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 BIUK employee explaining the 5R concept at Yale College |
Brother Industries (U.K.) (BIUK) shares expertise in administration of its environmental management system and other actions with Yale College in North Wales where over 14,000 students are enrolled. These efforts are intended to assist the college in its environmental activities.
What brought Yale College and BIUK together was an Inside Welsh Industry event held in June 2008. Yale College staff who came to this event showed interest in environmental impact reduction activities at BIUK. For this reason, BIUK invited 10 staff members of the college to a factory tour in March 2009.
Offering useful information on a regular basis to assist environmental activities
On July 8, 2009, which fell on Green Day (Yale College’s environmental event), Dave Lawrence, Quality & Environmental Manager at BIUK, was invited as a guest speaker to give a lecture about the company’s zero waste policy, focusing primarily on the Brother Group’ 5R concept.
Ever since the Green Day event, college staff members have been visiting BIUK on a regular basis, and BIUK has been sharing expertise in the administration of its environmental management system and environmental activities. Participants express not just gratitude but also encouraging words to BIUK: “We need to improve our conventional practices to reduce environmental impact. Visits to BIUK offer truly meaningful and valuable experiences. We are looking forward to learning more from Brother.”
Educational activities
Offering environmental education programs outside the company to help build a recycling-oriented society
It is very important towards the formation of a recycling-oriented society to share information about the environment with a greater number of people and take cooperation to deeper levels. The Brother Group is offering educational programs for students and citizens as part of these efforts.
For example, we have shared environmental management cases with students of Chukyo University's graduate schools as part of a course entitled "Environment Management Innovation" held every year since 2003. In FY 2008 (April 1, 2008-March 31, 2009), Yoshihiro Yasui, Director & Chairman of Brother Industries, Ltd. (BIL) gave lectures about the Brother Group's environmental management, ranging from "Tomoiki (coexistence)" to the "promotion of 5R activities." Yasumichi Kojima, Manger of the Environmental Management Department, gave lectures on environmental activities that have been developed.
We are also a member of the Environmental Partnership Organizing Club (EPOC), an organization established by business leaders from diverse sectors and companies, large and small, in an effort to mitigate the environmental impact of their operations and to develop activities in which industry, government, academia, and the public cooperate on an equal footing. It is of worthy of note that Toshikazu Koike, Representative Director & President of BIL serves as the Vice Chairman of the EPOC, while Yasumichi Kojima (above) serves as the Chairman of the EPOC Hazardous Chemicals Subcommittee. The EPOC hosted the fifth and sixth seminars on hazardous chemicals under the titles of "EU's REACH Regulation on Chemicals: Overview, Current Status, and Companies' Efforts" (December 2008) and "The Latest Trends in Chemical Substances Management" (March 2009), respectively.
At the Brother Communication Space, the environmental protection efforts that the Brother Group practices in manufacturing operations are explained throughout the year to visitors such as students and adults. In FY2008, we presented the Brother Group's environmental conservation efforts at the Nagoya Campus for Senior Citizens (June 3), Nagoya University of Foreign Studies (June 11), Honami Elementary School (July 10), Parent-Child Manufacturing Workshop (August 29 and March 25), and an open campus program at Nagoya Keizai University Takakura Senior High School (March 10). We also invited visitors to have a look at rooftop greening at our head office.
 Students of the Nagoya Campus for Senior Citizens in a class listening intently to a lecturer |
 Elementary school students making "Eco Declarations" |
 Visitors invited to see rooftop greening at our head office |
past activitiesFY2007 (April 1, 2007 - March 31, 2008) |
As in FY2007(April 1, 2007-March 31, 2008), Brother Industries Chairman Yasui delivered a lecture on the Brother Group's environmental management from "TOMOIKI (coexistence)" to the "5R activities" to students at Chukyo University's graduate school. In addition, the manager of the Environmental Management Dept. gave lectures on environmental activities of the Brother Group. Moreover, Brother Industries Representative Director & Vice Chairman Hirata is serving as the Vice Chairman of the Environmental Partnership Organizing Club (EPOC), which develops cross-sector activities for reducing environmental loads as a collaboration of "business, government, academia and people". Here, business executive go beyond the boundaries of industrial sectors and corporate size to work with residents, experts and governments. Also, Environmental Management Department Manger Kojima is the Chairman of the EPOC Hazardous Chemicals Subcommittee. In January 2008, EPOC staged a seminar on hazardous chemicals under the title of "The Latest Trends in Chemical Management: Focus on REACH Compliance" and again in March under the title of "EU's REACH: Overview and Latest Trends". Four other seminars were staged.
