Sustainability
Involvement with Communities and Society
Involvement with Communities and Society
Supporting Cultural Activities, Communicating with Locals
Nitta contributes to the development of local communities (such as through the preservation of cultural assets) by supporting the maintenance and management of Kotonoura Onzan-Soh-En, a public interest incorporated foundation in Kainan, Wakayama Prefecture. Including gardens landscaped by our founder, Chojiro Nitta, the site was designated a national scenic asset in 2010. We also sponsor events (such as the Doll Festival, Summer Festival, and Autumn Party) hosted by the garden as a way to contribute to regional cultural activities.
Go to the website for an overview of Onzan-Soh-En.
Contributing to Communities as a Good Corporate Citizen
1. Sponsoring the Nikkei Education Challenge for SDGs program
The Nikkei Education Challenge for SDGs, organized by media company Nikkei Inc., is a career education event where high school students hear talks by businesspeople on what they are doing every day to identify and resolve problems in order to help realize a sustainable society.
Nitta carries on the spirit of its company founder, who was passionate about the education and development of young people, society’s future, and even today we value nurturing young people who can contribute on a global scale to society and the environment. That is why we share the aim of this program?to nurture students who will play a key role in achieving the SDGs in the future?and have been sponsoring it for seven consecutive years.
The theme for 2024 was the development of a belt conveyor that could be used in a minus 30°C environment. A Nitta engineer in their fourth year at the company talked about how their team developed a new conveyor belt that could be used in an environment of minus 30°C in response to a customer’s request for a belt conveyor that works in a cold storage warehouse to ensure food safety. Conventional conveyor belts could only operate down to minus 20°C.
Through this example, we wanted to inspire students to think about what is possible by showing them that working steadily on problems can lead to progress on the SDGs even though at first there seems to be no connection.
| Year | Program theme |
|---|---|
| 2018 | Nanotechnology is changing the world: Researchers who took on the impossible |
| 2019 | Let’s give it a try: Robot hand engineers’ unprecedented challenges |
| 2020 | We’ve found it! Developing mysterious tapes that change with temperature |
| 2021 | Tough times bring opportunity: New products born during the pandemic |
| 2022 | Solving social problems by starting with making things easier |
| 2023 | 100% anxiety: A rookie salesperson’s struggles in the manufacturing field |
| 2024 | Developing a belt conveyor that ensures everyday safety: Taking on the minus 30°C challenge |
2. Local clean-ups
Our head office, branches, and plants engage in ongoing yearly local clean-up activities, including clean-up campaigns and litter pick-up, in cooperation with local governments and neighboring communities. The amount of litter on our streets and in our neighborhoods is decreasing with every passing year, but large waste items are still being found discarded in spots hidden from view. We will continue to contribute to the beautification of the local communities around us.
3. Cooperation with blood drives and marrow donor registration
Many Nitta Group employees cooperate with regular blood donation and in marrow donor registration. Nitta has established a donor leave system that provides donor candidates with paid leave for transplant coordination, pre-donation health checks, and hospitalization for marrow collection. Several employees have already used this system to take leave and donate bone marrow.
The blood donation page of the Japanese Red Cross Society website has an article about Nitta’s blood donation drives.
4. Other activities
- Collection and donation of used cards
- Nitta collects things like used stamps and prepaid cards and donates them to charity organizations.