‘SHIMZ Beyond Zero 2050’ Shimizu Group's New Environmental Vision

Shimizu Corporation (President: Kazuyuki Inoue) has created SHIMZ Beyond Zero 2050, the group's environmental vision for realizing a sustainable society.

SHIMZ VISION 2030, Shimizu's long-term vision formulated in May 2019, includes realizing “a sustainable society where future generations can inherit a well-cared for environment” as value the Shimizu Group provides to society. The sense of impending crisis over global warming is growing stronger year after year and the trend toward the decarbonization of society is accelerating. One example is the 2020 policy declaration by the Japanese government that Japan will achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. To achieve sustainable growth amid such social conditions, companies must go beyond viewing their response to climate change issues as corporate social responsibility; they must also link this to growth opportunities.

The new environmental vision formulated under such circumstances defines the sustainable society Shimizu Group will aim for as a “zero carbon society,” a “resource recycling society,” and a “society that coexists harmoniously with nature.” To contribute to achieving those goals, we crafted a vision of providing positive environmental value (Beyond Zero) to our customers and society in addition to reducing the negative impact from our business activities to zero by 2050.

To achieve a zero carbon society, we will begin by reducing CO₂ emissions from our workplaces and offices to zero. We will also contribute to the decarbonization of the entire supply chain, from raw materials to the energy used to operate the buildings we design and build. Shimizu will lead the decarbonization of society as we accomplish these goals through constant technological innovation, using renewable energy to generate electric power, and other measures. In order to achieve a resource recycling society, Shimizu will strive to attain a final rate of zero construction waste and zero office waste generated by our business. We will also work to recycle resources over the entire lifecycle of a building by using recycled materials for construction. To achieve a society that coexists in harmony with nature, we will use construction methods that do not have a negative impact on the natural environment. As we pursue this goal, we will also adhere to the concept of green infrastructure aimed at the sustainable coexistence of people and nature and leave a versatile and abundant environment for future generations that makes use of the local landscape and local biodiversity.

The concept of SHIMZ Beyond Zero 2050 is to sustain both the environment and economic activity. This is the same concept underlying our corporate credo, The Analects and the Abacus. Based on our new environmental vision, the Shimizu Group will accelerate initiatives aimed at realizing a zero carbon, resource recycling society that coexists in harmony with nature. We believe this will contribute to achieving the sustainable society targeted in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Along with formulating an environmental vision that targets zero CO₂ emissions by 2050, we have revised the current 2050 goal reducing CO₂ emissions in Ecological Mission 2030-2050. Our original 2050 goal of an 80% reduction in CO₂ emissions from our office activities and the operation of buildings we designed and built compared to fiscal 1990 has been revised to 100%.