At the Brother Communication Space, the environmental protection efforts that the Brother Group practices in manufacturing operations are explained throughout the year to visitors such as elementary and junior high school students and adults. In June 2007, environmental classes were held for fifth grade students. They expanded their awareness and understanding of the environment by playing a game with the global environment regeneration robot "GO-R" that sets global environmental problems amidst the universe. The children that took part in the game made comments like: "I am going to use things until they can't be used anymore so as to create as little waste as possible," "Having made an eco declaration, I now want to honor that declaration," and "Because of our environmental problems and all, I felt Japan could no longer continue living the way we do." |
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FY2006 (April 1, 2006 - March 31, 2007) |
Introducing the environmental activities of the Brother Group
As in FY2005, Brother Industries Chairman Yasui delivered a lecture on the Brother Group's environmental management from "TOMOIKI (coexistence)" to the "5 R activities" to students at Chukyo University's graduate school. In addition, the manager of the Environmental Conservation Department gave lectures on environmental activities of the Brother Group. Moreover, we opened up outdoor training as one of the seminars in "learning about environmental activities from the standpoint of business" (planned and organized by the Meito Lifelong Learning Center), co-sponsored with Nagoya Kankyo Daigaku (environmental study organization run by a steering committee of persons from diverse fields; citizens' groups, NPOs, businesses, universities, etc.). There, Brother Industries employees introduced the environmental protection efforts implemented by the Brother Group.
Throughout the year, we introduced the environmental protection efforts practiced by the Brother Group in manufacturing activities to elementary and junior high school students and adults at the Brother Communication Space. |
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FY2005 (April 1, 2005 - March 31, 2006) |
Activities at EXPO 2005Brother Industries, Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as BIL) supported the World Exposition, Aichi, Japan from March to September, 2005 (hereinafter referred to as EXPO 2005), and participated in an environmental education program for elementary school students, and sent volunteers. Participated in the "ECO talk session"
"Eco talk session" was a project planned by EPOC (Environmental Partnership Organizing Club: a non-profit organization established by opinion leaders from the Chubu area of Japan) with 12 member companies providing an environmental education program on a theme related to each company. The children presented the study results that were gained through proactive participation in the program and their messages for the future. The presentation was made at the EXPO 2005 site. BIL participated in this program and coordinated a facility tour for students from two elementary schools in Nagoya city, and also some of the BIL employees paid a visit to the schools to present experience-based classes on the theme of "Environmentally-Friendly Manufacturing (Life-cycle and the 5R)". Firstly, the children went to see a facility of BIL, and a recycling treatment facility in Nagoya city. A teacher of an elementary school, from where the children were from, highly evaluated our tour and mentioned that, "Although environment studies are provided at school, this has been a good opportunity for the children to see the actual activities carried out by a company, such as Brother. We can expect it to have a compounded effect". After completing the facility tour, one student commented that, "The facility that sorts aluminum, plastic, etc. was very interesting." Following the facility tour, employees of BIL visited the school to give a "Lecture". In the first half of the lecture, the students participated in a "play and study" lesson by playing the "Go-R game"; this is a board game made originally by Brother to learn the 5R. In the second half of the lecture, we provided a "lecture on creating of products." In cooperation with the local NPO, we provided an opportunity for the children to make an illumination panel using LEDs (light emitting diode). The illumination panel was entitled "Dreaming Fireflies."
On July 6, 2005, the students discussed environmental issues with BIL Chairman Yoshihiro Yasui, and exhibited their work and the "Dreaming Fireflies" made during the programs. We continue to provide environmental education programs for elementary school students even after EXPO 2005.
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