The theme of this panel discussion reflected the title. The panelists included Mr. Hayato Shimizu, Mayor of Saitama City; Ms. Yoko Takahashi, President, Japan Philanthropic Association; and Mr. Yoshihiko Yagyu, Adviser, Shodoshima Healthyland Co. Ltd. and the discussion was facilitated by Professor Shigeki Aoki of the Faculty of Business Administration, Komazawa University.

Introducing Katsunuma Winery as a case study, Professor Aoki said: “Brand-building is no longer simply a matter of budget. The winery encourages its visitors to mention it positively in their social network postings. This crowd-sourced publicity campaign produces better results than an equivalent high budget corporate PR campaign would do.”

Shodoshima Healthyland produces and markets olive oil based cosmetics. Mr. Yagyu of Shodoshima Healthyland then described his company’s plan to grow Shodo Island’s tourism from 1.9 million visitors this year to 3 million p.a. within five years by restoring traditional houses, organising art festivals and publishing information in new media.

Mr. Shimizu followed, describing Saitama City’s CSR Challenge Corporation Certificate. “Saitama City’s CSR policy is like business management. 99% of Saitama City’s SMEs are eligible to apply for certification. Sixty-nine companies have been certified so far. Local authorities should promote CSR because cities benefit from the presence of more attractive corporations with their better branding and sustainable development.” He closed by saying: “The certificate acts as a credit for SMEs. Many of them have reported better employee motivation and increased new business as a direct result of our CSR certification.”

The session was concluded by Ms. Takahashi, who described teaching philanthropy in education. “Tokyo Junior High School students participating in 2015’s Charity Relay Marathon raised a total of ¥3 million, which has been distributed between six schools in Tohoku that were badly affected in the 2011 Earthquake. This was an important lesson in philanthropy for everyone involved. Philanthropy means empathy. Corporate CSR is based upon voluntary acts by individuals. Sustainable branding Japanese-style requires a holistic long term view.”

This session’s theme concerned sustainable branding for B2B. The panelists included Mr. Norio Masuda, Director of Strategic Branding and CSR Department, Brand and Communications, Hitachi Ltd. Information & Telecommunication Systems Company; Ms. Kumiko Hori, Executive Director, Community Affairs, Diversity & Inclusion, UBS Securities Japan Co. Ltd.; and Mr. Osamu Nishimura , Manager, Sales Planning Department, Chuetsu Pulp & Paper Co. Ltd., and was moderated by Mr. Setsu Mori, Sustainable Brands Tokyo Producer & CEO, Alterna.

Mr. Masuda opened by describing Hitachi’s CSR business as ‘B2B2C2S’ - the ’S’ standing for ‘society’: “Society is the ultimate recipient of the value created by corporations and sustainable branding is at the spearhead of a corporation’s activities. When generating new business it is important to identify issues in society and backtrack from there. Hitachi is involved alongside NPOs in earthquake recovery efforts in Kamaishi City, Iwate Prefecture. Residents are grateful for Hitachi’s direct involvement and practical support for the past three years.”

Ms. Hori of UBS followed, describing UBS’ corporate value as ‘determined by the pursuit of sustainability’. She encourages employees to volunteer on the three principles of localism, the long term, and being personally involved. “Every year UBS offers over 75 different voluntary work opportunities making use of specific specialities and skills, such as IT programming training for children with hearing disabilities. 65% of UBS’ employees participate in these schemes.”

Mr. Nishimura of Chuetsu Pulp & Paper closed by describing his company as being the only manufacturer to make paper products from Japanese bamboo. “We have developed our branding based on our bamboo paper, a unique business which actually solves one of society’s sustainability problems. At the moment not all of our employees agree with this aim, but I believe in time we will achieve a supportive consensus. Our bamboo paper has already won many awards, and year by year is becoming better known.”

The afternoon began with a presentation by Dr. Sirikul Nui Laukaikul, Managing Partner Sustainable Brands / The Brandbeing Consultant Co. Ltd. on ‘Why Sustainability is at the Heart of Future Successful Brands’.

“In the days of mass production and mass consumption the word ‘brand’ was part of the problem. Now we are moving towards responsible production and responsible consumption, and ‘brand’ will become part of the solution. Brands affect everything from manufacturing to innovation and marketing. It’s possible to build a better society if brands acquire sustainability. Sustainability marketing and CSR marketing should not be separated: combined, they have a greater impact. CSR is not an impediment but an advantage for your brand. I’m often asked whether CSR activities generate any return for a company. I say: CSR is not just about giving. If you share something with the family you love you don’t expect anything in return. Consumers are important stakeholders, not outsiders. CSR is about sharing, not giving and taking.”

“If you join the SB Community you can share our innovation and use it in your own product development and marketing. Our mission is to change the world by promoting 1. CSR awareness; 2. CSR engagement, understanding and communication; and 3. CSR commitment, promise, and amplifier; 4. Co-creation. All are necessary. Sustainable Brands® provides two networks and one platform to support learning, global collaboration and networking for members. We also provide SB Metrics, developed in collaboration with MIT, which measures the effect of your CSR activities.”

How should Enterprise take action? Panelists included Professor Aoki; Mr. Peter David Pedersen, Co-founder, E-Square Inc. / Co-founder, NELIS - Next Leaders' Initiative for Sustainability; Dr. Nui Laukaikul. It was moderated by Dr. Adachi, CEO, Response Ability.

Professor Aoki opened by saying: “I expect the Sustainable Brand Revolution to be as important as the Industrial and Information Revolutions that preceded it. The sustainable brand acts a bridge between an enterprise’s corporate philosophy and brand strategy”.

