In line with the trend over the last few years of gaming companies becoming more responsible corporate citizens, Publisher Bandai Namco today joined the UN’s Playing for the Planet Alliance, and further pledged to be carbon neutral by 2050. By joining the Alliance, member companies make commitments ranging from integrating green activations in games, to reducing their emissions and waste, and supporting the global environmental agenda.
A step on the way to their 2050 deadline is reducing all carbon emissions by 35% through green initiatives by 2030.
This year they participated in the UN Environment Program’s Green Game Jam by creating a new in-game event focused on sharing a message about the importance of reforestation in the PAC-MAN m
obile app. The company has set a goal to engage 1 million players in this event and drive at least 10% of participants to sign an online petition urging world leaders to protect forests as a key line of defense against climate change through www.play4forests.org. They will continue in 2022 for the next in-game event focusing on saving and cleaning the oceans in for their planned participation in the UN Environment Program’s Green Game Jam.
In addition to its participation in the Playing for the Planet Alliance, the Bandai Namco Group has set an internal sustainability policy for all group companies to adopt in their respective businesses. The Gundam Recycling Project is one of the examples in-line with this policy. Currently available only in Japan, this program encourages builders of Gunpla (plastic model kits from the Gundam series) to drop off runners (unused plastic model frame sections) at approximately 190 amusement facilities operated by Bandai Namco Amusement Inc. The collected runners are recycled along with plastic waste from the Gunpla manufacturing process thereby preventing additional plastic waste from reaching landfills for a more sustainable society.
By pledging to these initiatives, Bandai Namco is one of the first publishers in Japan to publicly put plans in place to tackle environmental issues, and you can see more details at https://www.bandainamco.co.jp/en/social/themes/environment.html.
“I am very proud of BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Inc. in joining the Playing for the Planet Alliance, as one of the first Japanese game publishers/developers,” said Yasuo Miyakawa, Chief Executive Officer of BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Inc. “As a company, we are nothing without the support of our customers, as a species, we are nothing without the life sustaining support of our planet. We must act holistically and responsibly in order to improve, protect, and preserve the environment for future generations.”
