In June 2021, as part of the "Forest Wooden Building Block Project", Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) donated wooden building blocks and container made of Japanese cypress taken from tree thinnings to a total of 25 kindergartens and nursery schools nearby its business sites in Japan. The "Forest Wooden Building Block Project" has been funded by the "Mitsubishi Motors STEP Funds" (through which MMC Group employees can donate fixed sums voluntarily) and the "Matching Gift Program" (through which MMC also matches donations made by the Mitsubishi Motors STEP Funds). This is the activity to donate wooden building blocks made of Japanese cypress taken from tree thinnings in Yamanashi Prefecture, mainly in Hayakawa Town (the location of a forest where we conduct preservation activities) to kindergartens and nursery schools.
At the ceremony on June 9, the president of Pajero Manufacturing Co., Ltd. presented the list of building blocks to be donated to the mayor of Sakahogi Town at its town hall in Gifu Prefecture to donate the blocks to Sakahogi municipal kindergarten after the ceremony.
■Feedback from donation recipients (Extract)
- Children were itching to play with the blocks made of good-smelling Japanese Cypress at the first opportunity even before we determine which class to play with them first. Thank you for donating such wonderful building blocks.
- The building blocks were first delivered to our class for three-year-olds. The children started immediately playing with them with joy and those children in other classes, who were watching them play, seemed to be keenly interested in the blocks, too. The children in other classes take turns and play with the blocks soon.
■Comment from the person in charge of this project
- This project was launched in 2010 and has been continuing to effectively use forest thinnings as part of MMC's environment conservation activity and to provide the opportunity to play with natural wood to children. It would be our pleasure if this will present to children the opportunity to play with building blocks with fun and grow healthy.
- We hope that the children at the kindergartens and nursery schools that received this donation will have a good time with these blocks.
■"Mitsubishi Motors STEP Funds"