Sustainability Management
Our Approach to Sustainability and Management Framework
Policies and Basic Approach
Sustainability Policy
Mitsui & Co.'s corporate mission as defined in its Mission, Vision, Values (MVV) is to realize a better tomorrow for earth and for people around the world and to "Build brighter futures, everywhere." Based on the MVV, we regard sustainability initiatives as important management issues, and, in accordance with the Mitsui & Co. Group Conduct Guidelines —With Integrity, this policy and sustainability-related policies, place a strong emphasis on sustainability in our corporate management. Our Group will take on the challenge of addressing global issues and contributing to the realization of a sustainable society and economic growth through our business activities.
Identification of Materiality and Promotion of Initiatives
For the sustainable growth of both society and the company, we identify important business issues that impact the company and its stakeholders as material issues ("Materiality"). We put this policy into practice by formulating our business policies and strategies, including medium-term management plans and business plans, based on our Materiality, given that each material issue may become a significant source of both risks and opportunities in the medium to long term.
Role of the Board of Directors
The Board of Directors appropriately supervises the Company's sustainability initiatives, striving to enhance the Company’s corporate value in the medium to long term. Decisions on important issues related to sustainability are subject to final approval by or report to the Board of Directors, following a review by the Sustainability Committee and Executive Committee.
Stakeholder Engagement and Information Disclosure
We regard dialogue with stakeholders as highly important. We strive to implement appropriate disclosure of information and respond sincerely and faithfully to the trust and expectations of our stakeholders.
This policy was approved by the Board of Directors.
Formulated November 2021
Relationship of corporate policies
Corporate Mission Vision Values
Mitsui & Co. Group Conduct Guidelines—With Integrity—
Sustainability-related policies
Mitsui & Co.'s Core Values
The former Mitsui & Co.* which was established in 1876, was disbanded as part of the dissolution of Japan's zaibatsu (industrial conglomerates) shortly after the end of World War II. The current Mitsui was founded by employees of the former Mitsui that shared the values of the original company: "Challenge and Innovation," "Open-Mindedness," and "Focus on Human Resources." The Mitsui of today continues to contribute to the creation of new value for society. The way we work and the way we think are still very much based on the values espoused by Takashi Masuda, the first president of the former Mitsui, and are reflected in our stance toward our work. The principles of Mitsui's approach to sustainability as social responsibility have always reflected its founder's values, a way of thinking unchanged to this day.
* Legally speaking, there has been no continuation between the former Mitsui & Co. and the current Mitsui & Co.
"Let not short term gains tempt your mind, seek only enduring prosperity by embracing grand aspirations."
"I started Mitsui with the goal of realizing trade on a large scale, not in pursuit of money, but from the desire to work."
"Mitsui has a pool of very talented individuals. This is Mitsui's most important asset."
Takashi Masuda, the first president of the former Mitsui
Sustainability Governance and Oversight
In the fiscal year ended March 2005, Mitsui & Co. established the CSR Promotion Committee (currently the Sustainability Committee) under the Executive Committee to develop Mitsui's internal framework with respect to sustainability, and to work to raise sustainability awareness among employees. We established the Sustainability Committee in May 2017, in order to further clarify our unchanging stance toward creating new value for society through business activities and to pursue further mutual sustainability between society and the company. As a subcommittee of the Executive Committee, the Sustainability Committee plans, drafts and proposes basic management policies, business activities and corporate policies and strategies relating to sustainability and ESG. With the Sustainability Committee playing a central role, Mitsui promotes sustainability-related activities based on cross-organizational collaboration to meet the needs and expectations of society in relation to companies' social values and initiatives.
The Sustainability Committee is structured so that its activities are appropriately supervised by the Board of Directors, and matters discussed by the Sustainability Committee are regularly discussed and reported to the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors. The number of cases related to management strategy, sustainability, and governance that were discussed by or presented to the Board of Directors in the fiscal year ended March 2024 was 29 out of a total of 71 (including written resolutions/ reports). In addition, regular biannual reports on activities to promote sustainability management were conducted at Board of Directors meetings.
