Japanese automaker Nissan aims for sustainability, worker inclusivity

YOKOHAMA, Japan (AP) — Nissan has outlined a “sustainability plan” to become a greener and more inclusive company, promising to recycle batteries, empower its workers and create safer cars.

Nissan Motor Co. won’t be trying to beat rivals in the effort but hopes to work with various partners, Joji Tagawa, chief sustainability officer, told reporters this week at the company’s Yokohama headquarters.

Nissan is aiming to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, which means net zero carbon emissions across all operations.

The governments of Japan, the U.S. and Europe have all set the same goal, as have Japanese rivals Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co., and General Motors Co. of the U.S.

Under the latest plan, Nissan says that by 2030 it will reduce per-vehicle manufacturing CO2 emissions by 52% and cut per-vehicle driving CO2 emissions for new models by 50% in Japan, the U.S., Europe and China.

Tagawa said the Nissan Social Program 2030 is centered around six pillars: safety, quality, responsible sourcing, intellectual property, communities and empowering employees.

The company is supporting education to nurture future engineers, especially in relatively new areas like artificial intelligence and information technology, he said.

“We aim to become a people-centric company,” he said, reiterating the company’s commitment not to tolerate human rights violations in its operations and supply chain.

The latest plan is an update of Nissan’s Ambition 2030, announced in 2021, which was centered around introducing more electric vehicles.

Tagawa acknowledged huge investments were needed, which likely won’t pay off immediately but will translate into long-run returns. He gave no specifics on the amount of investment planned.

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