Digital CSR & Sustainability Report

The Digital Sustainability Report is a real-time tool creating a virtuous relationship amongst communication, accountability, open data, and stakeholder dialogue. It represents a clear information platform, accessible, and designed to meet the information needs of stakeholders interested in learning about the organization, its strategies and performances.

Moreover, this platform reinforces a culture based on transparency, information and evaluation of changes within all the organizations, realigning internal management and communication practices.

Structure of the digital CSR & Sustinability Report

The Sustainability PAGE of the website contains the Company’s Sustainability Matrix, that represents the Hitachi contributes on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of UN Agenda 2030. SDGs are positioned in relation with the contribution of Hitachi Rail STS to their realization and their materiality for Company’s stakeholders. Clicking on every SDGs icons you could discover the material topics related with each one of them and learn more about Company’s activities and performances. Moreover, SDGs are connected to the respective strategic areas which they refer, visualized beside the Matrix.

The Hitachi Rail page also presents results and performance highlights, connected with the three dimensions of the sustainability: social, environmental and economic.
The website is then divided into three sections – Environmental, Social and Governance – where you can find the main initiatives with in-depth links that refer to the pages dedicated to each SDGs.

Methodological note

The Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability Report 2020 of Hitachi Rail, in its first edition, has been prepared in accordance with the “GRI Sustainability Reporting Standards“ of the Global Reporting Initiative, using the “in accordance – core” reporting option.

In order to ensure the quality of the Report, Hitachi Rail follows the reporting principles for defining report content and quality in accordance with the GRI Standards, which provide a set of criteria to select the information to be included in the report and the related representation methods.

The Report Covers

Period. The main period covered is fiscal 2020 (April 1, 2019, to March 31, 2021)

Note. Some information on activities in April 2021 and after is also included.

Company perimeter. This edition covers Hitachi Rail’s global activities except for data related to Japan business.

Social data. Boundary of data indicated under each indicator.

Reporting Cycle. Published every year as an annual report.

Date Published. November 2021.

CSR&S contacts global team: csr@hitachirail.com

Sustainability topics and contribution to SDGs

Sustainability topics and contribution to SDGs “Hitachi Rail will reduce its environmental impact, develop a sustainability culture and improve quality of life for our people and communities”

(A. Razeto, Group Head of CSR and Sustainability)

The UN Environment Programme’s Emissions Gap Report 2020 found that global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions hit a new high of 59.1 gigatonnes (Gt) of CO2 equivalent in 2019.

Over the past decade, emissions have continued to increase at a rate of 1.5% per year, rising in all major economic sectors.

Particularly, a closer look at GHG emissions breakdown by economic sector reveals that:

Power production today generates the largest share of GHG emissions (30%). About 50% of electricity comes from burning fossil fuels, mostly coal and natural gas.

▪ Industry represents the second-largest share of GHG emissions (21%), burning fossil fuels for energy, as well as GHG emissions from mineral products (such as cement) and other chemical reactions necessary to produce goods from raw materials.

▪ The Transportation sector contributes around 16% of global GHG emissions, with road transport being primarily responsible (94% of the sector). Rail, shipping and aviation are relatively smaller, with emissions in international territory comprising 4% of total.

▪ Agriculture contributes 16% of total GHG emissions, with most emissions coming from enteric fermentation (ruminant animals, such as cattle), nitrogen fertilizers on agricultural soils, and municipal waste.

▪ Buildings contribute to 7% of global GHG emissions, arising primarily from fossil fuels burned for heat.

Should this pattern continue, the world is projected to warm by 3°C to 5°C by 2100, with catastrophic effects on human civilization. To prevent this risk, a major turnaround in emissions trajectories is needed in all sectors (reduction of approximately 3-6% per annum between now and 2030) to limit the rise in surface temperatures and avoid catastrophic climate change effects.

In 2015, world leaders met in Paris and agreed to limit the global temperature rise by the end of the century to well below 2°C and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5°C.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), limiting global warming to 1.5°C requires net human-caused carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to fall by 45% by 2030 and to reach net-zero by 2050. Even limiting the temperature rise to 2°C will need CO2 emissions to fall by 25% by 2030, requiring a turnaround of the present trend and approximately $75 trillion in investment.

In 2015, the United Nations presented 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to be achieved by 2030. Combined with the company mission to contribute to society through the development of superior, original technology and products that power sustainable connectivity, Hitachi Rail is well-positioned to make a meaningful contribution to achieving the selected SDGs. Sustainability is at the heart of our business; we have an obligation to inspire and build a better and more sustainable future for employees, customers, and all users of products.