Toilet Day (Toire no Hi) — November 10th "Good Toilet" Wordplay

What Is Toilet Day?

November 10th is "Toilet Day" (Toire no Hi) in Japan. It comes from a pun: "ii" (11) and "toire" (10) sound like "ii toire," a good toilet. It was established in 1986 by the Japan Toilet Association. Toilets are used by everyone every day, but comfort, cleanliness, and preparation for disasters are easy to overlook. Toilet Day is a day to look at this everyday facility and the environment around it.

The Japan Toilet Association and "Ii Toire"

The Japan Toilet Association traces back to 1984, when a group called "Toiletopia no Kai" began, bringing people of different backgrounds and professions together to discuss toilets in a lively way. The association itself was founded on May 15th, 1985. It treats the toilet not merely as equipment but as a matter of culture and society, and it runs symposiums, study groups, and the JTA Toilet Awards, and it published an encyclopedia of toilet studies in 2015.

• January 1986:It held the first National Toilet Symposium in Ito, Shizuoka, and, because November 10th can be read as "ii toire," designated it Toilet Day
• 1993:The first international toilet conference in the world, the Kobe International Toilet Symposium, was held
• 1995:Toilet volunteers were active after the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake
• 2001:The first World Toilet Summit was held in Singapore
• 2017:A survey of disaster toilet stockpiles found that only about 15.5 percent of people had one, meaning 84.5 percent did not

Toilets in Japan and Around the World

TOTO launched its Washlet bidet toilet seat in June 1980. The slogan "Even your bottom wants to be washed," used in a 1982 nationwide campaign, drew wide attention, and the product aimed to change toilet culture from wiping to washing. Its worldwide cumulative shipments passed 50 million units in 2019. According to a Cabinet Office survey, the penetration rate of warm-water bidet seats among households of two or more people was 80.2 percent as of March 2020. Around the world, by contrast, a message from the UN Secretary-General reported by the UN Information Centre says 3.6 billion people live without safely managed sanitation. November 19th is World Toilet Day, which was set as an official UN international day by the UN General Assembly in July 2013. According to the same message, every dollar invested in toilets and sanitation returns up to five dollars in benefits. It also says 700 children under five die every day from diseases linked to unsafe water and sanitation.

Tips for Marking This Day

• After using the office restroom, wipe up splashes around the sink so the next person can use it comfortably
• Rethink how you wash your hands. Japan's National Center for Child Health and Development advises rubbing for at least 15 seconds from applying soap to rinsing, and washing not only the palms but also the backs of hands, between fingers, and under the nails
• Wipe doorknobs, levers, and other spots your hands touch, often. At home, choose a cleaner suited to the purpose and ventilate while using it
• Check whether your workplace or home has disaster toilets and supplies

Summary

Toilet Day is a day to review the cleanliness and preparedness of the toilets we take for granted. Since the Japan Toilet Association established it in 1986, it has been a chance to think not only about comfort but also about disaster preparedness and toilet conditions around the world. A clean office restroom is thanks to the people who clean it and to everyone who uses it with care. Take a moment today to remember that.