YOKOHAMA announced today that on January 30 it submitted a commitment letter to the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi)^*1, the first step in gaining validation of science-based targets (SBTs) for greenhouse gas emission reductions that are scientifically consistent with standards established by the Paris Agreement^*2.

This commitment letter pledges to set and submit targets that are aligned with the SBTi’s target-setting criteria within two years. Companies are asked to set SBTs that target reducing emissions related to all of a company’s business activities, including direct emissions from their own operations as well as indirect emissions caused by other companies and customers.

Having set a goal of achieving net zero CO2 emissions from its own activities by 2050, YOKOHAMA has been promoting the use of solar power generation systems and electricity derived from renewable energy at its plants around the world. It also has been disclosing indirect emissions from its products’ distribution, use, and disposal since 2013. Going forward, YOKOHAMA aims to obtain validation of its SBTs and accelerate its reduction of greenhouse gas emissions throughout its supply chain as part of its response to climate change-related problems, which have become increasingly serious in recent years.

Under the slogan for sustainability management “Caring for the Future”, YOKOHAMA is creating shared value by addressing social issues through its business activities.

*1: The SBTi was established by the CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project), the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) as an organization to evaluate companies’ greenhouse gas emission reduction targets.

*2: An international treaty on climate change adopted at the Conference of the Parties (COP21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held in Paris in 2015. The treaty signees agreed to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursue efforts to limit the increase to 1.5°C.