Monday, January 31, 2022 | The Japan Times | 7

sustainable japan

ESG promotional content
produced by The Japan Times CubeSDG Impact Japan seeks profit plus social solutions
ESG Talk
TOMOKO KAICHICONTRIBUTING WRITERA company that handles investment andconsulting focused exclusively on sustainablefinance — a rarity in Asia — has been bornin Japan.
Mari Kogiso serves as co-CEO of the company, SDG Impact Japan Inc. Kogiso, who has
over a decade of experience in this area, in2017 founded Japan’s first investment fundaimed at correcting gender gaps.
“It has become clear in many respects thatbusinesses that pay attention to SDGs [theU.N. sustainable development goals] andESG [environmental, social and governance]
factors stand the chance of becoming profitable,” Kogiso said. “There is still plenty ofroom for Japanese companies to grow” interms of both funding and business opportunities, she added.
Kogiso has been involved in sustainablefinance, especially in the area of impact
investing, in her roles at the World Bank andfoundations.
Impact investing aims to provide funding to businesses that work to resolve social
issues, including environmental protection,decarbonization of the economy and provision of food to poor countries.
“It used to be that the ultimate goal for
ESG investing was to generate profit, but theidea of seeking both profit and impact wasborn in the past two to three years mainlyin Europe, and it has become possible to doit,” she said. “The situation has changed fromwhat it was a decade ago.”

A new business model

Explaining why SDG Impact Japan is
focused on sustainable finance, she said:“Profit is not the only goal. We also wantedto develop a new business model.”SDG Impact Japan partnered with leading
sustainable funds, firms and entrepreneurs
to support the achievement of the SDGs anddrive commercial returns alongside measurable social and environmental impact. And
it has worked with a New Zealand venture
fund since January 2021. It is now preparing to set up an ESG impact fund with its
partners.
What sets the company apart from conventional funds is that “impact itself is itsgoal,” Kogiso said. Article 9 of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, which inMarch 2021 began to require asset-management companies in Europe to disclose nonfinancial information about their investees,defines investment aimed at sustainability.
The new fund will align to this definition.
The fund will set specific goals, including a
reduction of carbon dioxide emissions associated with business activity and the elimination of child labor and forced labor, anddisclose the progress of its investees toward
these goals at regular intervals.
“The fund itself is required to make efforts
to help investees achieve the goals,” Kogiso
said.
Kogiso served as
Tokyo representativeof the World Bank
group’s Multilateral
Investment Guarantee Agency, delegate
for W20, and anadviser to WE
Empower
JUN MIYASHITA

Mari Kogiso is an expert on sustainable finance in areas including impact investing and social
entrepreneur support. JUN MIYASHITA

Goals in short and long terms

Impact investing has gained prominence
especially amid increasingly urgent efforts
to create international rules to address
climate change and as “businesses began
in earnest efforts in response to changes
in awareness and behavior of consumers,
especially those of the millennial and later
generations,” according to Kogiso.
“Things are increasingly commoditized,and recognition, interpersonal relationships
and well-being are increasing in presencein people’s values, which has increased theneed to resolve social issues,” Kogiso said.
She thinks investments that seek toboth generate profit and have sustainability

