ABSTRACT
Canon Group’s corporate philosophy, kyosei (harmonious co-existence), has translated into two decades of environmental innovations within the group, from improved resource productivity, to ecodesign, to green procurement (begun in 1997), to product recycling. Green procurement has become an important driver of environmental integration, and Canon has set the global standard in green procurement practices. Through such practices, Canon leverages environmental standards on more than 1,500 other companies that provide materials to Canon. Even though this supply-chain leveraging is a kind of partnership for change, we include Canon here under eco-efficiency because the partnership is within the industrial sector, not transversal in any sense (such as an industry–NGO partnership, for example).
