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Local Community

GRI 413-1

As a corporate group in the chemical industry, the Kureha Group has production sites in various regions and is engaged in production activities. We are committed to developing together with local communities through various contribution activities including economic, cultural, and educational activities, not to mention environmental preservation in the areas where we have production sites.
The Kureha Group has established "respecting local communities and contributing to their development" as one of our sustainability objectives and is engaged in various activities to gain the trust of society and contribute to the development of local communities by maintaining good communication between local residents, Group companies, and employees, centered around main production sites.

Policy/Policies

The Kureha group is committed to respecting local communities and contributing to their development, as stated below in our Responsible Care Policy.

  • Building better relationships with society
    We shall practice proper public relations through the provision of environmental and safety information, bearing in mind the concerns of administrative authorities and the public. We shall also participate actively as a citizen in the activities of civil society and strive to maintain and build better relationships with society.

Target(s) and What We Have Done/Are Doing

Goals
Build relationships of trust with local communities and contribute to their development, disclose information, have dialogues with them, participate in volunteer activities, and cooperate with local organizations.

Performance and Outcomes (Kureha)
FY2019 FY2020 FY2021 FY2022 FY2023
CSR local dialogue meeting Number of participants About
100
people		 Held in writing Held in writing Held in writing About
50
people
Volunteer activities Number of times
  • ・Blood drive: 3 times
  • ・Local cleaning: 5 times
  • ・Planting: 15 times
  • ・Blood drive: 3 times
  • ・Local cleaning: 5 times
  • ・Planting: 15 times
  • ・Blood drive: 3 times
  • ・Local cleaning: 5 times
  • ・Planting: 15 times
  • ・Blood drive: 4 times
  • ・Local cleaning: 5 times
  • ・Planting: 15 times
  • ・Blood drive: 3 times
  • ・Local cleaning: 5 times
  • ・Planting: 15 times

Initiative(s)/Activity(ies)

Kureha-kai Medical Corporation (Kureha General Hospital)

GRI 203-1

Kureha General Hospital was established in 1935 as a clinic associated with Showa Jinken Co., Ltd.'s Nishiki Factory (currently Kureha Iwaki Factory). Since 1951, the hospital has been open not only to employees but also to the local community. In 1972, it became independent as Kureha-kai Medical Corporation (Kureha General Hospital).
Currently, we have also opened a Health Management Center, a nursing care facility for the elderly called Gardenia, a visiting nursing station, and an integrated facility for medical and long-term care, all functioning as a multifunctional medical and nursing care base for the southern part of Iwaki City.

Kureha General Hospital (Japanese Only)

ESG Data Collection (Number of people using the facility)

Sunshine Kureha

In July 2014, Kureha established Sunshine Kureha as a special subsidiary* within the Iwaki Factory. Since its establishment, Sunshine Kureha employees with physical, intellectual, and mental disabilities have worked together with able-bodied employees while making the most of their unique capabilities. In July 2024, we celebrated our 10th anniversary. We also accept students from local special education schools for work training and experience, and visit schools to conduct recruitment activities. To ensure that our employees can enjoy a long work life, we create a support network between ourselves, families, and support organizations and conduct periodic interviews.

  • *Special subsidiary - A company established to promote employment stability of people with disabilities; according to the "Act on Employment Promotion etc. of Persons with Disabilities," when certain requirements are met, the disabled employee of the subsidiary will be counted in the employment rate of the parent company.

Sunshine Kureha (Japanese Only)

Human Capital Development Employment of People with Disabilities

ESG Data Collection (Employment of people with disabilities)

CSR Local Dialogue Meeting

GRI 2-29, SASB RT-CH-210a.1

The Iwaki Factory, Kureha's main production site, has held annual CSR Local Dialogue Meetings since fiscal 2003 to report the Group's CSR activities to the local community and to provide an opportunity to exchange opinions.
In addition to inviting local organizations (government agencies, community organizations, neighborhood association board members, and neighborhood businesses) to participate, we also set up booths for group companies to deepen interaction with attendees. We also conduct business site tours after the meeting.

Visit and Tour of Iwaki Factory

The Iwaki Factory actively welcomes visitors from the local community to familiarize themselves with our production sites. We also hold Kureha Tours for employees' families.

Educational Support

  • Conducted tours for local junior high school, high school, and technical college students to learn about the equipment and the work done at the chemical factory (Iwaki Factory)
  • Accepted local junior high school, high school, and technical college students for internships and sessions to experience the workplace (Iwaki Factory, Plastics Processing Factory)
  • Provided an opportunity to learn about how employees work and examples of how to create an environment that promotes health, as part of the class on health activities for workers for nearby nursing students (Plastics Processing Factory, Hyogo site)

Culture and Sports Exchange

We participate in local community association events and interact with the local community to deepening our relationships with local residents, coexisting with, contributing to, the community.

Volunteering and Donating

  • Held blood drives (Iwaki Factory)
  • Neighborhood environmental beautification and conservation activities
  • Collect plastic bottle caps to support vaccinations (Iwaki Factory, Plastics Processing Factory)
  • Pink Ribbon support activities
  • Support the United Nations World Food Programme (UN WFP)
  • Sponsorship of the Bellmark campaign*
  • Donations (including donations to the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake through the Japanese Red Cross Society)
  • *Bellmark campaign: An education support campaign launched in 1960 by the Education Equipment Support Foundation (currently Bellmark Foundation), which was established by approval from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in response to a call to "provide every child with equal access to education in an enriching environment."

Provision of Supplies in Times of Emergencies

  • Agreement with Omitama City of Ibaraki Prefecture to supply daily necessities in the event of a disaster, in October 2017 (Plastics Processing Factory, Ibaraki site)
  • Agreement with Fukushima Prefecture regarding the procurement of supplies in the event of a disaster, in February 2018 (Iwaki Factory)
  • Agreement with Tanba City of Hyogo Prefecture regarding the procurement of supplies in the event of a disaster, in August 2023 (Plastics Processing Factory, Hyogo site)