The Mitsubishi Corporation Fund for Europe & Africa
Mitsubishi Corporation is primarily a knowledge-based company. Its core businesses are international trade involving commodities, consumer and industrial products; complex project management; and strategic finance and investment. Other services include marketing and distribution, sourcing and transfer of technology, and product sourcing and supply chain management.
The relationship between Earthwatch and Mitsubishi Corporation in London began in 1993, initially through the Mitsubishi Corporation Fund for Europe and Africa (MCFEA), a charitable trust established by the company to promote environmental and social projects in those regions.
The MCFEA became one of the very first members of the Corporate Environmental Responsibility Group (CERG) in 1993 and initiated an engagement programme for employees of Mitsubishi Corporation’s offices in Europe in the same year. As a member of CERG, it was able to utilise the group and services it offered, contributing to many workshops and seminars. In 2008, the company’s London office joined CERG in its own right and, in 2009, played a key role in the development and organisation of an Earthwatch corporate seminar to explore emerging environmental challenges facing the corporate sector. View the seminar report.
The MCFEA has also been a principal sponsor of Earthwatch's annual debate since 2002, helping to make the event accessible to an increasing number of Earthwatch supporters. In 2008, the MCFEA became the exclusive sponsor of the Earthwatch (Europe) Events Programme, providing funding for the annual debate and three lectures held at the Royal Geographical Society, London.
Partnership Elements
Employee Learning and Engagement
Mitsubishi Corporation‘s offices in Europe have participated in an employee engagement programme since 1993 - the longest running of its kind at Earthwatch. Mitsubishi Corporation International (Europe) Plc, based in London, has sent five employees from across the Europe, CIS, Middle East and Africa region to participate in Earthwatch projects every year, helping them to learn about diverse areas of ecology and conservation and assist scientists in the collection of valuable data. To date, over 80 employees have benefited from this personal development opportunity and have contributed their time and effort to more than 40 separate Earthwatch projects in over 20 countries.
Through Mitsubishi Corporation’s Global Coral Reef Conservation Project, five additional employees from offices in the same region have also attended the Earthwatch project ‘Coral and Coastal Ecology of the Seychelles’ each year since 2006. Through this, they have learnt about the vital role that coral plays in ocean ecosystems.
Environmental Research
Since 2006, the company has supported the Earthwatch project Coral and Coastal Ecology of the Seychelles, as part of their Global Coral Reef Conservation Project, launched in 2004.
The research project looks to promote conservation and increase the scientific community's knowledge of coral reefs - which have high levels of biodiversity and are particularly sensitive to changes in the earth's climate.
Furthermore, Earthwatch Japan has also supported the company’s Coral Reef Conservation Project in Okinawa and future planned supporter of a new Coral Reef Conservation project on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia.