Established in 1988 by Soshisha, the Minamata Disease Museum embraces the role of handing down the complex heritage left by Minamata Disease. The faces of Shiranui sea and of those living along its shores were irreparably changed by the recklessness of Japanese economy lead by Chisso company and the Government.

"If things remain as they are now, we will die to no purpose", said once one of the victims. The Museum devotes itself to collecting and preserving documents, as well as disseminating knowledge about Minamata Disease in order to build together a world aware of human rights violation, where environmental issues such as Minamata Disease would not occur again.

Not merely a place where artifacts and documents are displayed, the Minamata Disease Museum's goal is raising questions about and beyond Minamata's facts, calling for a broader thinking on the way we make our living within the contemporary society.