Regarding human resources strategy and diversity, the Diversity Committee separately plans, considers, and makes recommendations and the Compliance Committee separately plans, proposes, and makes recommendations regarding the development of the compliance system and the maintenance and improvement of its effectiveness.
Sustainability Committee
| Committee Chair | Makoto Sato (Representative Director, Senior Executive Managing Officer, Chief Strategy Officer (CSO)) |
|---|---|
| Vice Chairs | Yoshiaki Takemasu (Representative Director, Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer, Chief Compliance Officer) Tetsuya Shigeta (Representative Director, Senior Executive Managing Officer, Chief Financial Officer) |
| Members | General Counsel, the GMs of Human Resources & General Affairs Division, Business Legal Division, Corporate Planning & Strategy Div. Investment Administrative Division, Corporate Sustainability Division, Global Controller Division, Finance Division, Investor Relations Division, Financial Management & Advisory Division I, and two Chief Operating Officers of Business Unit, each of whom shall be appointed. |
| Administrative Office | Corporate Sustainability Division, Corporate Planning & Strategy Division |
The committee has the following duties
- Develop basic policies on the company's sustainability management and fundamental plans for activities to promote sustainability.
- Review and make proposals on the company's management policies, business activities, as well as policies and strategies of corporate divisions from the perspective of sustainability.
- Present proposals on company-wide policies and actions related to environmental (climate change, circular economy, environmental pollution, biodiversity, etc.), social (human rights, supply chain management, social contribution activities, etc.) or governance issue.
- Make proposals on sustainability-focused business activities (understanding risks and opportunities involved in business).
- Deliberate and establish the basic policy of the effective disclosure of information to stakeholders.
- Consider and present proposals relating to progress reviews and monitoring required for management.
- Configure and establish the internal structure for promoting sustainability management of the company.
- Identify the material issues to focus on each year for promoting sustainability management of the company and ensure progress on these.
- Respond to issues related to sustainability management, both internal and external to the company.
- Approve important matters (basic policies, business plans, etc.) relating to the Mitsui & Co. Environment Fund stipulated in Basic Policy of the Mitsui & Co. Environment Fund.
- Select proposals from applicants for the Environment Fund grants.
- Decide and report whether to support an exceptional acquisition of forests or the disposal of company owned forests, which is out of the scope of the guidelines on the acquisition of a new forest and disposal of company owned forests, based on Rules on the Management of Company Owned Forests.
Main Discussions at Sustainability Committee Meetings in the fiscal year ended March 2024
1st Meeting (April 12, 2023)
- Report and free discussion on Business Plan for FY March 2024 Summary and Issues Related to Climate
- Report on Enhancement of Climate Change-related Disclosure (Scope 3 Emission/Reduction contribution/Transition Risk/Physical Risk)
- Deliberations on SG-linked Officers' Remuneration/Climate Change Assessment Item
2nd Meeting (June 14, 2023)
- Free discussion on Scope 1 and 2, and Scope 3 Category 15 Reductions
- Report and free discussion on Climate Change/Scope 3 Emission Preliminary Calculation Results and Future Policies
- Report on Enhancement of Disclosure on TCFD Recommendations (Transition Risk/Physical Risk)
- Report on Sustainability Information Disclosure Update
- Deliberations on SG-linked Officers' Remuneration/Climate Change Assessment Item
3rd Meeting (September 19, 2023)
- Report on Climate Change Targets and Scope 3 Emission
- Report on Sustainability Management Promotion Activity - Interim Report for FY March 2024
- Report on Status Update - Improvement of the Effectiveness of Human Rights Due Diligence
4th Meeting (October 4, 2023)
- Report on Investor Day - Outline of Materials for Climate Change Part
- Report on Status of Consideration and Policy on Statutory Disclosure of Non-financial Information
- Report on Natural Capital: Risk and Opportunity Identification and LEAP Analysis
5th Meeting (December 13, 2023)
- Report on Stakeholder Communications
- Deliberations on Update of Internal Carbon Pricing
6th Meeting (February 14, 2024)
- Report on Materiality
- Report on ESG Information Disclosure and ESG Evaluation / Review of the FY March 2024 and Future Policy
- Report on Social Contribution Activities and Policies
7th Meeting (March 7, 2024)
- Report on Natural Capital: LEAP Analysis Results and Their Utilization / Japanese OECM Site Registration Policy in Mitsui's Forests
- Report on Sustainability Management Promotion Activity -Activity Report for FY March 2024 and Action Plan for FY March 2025
Sustainability Advisory Board
| Members (FY Mar/2025) *Honorific titles omitted |
|
|---|
In order to address a broad range of sustainability-related issues, the Sustainability Committee decided to establish the Sustainability Advisory Board (the former Environmental & Societal Advisory Committee), made up of external experts on environmental and social themes. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024, 7consultations and exchanges of opinions were conducted on important themes in sustainability management.
