Last month, the new governor of Osaka, Toru Hashimoto, announced his plan to shut down and sell or privatize 25 public facilities in a bid to tackle the prefecture's financial crisis. Except for two libraries, no prefectural facilities merit further public funding, argues Hashimoto. Included among the sites slated for closure is the Dawn Center, which for 14 years has been providing the citizens of Osaka and beyond with a diverse range of programs united behind a single aim: putting equality into practice.
The Dawn Center is located near Osaka Castle in Chuo Ward. It cost over ¥9 billion to build the seven-story structure, equipped with meeting and conference rooms, a library, auditorium, recording/editing studio, a kitchen and child-care services. The diverse programs that the center offers — from lectures to screenings and workshops — are all carried out in this building.
Rooms are also available to the general public. People who need them for activities related to the cause of gender equality can rent them at half price. The well-equipped center, with its central location, wide variety of programs and reasonable prices, attracts almost 400,000 people annually.