MHI Group Employees Participate in 10th "Furusato Cleanup Event" at All Company Locations

The Furusato Cleanup Event program was launched in 2007 to induce people to serve as volunteers in performing deeds to improve the environment – mountains, rivers, sea areas, urban centers – in their respective "furusato," i.e. home region. Started by a group of 100 well-known people who have great love for Mount Fuji, the event calls on the participation of citizens, students and employees of companies throughout Japan. Every year the program is organized and operated from the Volunteer Center at Waseda University in Tokyo. The latest Furusato Cleanup Event, the 10th to date, took place in October 2016 under the continuing leadership of baseball legend Sadaharu Oh and alpinist Ken Noguchi.

The MHI Group has actively participated in the Furusato Cleanup Event every year since 2008. We do so in support of the program's aims of increasing the awareness of all individuals toward the need for environmental protection and the importance of making local contributions. Each year employees perform cleaning activities in areas near their workplaces. In the 2016 fiscal year as a whole, a total of 10,929 employees and their family members undertook cleaning on 235 occasions, including at MHI's overseas bases.

Participants have voiced a variety of positive reactions to their volunteer work. "Participating in the Furusato Cleanup Event drove home to me a sense of responsibility and sense of unity as a member of the company," said one. "Through the Furusato Cleanup Event my children learned the importance of making environmental and social contributions," commented another, adding that actual participation provided an excellent learning opportunity. Yet another employee voiced intention to take part every year, because participation on a continuing basis, he felt, deepened his involvement with the local community.

The MHI Group is committed to continue maintaining close ties of communication with its local communities and striving to protect its local environments.