The Three Corporate Principles (Corporate Responsibility to Society, Integrity and Fairness, and International Understanding through Trade), which embody our corporate philosophy, advocate the creation of businesses that match the times as well as symbiotic relationships with society and the natural environment. We therefore strive to conduct our business activities in a way that fulfills our social responsibilities with respect to people, society and the environment.
In addition to raising their corporate value through their core business, we also believe that companies must seriously consider their role in society to ensure they make meaningful contributions to solving various social issues.
CSR Initiatives
At MC, the Environmental & Social Responsibility Committee, which is chaired by Senior Executive Vice President Yukio Ueno, is responsible for important matters related to CSR, including environmental issues and social contribution activities. Meanwhile, the CSR Task Force examines important CSR initiatives, such as employee education, identification of CSR problems at MC and information disclosure. A subordinate body to the Environmental & Social Responsibility Committee, the task force also facilitates the sharing of information among related internal divisions.
Tackling Global Environmental Issues
In 1996, MC formulated an Environmental Charter (please refer to MC's website), which embraces the fundamental philosophy that an enterprise cannot continue to prosper without consideration of its environmental performance. In line with this philosophy, we are actively tackling environmental issues to contribute to the realization of a sustainable society. We base our environmental management on ISO 14001, regarding this international standard to be an important means of providing an adequate response to environmental issues.
On the business front, we're actively engaged in diverse environmental businesses directed at the realization of a sustainable society. These businesses include renewable energy, such as solar power, wind power, fuel cells and biomass fuels, as well as waste treatment, recycling and emission credit trading. Through our Tropical Forest Regeneration Experimental Project, Global Coral Reef Conservation Project and other projects, we are helping to preserve biodiversity. Furthermore, through the Mitsubishi International Corporation Foundation and the Mitsubishi Corporation Fund for Europe & Africa, we are supporting environmental protection activities.
Social Contribution Activities
MC believes that it is important to enrich society together with regional and international communities and help solve social problems through its business activities. This determination is embodied in the Three Corporate Principles.
In 1973, we established the Social Responsibility Office (now the Environmental & Social Responsibility Office) and enhanced our social contribution activities. Since then, guided by a philosophy of conducting wide-ranging activities from a global standpoint as a good corporate citizen, we have engaged in various social contribution activities with a basic policy of encouraging MC employee involvement, continuity and global development. In fiscal 2007, for example, we held the Friendship Camp for Mothers and Children, a program for single-parent mothers and their children living in the Tokyo metropolitan area. This program has run continuously since 1974. We also donated solar-powered lamps to impoverished areas in India and ambulances to a state-run hospital in Morocco, as part of our programs to help regional communities. In terms of systems, along with a volunteer leave system, to encourage a spirit of volunteerism among staff we run an internal program called "MC Volunteer Activity!," whereby we make corporate donations based on how many times employees participate in volunteer activities.
External Recognition
MC has earned a solid reputation for its CSR initiatives and transparency in the disclosure of information. Underscoring this is MC's inclusion in various socially responsible investment (SRI) indices. These include FTSE4Good, an SRI compiled by FTSE Group, originally a joint venture between the Financial Times of the U.K. and the London Stock Exchange; the Dow Jones Sustainability World Indexes (DJSI World) of U.S.-based Dow Jones; and the Morningstar Socially Responsible Investment Index (MS-SRI) of Morningstar Japan K.K. (as of July 2007).
