three is HEMP HUB, a general incorporated association.

I (Aya) thought long and hard about whether to ask for wedding gifts on behalf of an organization I run myself.

I decided to include it anyway, because HEMP HUB is not just my job. It is one of the themes I want to devote the rest of my life to.

HEMP HUB works to carry the culture and history of hemp in Japan to the next generation, while building a platform that connects growers, makers, researchers, people starting new local initiatives, and the regions they work in.

Japan's hemp industry is only just beginning.

That is exactly why we believe people should not struggle alone through trial and error, but share knowledge and experience, stay connected, and grow a new industry and culture together.

Gifts entrusted to HEMP HUB will be used to nurture an environment where the people building the future of Japanese hemp can learn, connect, and take on new challenges.

Please note that HEMP HUB is an organization I run.

For that reason, we will report back afterwards on exactly how the amount entrusted to HEMP HUB was used.