Communications

Internal communications

Kenaf cultivation Hiroshima Elpida Memory As a part of the company's environmental education activities, Hiroshima Elpida Memory grows about 3,000 kenaf plants within the factory grounds each year. The seeds are sown in June by employees, staff of cooperating companies in the area, and local residents working together, who then harvest the plants in November. The participation of local residents in these events provides a valuable opportunity for communication. Students from local elementary schools not only gain the experience of kenaf cultivation, but also tour the factory as part of their social studies classes.

Environmental photography contest Elpida Memory / Hiroshima Elpida Memory As one of the events in Environment Month, Elpida Memory and Hiroshima Elpida Memory held a joint environmental photography contest. Entries were put up on the Elpida Web site and employees asked to vote to decide the winners. The photographs below are a selection of the entries.

Environmental cleanup days

Hiroshima Elpida Memory
Once a month, staff of Hiroshima Elpida Memory clean up the area around the company premises. Once every two months they are joined by staff from cooperating companies, who help clean up neighboring roads and the parking lot.

Eco NEWS Company newsletter

Elpida Memory
Elpida Memory publishes the Eco NEWS company letter once every two months. It contains reports of environmental activities and issues, and takes up energy conservation promotion and other topics with the aim of environmental education.

Environment Times Company newsletter

Hiroshima Elpida Memory
Hiroshima Elpida Memory publishes the Environment Times company newsletter once a month. It contains environmental articles, descriptions of energy conservation methods and introductions to environmental issues, and provides a talking point in different workplaces.

Elpida Memory Group Environmental Liaison Meeting

Elpida Memory / Hiroshima Elpida Memory / Akita Elpida Memory
The departments handling environmental matters in each company hold regular meetings to decide the Group's environmental policy, develop plans, and exchange information with each other. The Group will continue to work with a sense of unity in the promotion of environmental management activities.

External communications

Support for elementary and JHS studies

Hiroshima Elpida Memory
Students from two elementary schools and one junior high school in the neighboring suburb of Higashi-Hiroshima have been invited to visit Hiroshima Elpida Memory, to assist their social studies concerning the relationship between industry and the local community as well as of the company's environmental initiatives. This year the program was expanded to include another elementary school and junior high school, further deepening our interaction with the community. In addition, the company has also been advising elementary schools in the area on kenaf cultivation and offering handson experience of making kenaf paper.

Presentation of kenaf paper

Hiroshima Elpida Memory
Washi (Japanese paper) made from kenaf grown on the Hiroshima Elpida Memory grounds has been donated to a social welfare facility in Higashi-Hiroshima City, where it was used to help the rehabilitation of physically handicapped people and as a material for making crafts for submission to local exhibitions. These activities were reported by newspapers and on television.

Kenaf paper for community organizations

Elpida Memory
The company has donated washi paper made with kenaf grown on the Hiroshima Elpida Memory grounds to nursery schools and non-governmental organizations in Sagamihara City.

Collaboration with charity calendar exhibition

Elpida Memory / Hiroshima Elpida Memory / Akita Elpida Memory
The Elpida Memory Group has collected unwanted calendars and diaries and passed them on to a Charity Calendar Exhibition held by the Hiroshima Kenaf Network. The calendars were sold at the exhibition for 100 yen each, and the profit donated to welfare groups.

Meeting to exchange views on environmental report

Elpida Memory
Elpida Memory held a meeting to exchange views with members of NPO Sagamihara Eco-Partners^* concerning the Group's Environmental Report. Specialists in a range of areas offered their opinions on matters such as the cover design and content. These have been taken into consideration in producing the present report.

* Sagamihara Eco-Partners is a non-profit organization (NPO) that works with citizens, businesses, and government agencies to promote environmental communication.

Participation in Eco-Net circle

Elpida Memory
Elpida Memory has registered as a participating organization in the Eco-Net Circle, a project that links groups which collaborate with the Sagamihara City Environmental Information Center, and is supporting local environmental activities. Through the Eco-Net Circle, Elpida Memory is actively participating in events such as the Environmental Festival held in Sagamihara, exhibiting descriptions of the Elpida Memory Group's environmental activities.

Exchanges with local companies

Akita Elpida Memory
Akita Elpida Memory has toured other local corporations. Employees have found out about how industrial waste is disposed of by other companies, and have participated in practical improvements directed toward the mid-term theme of "zero emissions" and in working-group (WG) activities with the aim of achieving our targets. The company will conCraft made by an NGO tinue to emphasize the promotion of local communications in future.

Akita Beautiful Sunday

Akita Elpida Memory
April every year is clean-up month in Akita, and the second Sunday is designated as "Akita Beautiful Sunday." The president of Akita Elpida Memory and 25 staff members cleaned up the airport road and the area around the main road. This small effort by the company enabled staff to realize that activities on a prefectural scale are actually very powerful in cleaning up Akita.