DINF (Disability Information Resources Network)

DINF (Disability Information Resources / 障害保健福祉研究情報システム), is an information system on disability health and welfare run by the Japanese Society for Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities (公益財団法人 日本障害者リハビリテーション協会). It gathers disability-related information from both Japanese and international sources, with a particular focus on how information and communication technology can widen social participation for people with disabilities. This is a research and policy resource more than a directory of local services, so it suits parents, advocates, and professionals who want to understand the wider landscape rather than book an appointment.

The material spans a few areas. There is international and UN-level disability news, a section on information access that looks at how disabled people can get information in forms they can actually read and understand, and collections of research, law, and conference records. DINF also digs into accessible-reading formats like multimedia DAISY (デイジー), which turns books into synchronized audio and text so children and adults who cannot read standard print can read alongside everyone else. Older issues of the association’s journals are posted online in full and are free to read.

If you are a parent who wants to understand the bigger picture behind the services your child uses, DINF is a quiet, reliable place to read rather than a place to get matched to a provider. Because it works from an international network, it carries some English-language material that is useful to foreign residents, including reports on welfare services for persons with disabilities in Japan. The publishing association is based in Toyama, Shinjuku ward, Tokyo, and the resource itself is national and international in scope.