Environment-Related Events
Eco-Products 2008
The Eco-Products Exhibition is one of Japan's biggest comprehensive environment-related exhibitions. Eco-Products 2008 was held in December 2008 at Tokyo Big Sight (the Tokyo International Exhibition Center).
Olympus was an exhibitor at the 2008 exhibition for the sixth time. The main theme for our exhibit was global warming prevention initiatives. In addition to the Olympus Group's efforts to reduce CO2 emissions, the booth also introduced our environmentally responsible eco-products in four zones with the themes of "vision," "knowledge," "contact" and "sharing." There were also events during which visitors were able to try out Olympus eco-products.
The exhibition attracted approximately 170,000 visitors, an increase of 10,000 over the previous year's total. The Olympus booth was extremely popular.
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Children observe plankton through a microscope and learn about the effects of global warming. |
Olympus booth |
Voluntary Environmental Activities
On September 6, 2008, 101 employees of Aomori Olympus Co., Ltd., including its president, Kazuhisa Otani, participated in a tree-planting project in the Shirakami Mountains. The group planted 200 beech trees.
Designated as a World Heritage site, the Shirakami Mountains are home to a wide array of flora and fauna. The ecology of the region depends upon a natural beech forest. The aim of the project is to preserve this wonderful natural heritage for future generations by restoring beech forest to areas previously used for cedar plantations.
Under the guidance of the Shirakami Mountains Preservation Society, participants learned about the natural environment of beech forests and the Shirakami Mountains. The project provided an opportunity to think about environmental problems and the importance of protecting nature.
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Participants in a tree-planting program |
Planting trees |
Special Environmental Website
In addition to our efforts to minimize environmental burdens resulting from our own activities, we at the Olympus Group also believe that initiatives to inform people both within our own organization and the general public about environmental problems and encourage people to take action on those problems are an important component of our social and environmental contribution. As part of these activities, Olympus has launched the "Global Warming Witness-Mitsuaki Iwago Special" website featuring global warming.
The purpose of this website is to inform the public about the effects of global warming, as observed by wildlife photographer Mr. Mitsuaki Iwago, and to express the importance of the natural environment to future generations by permanently preserving images that portray the Earth as it exists today. This concept has been supported by WWF JapanNote1, a non-governmental environmental protection organization. Contributions by WWF Japan have included the editorial supervision of the sites content and the provision of information about the impact of global warming on wildlife.
Note1: WWF, or the World Wide Fund for Nature, is one of the worlds largest organizations concerned with the protection of nature. It is active in approximately 100 countries and has the support of over 5 million people. WWF was founded in 1961 to protect endangered wild animals around the world. Currently, WWF is engaged in protecting nature in a wider sense with the inclusion of environmental problems, such as global warming and toxic chemical pollution, and the promotion of the sustainable use of resources obtained from nature. Its ultimate goal is to realize a new society where people and the earth can coexist in harmony.
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