On October 24, 2019, Primo Japan participated in oriental white stork conservation efforts in Toyooka City, Hyogo Prefecture, fulfilling one goal, “Care for Community and Environment”, of our cross-company CSR “PRIMO RING PROJECT”.

The oriental white stork is a bird that mates for life and symbolizes strong connections. Because it spends its lifetime together with one mate, the oriental white stork is also considered a “lucky bird” and it has even been designated as a protected Natural Monument. However, due to changes to its natural habitat, the number of oriental white storks in Japan has fallen dramatically. With the aim of creating a habitat in which the oriental white stork can live, 12 employees from bridal jewelry sellers Primo Japan participated in conservation activities, together with their families, taking place mainly in the Kansai area.

 

Toyooka City in Hyogo Prefecture has long been home to oriental white storks, and is a city with a culture of conservation. This time, a conservation activity was carried out in cooperation with officials from the Toyooka City Hall Oriental White Stork Alliance and the NPO Koutori Shitchi Net (“Oriental White Stork Wetlands Network”). Participants first improved their knowledge by learning about the oriental white stork through a tour of the Toyooka Civic Center. Guides were available throughout the hall to explain about the importance of conserving the oriental white stork’s habitat and ecosystem, giving participants knowledge that they would not normally acquire in their daily lives. Afterwards, participants moved on to wetlands where the storks live. There, team members engaged in wetland clean-up activities, mainly clearing away grass. Although this was their first time mowing grass like this, participants soon got the hang of it as they worked, and managed to gather about 200 kg of grass in just one hour. It was a rainy day, unfortunately, but team members seemed invigorated by being out in nature. In spite of the bad weather, the team was already showing their commitment to continuing conservation efforts in the future, saying how much they would love to come back and do it again next year on a sunny day.

Primo Japan will continue to develop our CSR activities further through the PRIMO RING PROJECT.

 

■Activity Report

Date：Octorber 24, 2019 (Thursday)

Participants：PRIMO RING PROJECT members, together with store and office staff and their families (a total of 12 participants)

Location：Toyooka City, Hyogo Prefecture

Type of Event：Activities included gaining knowledge about the oriental white stork and cleaning its wetland habitat (grass clearing and maintenance).