Environmental Education and Awareness Raising Activities

Seminar on relevant laws and regulations

In order to maintain and improve environmental management systems, it is critical to maintain and improve the quality of internal audits. The Nikon Group therefore periodically provides employees with an internal auditor training course four times a year and an internal auditor skill-up training course four times a year. From the perspective of strengthening compliance, we also conduct effective periodic training sessions on relevant environment-related laws and regulations twice a year, as well as at the request of any of the local environmental subcommittees. At these training seminars, lectures are given by employees who are externally qualified as auditors. These lecturers provide support for the establishment of environmental management systems and give lectures, both inside and outside the Nikon Group.

Training seminar for new employees

At Nikon Group companies in Japan, employees are provided with education matched to their positions, groups, facilities and departments, based on the educational training plan for the environmental management system.
For example, we provide introductory training and a basic workshop program for all new employees. These training sessions cover the latest information on the regulation of hazardous chemical substances, global warming, biodiversity, and other environmental issues considered to be important in recent years. We also teach new employees about the activities being undertaken at the Nikon Group to reduce the use of hazardous substances in our products and reduce CO₂ emissions at our facilities.
Meanwhile, in order to provide employees with essential information and increase their awareness of and interest in our environmental measures, we also hold seminars and lectures during "Environment Month" (June) and at other opportunities. For Environment Month in 2011, we held a seminar on the revised RoHS Directive^*, as well as a lecture on biodiversity presented by a visiting speaker.

Environmental Commendation ceremony

In order to encourage employees to expand measures to protect the environment, the Nikon Group introduced the Nikon Environmental Commendation Program. This program commends and awards groups and individuals who have achieved outstanding results in their daily environmental activities. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012, three Outstanding Environmental Contribution Awards and five Environmental Contribution Awards were given.