Seino Holdings drives toward
environmental sustainability
allowed on the road in Japan. The researchshowed that the use of articulated trucks
longer than 21 meters could halve theMAIKO MURAOKA
number of drivers and reduce fuel conCONTRIBUTING WRITER
sumption and carbon dioxide emissions
by 40% over using standard large trucks.
Seino Holdings Co. Ltd. is one of Japan’s
Another way to transport goods more
top commercial logistics companies, withefficiently in terms of energy consumption
about 90 years of history. In recent years,
and manpower is to promote a shift to rail.
the Gifu-based company has been accelAlso in 2018, the company started a collaberating its efforts to make its services
oration with three rail freight companies
sustainable and environmentally friendly— Japan Freight Liner Co., Japan Freight
without sacrificing people’s quality of lifeRailway Co. and Senrin Ltd. — to makeand convenience.
one round trip between Suita in Osaka
One of its subsidiaries, Seino TransporPrefecture and Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture
tation Co. Ltd., has twice in the last six
every day, carrying 60 truckloads of goods.
years won the highest award from theThis resulted in a reduction of 13,810 tons
minister of land, infrastructure, transportof carbon emissions annually.
and tourism in a competition to recognize
Last year, Seino Transportation, together
companies that make outstanding efforts
with Japan Freight Liner and Japan Freight
to promote eco-driving. The competition
Railway, launched another collaborationis organized by the Foundation for Proto operate noncontainer “break-bulk”
moting Personal Mobility and Ecologicalcargo trains between Nagoya in Aichi
Transportation every year.
Prefecture and Fukuoka in Fukuoka PreThe company has been raising awarefecture in March and between Tokyo’s
ness among its workers and drivers,
Shinagawa and Higashi Fukuyama in Hirointroducing eco-friendly cars and training
shima Prefecture in October. The cargo isdrivers as well as making other efforts tohauled to the stations by Seino Transporachieve fuel-efficient driving since 2006,
tation trucks, loaded onto freight trains
which resulted in the two awards. It has
by Japan Freight Liner and transported
also been trying various other means toby Japan Freight Railway. The operation
curb emissions and in addition solve theof these freight trains on the two routes
problem of a shortage of drivers. In Japan’s
together can cut 13,805 tons of emissions
rapidly aging society, the labor force isannually.
declining and truck drivers are getting
Emissions reduction is not the onlyolder. Measures to address both climate
environmental effort that the company ischange and manpower shortages aremaking. Moving is one of the company’sequally important to making the transporexisting services, and when people movetation industry sustainable.
they generate a huge amount of waste.
In 2018, Seino Transportation particiHowever, waste is not waste if someone
pated in an experiment conducted by theelse finds it usable. This is why the comtransport ministry on introducing doublepany started to collaborate with a provider
articulated trucks with a total length ofof recycling and reuse services to offer its
25 meters, several meters longer than wasEco Loop program,which allows customers not only tosell their unwanted
items but also
to contribute tosocial activities
through donations.
Things that can be
accepted include
books, CDs, gamesoftware, digital
A Seino Holdings freight train with a wrapping container decorated
devices, cameras,
with a Hello Kitty design SEINO HOLDINGS

impacts will “become more common.”SDG Impact Japan’s short-term goal is “tocreate products and impact funds with a goalof having sustainability impacts, whose supply still remains short in Japan,” she said.
For the long term, the company aims to“increase [fund] options so that each individual can be made aware of impacts they canhave and invest in impacts they think areimportant, just like the way people express
their wishes through their vote in elections,”
she said.
SDG Impact Japan also seeks to play a“role like a catalyst,” mediating for investors
between Japanese and overseas startups byworking with overseas partners.

Through theventure capitalfunds it sets up, thecompany aims tointroduce overseas
impact funds toJapanese investors and “introduceJapanese impact
startups addressing social issues toSnapshot of global sustainable investing assets, 2016-2018-2020 in USD
overseas investors
billions SDG IMPACT JAPANso that funds can be
attracted from overseas,” she said.
of Kogiso’s focus, and are particularly critiSDG Impact Japan also aims to support
cized for workplaces where it difficult forJapanese startups’ efforts to expand theirwomen to play active roles.
business overseas because it believes JapaThey may introduce child care leave ornese businesses can bring knowledge that ismaternity systems, but social norms anduseful for resolving issues facing the world.
“unconscious bias” specific to Japanesesociety can present hurdles for moves toempower women.
Domestic issues go global
Japanese companies must carefully
In addition to issues for which a sense of
explain not just gender issues but also faccrisis is common across the globe, such as
tors that are difficult to gauge using criteria
the environment, Japan has many domesspecific to Europe or the U.S., Kogiso said,
tic issues that are expected to becomeand ensure that Japan-specific factors arecommon elsewhere around the world,understood.
including the movement of people from
Kogiso said she first became interested inrural to urban areas, an aging society and a
impact investing while she was working tofalling population.
address social issues, including poverty, dur“There will be wide-ranging collaborative
ing her stint at the World Bank. She realized
efforts on the global level going forward, in“there were so many projects that failed toareas such as health care and social systems,”
bear fruit despite the high levels of technolKogiso said.
ogy and enthusiasm possessed by people“Overseas, startups with their sights on
involved in them, only because funds were
the global market from their foundation are
not available to them.”
increasing,” she said. “Japanese companies
Kogiso believes the time is ripe for SDG
also need to begin thinking about how they
Impact Japan toshould relate to and enter into the global
convince investors
market from an early phase of their develabout its endeavor
opment. Perhaps it is important for them toto pursue bothhave the ambition to target at least the entire
profit and impacts.
Asian market from the beginning.”
Japanese companies also face an increased
The ESG Talk series are interneed to send information to overseas
views with business leadersinvestors.
who are active proponents ofJapanese companies are often said to be
ESG investing and practices
behind on promoting internal diversity andin Japan.
eliminating gender gaps, which are the areas

