Think the Earth is a non-profit project that promotes "mechanisms by which conducting business contributes to society" and "a new concept of product production" with the Earth as its basic theme. The idea is to work with various businesses and creative staff around the world to develop products and services based on new concepts, and use a portion of the earnings from the sale of these to create an internet-based forum for "think"ing about the future of the Earth and people the world over, and to provide support for organizations and individuals engaged in effective work for the global community. Think the Earth Project Promoters ( in order of participation ) Seiichi Mizuno / President, Institute of Marketing Architecture Co., Ltd. Junichi Hattori / Chairman of the board, Seiko Instruments Inc. Toshiharu Aoki / Counselor, NTT DATA CORPORATION Inc. Susumu Furukawa Ryuichi Sakamoto / Musician, Artist Luciano Benetton / President, Benetton Group. CONTENTS 1. February 19, 2001 Inaugural Salutation: Seiichi Mizuno 2. Promoter's Message: Susumu Furukawa Ryuichi Sakamoto Luciano Benetton February 19, 2001 Inaugural Salutation Seiichi Mizuno / President, Institute of Marketing Architecture Co., Ltd. Prior to today's inaugural announcement, all sorts of people have been asking just what the Think the Earth project is. My salutation will include that explanation. In doing so, I must also explain the close cooperative relationship between the Think the Earth project and the newly established company, Spaceport Inc. "What do companies exist for?" is a frequently asked question. The ultimate goal of traditional companies has been to yield maximum profit from sales of products on the market, and by doing so maximize the prosperity of their stockholders. Recently however, a change is taking place throughout the leading industrialized nations of America and Europe. In short, the age has come in which the mission of companies is being thought about from the perspective of the society that their shareholders and market belong to, and furthermore the contributions they are making and the burdens they are placing on the environment--Earth--which keeps the people that make up those societies alive. As we approached the later half of the 20th century, even traditional companies gradually began atoning for the burdens that their manufacturing activities were placing on the environment by donating a percentage of their profits to social welfare. But these are nothing more than ablutions. Recently, words like "social entrepreneur," "CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility)" and "BSR (Business for Social Responsibility)" are used extensively in the United States. The prime objective of new companies is to make a contribution to society. Among these are companies that have gone public, and are rated highly by stockholders and the market. This is the objective upon which Spaceport Inc.--the company managing the non-profit, environmental support project Think the Earth, being introduced here today--was established. Spaceport Inc. collaborates with various companies to develop products that will be sold primarily via the internet, the proceeds from which--through the Think the Earth project--will be contributed to non-profit and non-government organizations active in dealing with environmental issues, and/or to support new business start-ups offering outstanding environment-related technologies. People tend to think of "environmental movements" as being strictly limited to "ecology." One of the key issues of the Think the Earth project, however, is "the fusion of ecology and economy." Traditionally financial/profit-making pursuits and concern for the environment, i.e. economy and ecology, have been in conflict. But we now live in an age in which we must regard the two compatibly. I believe there is plenty of potential for this to be achieved. Spaceport Inc. represents a pioneering Japanese BSR. But having only just begun, the non-profit Think the Earth project it maintains a close cooperative relationship with will require outside support until it gains strength. I therefore ask the Project promoters here with us today--Seiko Instruments Inc. President & CEO Junichi Hattori and NTT Data Corporation Inc. President Toshiharu Aoki--and those that were unable to attend--musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, Microsoft Corporation Senior Vice President Susumu Furukawa, and Benetton Corporation President Luciano Benetton--and all of the founding committee members and candidates here with us today for your ongoing support. Spaceport Inc.'s initial product--symbolic of the Think the Earth project--is wn-1, a watch developed in collaboration with Seiko Instruments Inc. This Project may still be a bit difficult to comprehend, but with the cooperation of various individuals and companies we hope to develop a series of new products and business activities. In doing so, I am sure, we will deepen your understanding. I ask for your ongoing support. Promoter's Message Susumu Furukawa Until today, "beating the competition" to secure profits or increase market share meant being prepared to sacrifice something. As a result, corporate competition has hurt the individual; it has even shortened the life of our azure planet. When you travel by airplane, you sense anew the vastness of Earth. Many of us depart from the airport saddled with corporate or national dignity, but when we realize just how small our beings are compared to the Earth as seen from the stratospheres, the eager characters we were when we boarded the plane become almost amusing. As we observe the endless horizon and white clouds, and the brilliance of the every-changing sky, we begin to cherish the azure Earth--we also begin to see ourselves. And when we alight, our hearts are cleansed by the veritable tapestry woven by the colors of the sea and the sky, the smell of the air, and the rustling of the wind that until now we had failed to notice. I believe words like "collaboration" and "symbiosis" describe what is expected of 21st century corporations, and each and every individual working for them. While individuals in the internet age still belong to companies and nations, they work together on the face of the Earth, they live together--and that should lead to protecting our living Earth. Ryuichi Sakamoto / Musician, Artist The single means of resolving environmental problems is for humankind to disappear from the face of the planet. "Environmental problems" are human problems which wouldn't exist if we didn't exist. But how do animals and plants view the issue? Most likely they'd like to see the mammals that are driving them into extinction disappear. The value of such things change with how we measure time. Consider the near future--our children and grandchildren will most certainly suffer if we continue this way. And yet from the perspective of microorganisms that have lived for 4 billion years, the extinction of mammals would be no big deal. The sun, our fixed planet, will become a supernova in one to five billion years. And when it does, our microorganisms friends will board a tremendous electron storm on another trip into outer space. After journeying for millions of light years, they will settle again on a planet fit for existence and begin to evolve--Hindu reincarnation indeed. To save our dear, humble genes, we must conform to the mission of living creatures, control our excessive desires, and extend life by recycling all limited natural resources other than the sun's energy. What stands in the way? It is time for us to think this through earnestly. Luciano Benetton / President, Benetton Group. In his hundred thousand years of history, Man has never known an acceleration of progress equal to that of the last decades. Everything indicates that in the century that has just begun, the rhythm of innovation will continue to grow. If it is true that technology can give us a better life, it is also true that this cannot continue to happen to the detriment of our planet's health. The moment has arrived to make a serious attempt to reconcile the reasons for development with the safeguarding of the environment. In the same way, it is important to strongly defend, in the era of globalisation, local identities and cultural diversity, which represent the founding values of every society. There are still many barriers to overcome, such as that of a world divided into two different areas of civilisation. The area of those with access to the most advanced technology and to economic development, and the second (which represents about half the human race) of those who don't passes so much as a computer to enable them to become citizens of the world. In the 21st century we must undertake to ensure the benefits of globalisation reach everyone, without the exclusions that give rise to new conflicts and social tensions. So that progress truly becomes a great collective patrimony. So that all can say: "I have a future."