Main content of consultations and exchanges of opinions and the number of times in the fiscal year ended March 2024
| Theme | Contents | Times conducted |
|---|---|---|
| Strengthening Internal Sustainability Management Structures and Platform |
Sustainability management and promotion Review of Materiality Company-wide e-Learning, sustainability management content |
3 |
| Business and Human Rights | Remediation guidance to suppliers with human rights issues Status of efforts to human rights due diligence, issues and ideal future |
2 |
| Stakeholder Engagement | Status of efforts to stakeholder dialogues, issues and ideal future | 2 |
Corporate Sustainability Div.
In April 2019, we established the Corporate Sustainability Division, whose role is to promote and drive company-wide sustainability management and to accelerate various initiatives on a global group basis. The Corporate Sustainability Division strives to raise sustainability awareness and share values at the Mitsui & Co. global group level, with the aim of contributing to the achievement of sustainable social and economic development in various countries and regions around the world, while also contributing to solving global environmental problems such as climate change.
Sustainability Promotion Officers
The Sustainability Promotion Officers have taken the initiative in organizing various sustainability awareness-raising programs, such as in-house sustainability seminars and lectures by speakers from partner companies and external experts, as well as workshops regarding sustainability within the actual business. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2023, we held online Sustainability Promotion Officers meetings on a quarterly basis, where we shared the policies and important matters related to new sustainability initiatives discussed and formulated by the Sustainability Committee, as well as other sustainability related topics.
Initiatives
Materiality Action Plans
Each Business Unit has a Materiality Action Plan that outlines specific initiatives to address the Materiality identified by the company and manages the progress of these initiatives. The Materiality Action Plan defines the content of each Business Unit's response plans, targets, and status of initiatives based on the recognition of issues and major risks and opportunities for each Materiality. It also shows how our business activities contribute to the SDGs, and identifies the SDGs that are highly relevant to each Materiality.
By regularly managing the progress of this Materiality Action Plan, we will implement the PDCA cycle to promote our Materiality initiatives and our efforts to achieve the SDGs.
Raising Awareness on Sustainability Management
Sustainability Month
We have established Sustainability Month and implement a variety of programs designed to encourage all employees to learn and think about sustainability and then put it into practice. The focus for the fiscal year ended March 2023 was to consider sustainability management together with team members at each site. We released a message to all employees from the CSO (Chairperson of the Sustainability Committee), conducted an Experiential Sustainability Program that included employee participation, a roundtable discussion on the use of company-owned forests, "Mitsui's Forests" for business purposes, and a webinar on the newly-established Mitsui & Co. Co-creation Fund.
Approximately 4,000 people participated in the Experiential Sustainability Program, mainly at the Head Office and branches in Japan. During the program, participants watched interviews with local stakeholders such as producers and suppliers, deepened their understanding of social issues in the supply chain through simulated visual experiences, and gained insight into how to achieve sustainability in their respective operations through discussions with their colleagues.
Employee Training
At Mitsui & Co., we hold introductory training for new employees to explain our sustainability-related policies, including the Sustainability Policy, as well as our ESG initiatives and policy-specific targets. On an ongoing basis, we hold briefings for corporate divisions, business units, regional business units, and affiliates on the external environment related to their divisions and the sustainability management issues to be considered in the future. In addition to our own environmental and social challenges, we also provide training on the importance of environmental and social issues within our supply chain, including our Sustainable Supply Chain Policy and related initiatives. Please refer to the link for more information.