Mr. Pedersen followed, asking: “Why do we need a sustainable brand? There are two reasons: primarily, the world’s population and its consumption of resources have increased exponentially since the 20th Century. No species or cultures exist that have survived such an exponential growth curve. Secondly, does a corporation want a thick brand or a thin brand?”

Dr. Nui Laukaikul spoke next, saying: “The King of Thailand - my homeland - believes a society knows when it has enough. He calls this the ‘Sufficiency Economy’. Sustainability does not mean ‘in perpetuity’. Society should pursue the Three Ps: People, Profit, Planet. If a business is not profitable it is not sustainable. The planet’s resources are not ours: they belong to future generations. Social networking is changing consumers’ attitudes to sustainability.”

Dr. Adachi continued by presenting YouTube adverts made by UPS, Coca-Cola and H&M, pointing out that New Media is accelerating the promotion of sustainability branding.

Mr. Pederson concluded, saying: “The starting point for a sustainable brand should not be a trade-off between society and the environment. It should be a ‘trade-on’: co-operation, not conflict. We must all understand that the needs of society and environmental sustainability are not contradictory.”

Mr. Toshio Arima, Board Member, United Nations Global Compact / Chairman of the Board, Global Compact Network Japan / Chairperson, Japan Platform /Executive Advisor, Fuji Xerox Co. Ltd. presented this special keynote. He said: “You’ve just seen a TV commercial made in 1970 by Fuji Xerox entitled ‘From Grind to Beauty’. We came up with this phrase to suggest ‘make the sky beautiful again and make business beautiful. Stop and think.’ I’d been working at Fuji Xerox for three years. Japan was covered in photochemical smog and chemical pollution was everywhere. It was a huge problem. The TV advert was not received well by our company’s marketing section, and many customers didn’t understand what our advert was saying. On the other hand, the younger generation responded very positively. After this advert was aired university students ranked Fuji Xerox as the most attractive corporation to work for. I’m not a branding expert but I believe this advert established Fuji Xerox’ brand identity. The ideas and philosophies expressed in this advert continue to this day in our corporation. In that way, I think I can say Fuji Xerox is one of the sustainable brands.”

“I think sustainable brands require four conditions: 1. The brand message must correspond with fundamental expectations and society’s issues; 2. The brand message must embody the actuality of what the business does; 3. The business is actually executing the brand message; and 4. The brand message, direction and process are integrated. A corporation called Fuji Xerox: what is it for? Many managers would say its purpose is to make good products, give good service, make profits, employ people, pay tax, and deliver dividends. I disagree. Xerox’ founder Joseph Wilson said: “Our business goal is to achieve better understanding among men through better communications.” “I agree. Its contribution to society must be the major reason for a corporation to exist.”

“For example, corporations must consider how to respond to the SDGs - Sustainable Development Goals - agreed on 15th September 2015 by the United Nations, and must also consider how to respond to the goals society requires. If you think of things in that way you will be close to becoming a sustainable brand. However, when you define your brand message your business actually has to act on it. In Fuji Xerox we often said ‘match your words with your actions’ and tested our plans amongst ourselves and checked its effectiveness. Only when we were confident did we deliver those messages to our customers: it’s no good if you can only talk, but not execute.”

“When you plan your sustainable brand message you must also strengthen your ability to change your company’s business model and build a package on top of it. You must carry through your efforts to solve sustainability issues and social problems right through your business process. Your supply chain has to be considered, too. For instance, our Shenzen factory reduced supplier-caused production line stops from 100 in 2007 to 5 in 2014. CSR-based materials sourcing contributes to reduced costs and increases employee retention: the factory reduced its employee turnover rates to one third of the Shenzen average.”

“In conclusion, the key to sustainable brand promotion is to chase three targets simultaneously: economic, human, and social. A corporation with high scores in all three areas can justly claim to be of high quality, and that is where you find innovation.”

The last session of the day was ‘Sustainable Brands: Case Studies of Japanese Enterprises’. Presenters included Mr. Kenzaburo Takahashi, Corporate Fellow, General Manager, Public Communications Dept, Ajinomoto Co. Inc.; Ms. Mina Kanda, Group Manager, Kaiteki Group, Corporate Strategy Office (General & Chemical), Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation; and Ms. Terumi Hanagata, Executive Manager, Social Enterprise Office, Recruit Holdings Co. Ltd. The Navigator was Professor Shinichi Takemura of Kyoto University of Art and Design, developer of ‘Tangible Earth’.

Mr. Takahashi of Ajinomoto opened the session by introducing the Ajinomoto group Shared Value (ASV) project. “Its purpose is to use amino acid technology and other knowledge to realise our compony’s philosophy. We encourage our employees worldwide to take ownership of this project by holding joint sessions with stakeholders to co-create and develop our sustainable brand.”

Ms. Kanda of Mitsubishi Chemical followed, saying: “The sustainability of our planet is in danger. As a subject, Chemistry is often described as feeling foreign to us, but is the foundation of our understanding of air, water, life, and living. It can control the physical properties and functions of things, and help all kinds of industries to find solutions to their problems.”

Ms. Hanagata of Recruit then presented some of her company’s services, including a smartphone exam study app and the HelpManJapan carer support project. “In Recruit we have a deeply rooted entrepreneurial culture and an established system for suggesting, contributing to and developing new business plans. This system is a complete bottom up-down type.”

Concluding the session, Professor Takemura said: “In order to solve the negative side of Earth’s environment we must build a robust vision for the future. We need a spiral to version-up from Earth’s current version.”