ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Masahiro Okafuji, President & CEO; hereinafter 'ITOCHU') announced today that it will promote a project that supports the return of Amazonian manatees to the wild (the Manatee Homecoming Project) through the following initiatives in collaboration with KidZania Tokyo (Toyosu, Koto-ku, Tokyo), a facility planned and operated by KCJ Group Inc. (headquartered in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Einosuke Sumitani, President & CEO; hereinafter 'KCJ') that provides children with occupational and social experiences. ITOCHU will also implement a name change in its Corporate Communications Division from the Global Environment Office to the Sustainability Management Department on April 1, 2017 and work to make an active contribution to sustainable environments through a range of initiatives, including this project.

Renovation of the Eco Shop pavilion at KidZania Tokyo

ITOCHU, as an official sponsor of KidZania Tokyo, has operated an Eco Shop pavilion at the facility since April 2012 to develop future leaders and conserve the environment. ITOCHU will renovate the pavilion in April 2017 to spotlight the theme of the conservation of Amazonian ecosystems and provide children with opportunities to learn about environmental conservation from a global perspective by allowing them to create original eco-friendly products.

Scene of activities at the Eco Shop pavilion

Wallpaper of the pavilion after the renovation (conceptual image)

Support for the project and monetary support for expenses for milk to feed Amazonian manatees

ITOCHU is providing 15 million yen for three years from fiscal year 2016 to promote the project. Monetary support equivalent to the value calculated by multiplying the number of visitors who have experienced the pavilion's programs by 10 yen is contributed by ITOCHU and KCJ to cover the expenses of milk for Amazonian manatees.

Project of returning Amazonian manatees to the wild (the Manatee Homecoming Project)

ITOCHU engages in the project of returning Amazonian manatees to the wild, the Manatee Homecoming Project promoted by the National Institute of Amazonian Research (INPA) in Brazil and the Wildlife Research Center of Kyoto University, for the purpose of conserving biodiversity.
A large number of Amazonian manatees, an endemic species from the Amazon River that is in danger of extinction, are protected every year due to injuries caused as a result of poaching. On the other hand, captive-raised manatees have difficulties adapting to the wild. Accordingly, efforts are being made to conduct soft releases through a three-stage process of breeding in tanks, releasing into semi-captive environments and returning to the wild, thereby aiming to return more than 20 manatees into semi-captive environments and more than 10 manatees into the wild in the coming three years. Please visit ITOCHU's website below.

●Support of Amazon Ecosystem Conservation Program
http://www.itochu.co.jp/en/csr/social/amazon/index.html

●Until Amazonian manatees return to the wild

This project is one of the projects of SATREPS, in which researchers from both Japan and developing countries conduct joint research on resolving global issues and the future society-wide utilization of research outcomes on which the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) work jointly.

Itochu Corporation published this content on 01 March 2017 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein.
Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 09 March 2017 05:28:12 UTC.

Original documenthttp://www.itochu.co.jp/en/csr/news/2017/170301.html

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