Gone are the days when Japanese businesses felt a healthy environment was a concept that could only be achieved at the expense of economic growth.
In the latest phase of the evolution in the relationship between business and the Earth, more Japanese firms are taking the environment into account to increase their competitiveness at home and abroad.
In Sony Corp.'s latest environmental report, for example, Chairman and CEO Nobuyuki Idei said, "Environmental conservation is one of our main long-term business management tasks, and we will take specific actions to reduce environmental burdens steadily and efficiently by setting midterm goals."