WATER
Suntory's business would not be possible without water. We are committed to nurturing healthy ecosystems in the forests that produce the quality groundwater we use in our products. Suntory created the Mizuiku―Education Program for Nature and Water as part of this commitment to preserve nature for future generations.
Many people are unaware of where their water comes from. In Japanese, "mizu" means water, and "iku" means education. Suntory launched the Mizuiku program in 2004, to teach the younger generation where water comes from. The program also focuses on the importance of water, and the forests that nurture it.
In the Mizuiku program, students learn the importance of nature and water resources through practical experiences. The first pillar of this program involves Suntory's Natural Water Sanctuaries, which are located in water cultivation areas for Suntory's production sites. As of 2018, almost 25,000 students and parents have visited these sanctuaries and learn about healthy ecosystem through hands-on activities. There are also more than 137,800 students who take the second pillar of this product in urban areas. These students learn about the importance of nature and the water cycle through classroom activities.
Suntory Beverage and Food Thailand has started the Mizuiku programme in 2021 under theme of "Save the Water, Save the World".
Working with Environmental Education Center (EEC), we have organized programmes in Phuket to educate children on the water cycle and water conservation. Classrooms are set in nature, situated close to the beautiful Phuket shoreline, to help children comprehend the importance of water resources.
Later in Year 2022, we implement the project under theme “Give balance to the water and the world” in collaboration with the Environmental Education Center (EEC) and the RAYONG INCLUSIVE LEARNING ACADEMY (RILA) under the support of the Ministry of Public Health to educate youth to be aware of benefits and importance of water and organize “Train the Trainers” for teachers to pass on knowledge and inspiration to students. Additionally, to support Rayong Province to be a model city for water conservation, we cooperate with authority to promote children and people in community to learn and live in harmony with water and nature, create awareness of the importance of water as a foundation for living, acknowledge the threat of water which impacts on living things and human being through nature classroom activities. Driving participants to apply the knowledge gained from these activities and create value to achieve sustainable water conservation in Rayong Province.
Recently in 2023, the company joined with Environmental Education Center (EEC) and the Department of Environmental Quality Promotion (Currently Department of Climate Change and Environment) Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to continue Mizuiku project under the theme of "Save Water and Save Nature for a Sustainable Thailand" through the Eco-School and the environmental network of the Department of Environmental Quality Promotion. In this year, we expand program the city model to the national level and continue to educate youth to gain knowledge from real experiences in nature classrooms, to deeply understand importance of water, to gain perspectives and comprehensive skills in solving problems and protecting water resources in their hometown, including sparking change agents for youth towards sustainability, while teachers pass on knowledge and build inspiration in youth to drive the conservation of water and environmental resources from the provincial level to the national level.
