Partnerships and Collaboration with External Organizations

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World Business Council for Sustainable Development

wbcsd

Although its commitments are significant, the Bridgestone Group cannot work toward a sustainable society alone. That is why the Group is working collaboratively with 10 other leading tire companies that represent around 65 percent of the world’s tire manufacturing capacity through the global Tire Industry Project (TIP) is operated under the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). All TIP activities are being reviewed by an independent outside scientists group, called “Assurance Group.”

In March 2023, WBCSD released the guidance on avoided emissions to accelerate the development and promotion of products and services needed to realize a decarbonized society. The guidance focuses on “avoided emissions,” which is the contribution to the reduction of emissions of society by providing company’s products and services. It gives guidance on how to define, calculate and report avoided emissions. The Group is actively involved in discussions on the use of the guidance to visualize values created through its unique Sustainability Business Model, including providing products and services that contribute to reducing CO2 emissions.

Tire Industry Project (TIP)

Tire Industry Project

Formed in 2005, TIP has served as a collaborative, CEO-led forum for the tire industry to approach sustainability through a science-driven agenda. Every two years the CEOs of member companies meet to review progress and set a forward-looking agenda for new and continuing work. Historically focused on research, in 2022, the CEOs of TIP member companies approved a broadening of the organization’s mission to incorporate sustainability issues relevant to the industry across the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) spectrum, consistent with TIP’s Tire Sector SDG Roadmap. This renewed mission is accompanied by organizational changes, whereby TIP expands its activities beyond research to include action, engagement, and communication.

Since 2005, the Group has played a central role in the TIP’s formation and evolution. The Group has been a leader within TIP as a Co-Chair company and was instrumental in driving the evolution towards a broader and more action-oriented focus. Experts from the Group contribute valuable input and energy across all working groups and taskforces, including a new taskforce to research and promote mitigation actions in response to Tire and Road Wear Particles (TRWP). Whether the issue is TRWP, End of Life Tires (ELT), or Key ESG Performance Indicators, a TIP agenda built on research, action and engagement, and communication will help lead to faster solutions and foster co-creation within the industry and society.

One of the high priority topics of TIP is to accelerate the study for TRWP in terms of the recently increasing interests of stakeholders in relation to ocean microplastics. TIP is studying the effect of TRWP to rivers and oceans as well by expanding the study scope up to now.
The examples of TIP achievement are;

1. The Tire Industry Project’s (TIP) research on the environmental and ecological impacts of TRWP

  • Two-part study focused on the Seine watershed (France) concluded that most TRWP is deposited on roadside soil, whilst around 18% of TRWP can be removed from the road surface as runoff and reach surface waters. It is expected that more than 60% of the TRWP that reaches surface waters is transported to wastewater treatment. The study suggests that 2-5% of TRWP is expected to travel as far as the estuary.

    “Understanding TRWP in the environment”

  • TIP study suggesting that TRWP makes minor contributions to airborne PM, comprising an average of less than 1 percent of particles in the PM10 and PM2.5 fractions sampled. TIP-sponsored risk assessment on the effects of exposure of mammalian species to TRWP have indicated that there is unlikely to be a risk to human health from exposure to TRWP in the air.

    “Understanding TRWP in the air”

  • TIP study regarding the acute and chronic toxicity of TRWP to freshwater – and freshwater-sediment-dwelling organisms using TRWP in sediment at concentrations up to 10,000mg of TRWP per kg of sediment under conditions representative of receiving water bodies indicate that under typical exposure conditions TRWP in sediments pose a low risk of toxicity to aquatic organisms.

    “Environmental risk assessment”

2. Study of end-of-life tire (ELT) management systems

TIP has been contributing to enhance ELT management in regions all over the world by issuing study reports:

Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber

GPSNR

The Group is proud of its sustainability progress but improvements at scale will be achieved through industrywide collaboration. That is why the Group and other global tire companies launched the Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR), to transform the industry for the better. As a member of the GPSNR Executive Committee, the Group actively drives discussions among rubber suppliers, automakers, NGOs, smallholder farmers and tire companies. GPSNR members are working together to help improve respect for human rights, prevent land-grabbing and deforestation, protect biodiversity and water resources, improve yields, and increase supply chain transparency and traceability.

For information regarding the Group’s activities within GPSNR, please refer to Procurement.

Ellen MacArthur Foundation

CE100

Since 2018, the Group has been a member of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (the Foundation) ’s Network with the aim of learning, building capacity, networking and collaborating with other corporations, governments and academia, in a unique forum for driving sustainable economic, natural and social capital.

The Group also offers solutions combining new tires, retreads,* services and IT tools to its fleet customers. Knowledge gained through undertakings within the Foundation programme will be used to integrate the concept of a circular economy into the Group's broader business model, enabling us to provide new value to customers and society across all stages of tire lifecycle, including recycling, smarter use of materials, energy and information.

Circulytics

The Group measured its circular economy performance utilizing Circulytics, a company-level circular economy measurement tool developed by the Foundation. The results demonstrate that the Group’s strategy and planning is aligned with circular economy principles, while identifying further room for improvement in areas such as the use of recycled and renewable materials, and collaboration with supplier. With Circulytics data alongside the insights and analysis from the Foundation, the Group continues to drive further progress towards a circular economy.

* Retreaded tires are made by bonding freshly vulcanized new treads to the tire casings so that the casings can be reused. Retreads can have the following environmental benefits when compared to new tires:
1. Reduced natural resource usage due to lower requirement for use of natural rubber and other raw materials
2. Lower CO2 emissions than would result from manufacturing new tires

Response to TCFD and TNFD

The Group supports the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosure (TCFD). The Group began participating in the Task Force for Nature-related Financial Disclosure (TNFD) Forum since March 2022.

As the world becomes increasingly concerned about climate change and the loss of natural capital, there is a growing movement towards a decarbonized society, as exemplified by the Paris Agreement. Additionally, efforts to achieve a nature positive* world, as outlined in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, are gaining momentum. Within this context, the Group is working to comprehensively assess and manage its dependency and impact on the climate and natural capital, as well as the risks and opportunities associated with climate change and the loss of natural capital, reflecting these in business strategy.

* Nature positive: The term "nature positive" refers to action for stopping or reversing losses to biodiversity and natural capital with the goal of spurring the recovery of the natural environment. It is used to highlight transitions to social and economic activities aimed at reducing the impact of businesses on biodiversity and natural capital, preserving and restoring natural bounties, and using natural capital in a sustainable manner.

The Valuable 500

The Valuable 500

The Group has joined The Valuable 500, a global initiative launched at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos in January 2019. The Valuable 500 aims to help business leaders transform their businesses and unlock the social and economic value of people living with disabilities around the world. It gains the endorsement of the CEOs of 500 companies worldwide. The concept of The Valuable 500, which respects diversity and promotes inclusion, has much in common with the Group’s corporate philosophy and is in line with the intended direction of its Global Human Rights Policy.

The Group will continue to focus on creating work environments where diversity is embraced and employees with disabilities can easily demonstrate their abilities.

Other partnerships and collaboration with external organizations

Rubber and Tire Industry

Environmental Partnership

Sustainability