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The language used when referring to people with mental health problems can be confusing because many different terms are used:
This online course uses the term “people with mental health problems” as this is easy to understand and translate; it includes people with conditions such as chronic depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and substance abuse disorders.
Learn about how CBR in Japan integrated people with mental health problems into their workforce activities.
In 2002, local community members, including the mayor and a community mental health specialist, established Cocoron, a non-profit organization, in the Fukushima Prefecture of Japan. The name Cocoron means heart and/or mind, and was selected by the wider community. A primary concern in the region was poverty. Because of this, Cocoron focused on community development, aiming to develop and support the community as a whole so that people with and without disabilities could live with equal rights, security and dignity.
In the beginning, Cocoron raised awareness and developed capacity among community members, its staff and board members, by running a series of workshops over a three-year period. With the support of the provincial authority and local community, Cocoron invited resource people from different development sectors to run these workshops.
Cocoron then worked towards establishing a number of income-generating activities in the community. Since a major source of income in the local area is agriculture, Cocoron decided to develop many of its activities around this industry. Cocoron opened shops and a café called Cocoroya to sell local products such as vegetables, mushrooms, fruits and saki, and to serve lunches and sweets. Cocoroya soon become a very popular meeting place for local people, particularly after being publicized in the newspaper and on television.
In March 2004, Cocoron opened a community centre in Izumizaki village to support people living with mental health problems. Cocoron had become aware that people with disabilities, particularly people with mental health problems, were marginalized from mainstream development initiatives. Cocoron has established a number of supports for people with mental health problems and their families, including a counselling service, residential accommodation, and work-based education, training and support.
Many people with mental health problems are now integrated into Cocoron’s various income-generating activities – they are the major workforce of Cocoroya – and also other businesses within the community. Their lives have changed; they no longer experience the social isolation that is associated with living in psychiatric facilities, they are able to work in welcoming and accommodating environments, their health and socioeconomic conditions have improved, and they now experience feelings of satisfaction and independence.
Cocoron is a good example of community-based inclusive development, where people with disabilities, particularly people with mental health problems, form an integral and inseparable part of the community and community life.