Times Gallery

ESG/SDGs

Jarman International CEO Ruth Marie Jarman appears on the popular
TV show “Sekai Ichi Uketai Jugyo” to highlight Japan’s wonders, fromthe breathtaking Chichibugahama beach to high-tech elevators.
JARMAN INTERNATIONAL

In the fall of last year, Seino introduced a new
double-articulated truck on two routes between
Hiroshima and Kansai. SEINO HOLDINGS

jewelry, musical instruments, sports
equipment and brand-name items. A certain amount per contract is donated toan organization supporting people withdisabilities or one supporting developing
countries, depending on the choice madeby each customer. Customers can also
donate part of the proposed sales proceeds
if they wish. The best part is that all they
have to do is to complete online registration, pack the things they wish to sell in
the cardboard boxes delivered to theirhomes and have the boxes collected. The
evaluation result is sent by email.
A service newly launched by Seino
Transportation in collaboration with acompany that runs a network of secondhand shops accepts larger items such as
furniture and electrical appliances that arelisted on the company’s website. Customers who have more than three electricalappliances manufactured within the last
10 years or pieces of furniture purchased
within the last 10 years (with some exceptions) can ask for purchase and pickup.
Using the power of transportation andnetworks, as well as collaboration withplayers from both within and outside theindustry, Seino
Holdings is committed to solving
the environmental
and social issues oftoday.
This section highlights theenvironment and a sustainable society. For more information please visit www.
sustainable.japantimes.com

Jamaican Ambassador Shorna-Kay
Richards wears akimono in Jamaicancolors to celebrate thefourth Jamaica Blue
Mountain Coffee Day
and the close cultural
ties between Jamaicaand Japan. EMBASSY

Commemorating the XIII Anniversary of the Foundation of the Plurinational State of Bolivia on Jan. 22 were (from right) embassy staffer SayuriCosta, Second Secretary Gabriela Duran, Charge d’Affaires Natalia Salazar, SudoWork Co. representatives and musicians. EMBASSY OF BOLIVIA

The ambassadordesignate of theRepublic of Kosovo
to Japan, Sabri
Kicmari, hands hiscredentials to Vice
Minister for Foreign
Affairs Takeo Mori
on Jan. 20. EMBASSY

OF JAMAICA

OF KOSOVO

Cuban Ambassador Miguel A. Ramirez meets with Takeuchi Kazuki,
president of the Japan International Cooperation System, to thank him
for donations that recently arrived in Cuba. EMBASSY OF CUBA

French Ambassador Philippe Setton and Councilor Masahisa Sato, head of
the LDP’s Foreign Affairs Division, talk about cooperation between Franceand Japan in the Indo-Pacific region on Jan. 19. EMBASSY OF FRANCE

Ambassador Aleksandra Kovac of Serbia meets with maestro Mitsuyoshi Oikawa, who has initiated and supported guest performances oftalented young pianists from Serbia in Japan in previous years, on Jan.
17. EMBASSY OF SERBIA

Ambassador of North Macedonia Goran Cekov meets Takeshi Hamano,mayor of Tokyo’s Shinagawa Ward, on Dec. 14 to discuss opportunitiesfor collaboration between the Macedonian and Japanese cultural andbusiness communities. EMBASSY OF NORTH MACEDONIA

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