This year, executives from Mitsubishi Corporation went to the Bahia Southern Lowlands region of Bahia to see firsthand the transforming action of the Rural Family Houses, supported by a partnership formed in 2009 with Odebrecht Foundation.  In his third visit to the region, Aiichiro Matsunaga, Regional CEO for Latin America and President of Mitsubishi Corporation do Brasil S.A., said the meeting enhances the partnership to develop a model of education and sustainable development. “We engage in social responsibility initiatives, contributing to society and to the education of the next generations,” he said.

 

Accompanying Mr. Matsunaga, Michael Lagowski, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility, Takuya Sahashi, Director of Corporate Strategy and Coordination, and Saori Matsubara, Corporate Strategy and Coordination Manager, talked to students and strengthened the relationship of trust developed through the partnership, which was recently renewed with Odebrecht Foundation for three more years.

 

Carolaine dos Santos from the Rural Family House of Igrapiúna (CFR-I) presented the school infrastructure. “Most of our country is agricultural, so it’s important to strengthen the vision of leadership in our communities. What we learn, we share. Institutions such as this should be all over the world because they make a difference. I am very proud to be a part of this,” she said. The executives also visited the Rural Family House of Presidente Tancredo Neves (CFR-PTN), the Agroforest Family House (Cfaf) in Nilo Peçanha, the Land Conservation Organization (OCT) and the Cooperative of Rural Producers of Presidente Tancredo Neves (Coopatan). In addition to the support from the Japanese company and from Odebrecht Foundation, through the Program for Development and Growth Integrated with Sustainability (PDCIS), since 2015 the Family Houses have been part of the UNESCO Associated Schools Project Network.

 

According to Cristiane Nascimento, responsible for the PDCIS, the visit of Mitsubishi Corporation executives to the Bahia Southern Lowlands region highlights the importance of this partnership. “It strengthens the relationship between investors, the institution and its beneficiaries. We ended the visit with the feeling that many positive results are yet to come,” she said.

 

Fabio Wanderley, Superintendent of the Odebrecht Foundation, complemented: “Together we put in efforts to educate youth for the job market, encouraging them to always share what they learn with their communities and reinvest their gains in their businesses.” With operations in more than 90 countries, Mitsubishi Corporation supports 65 social projects around the world, with the focus on social responsibility by contributing to the education of new generations and by reducing social inequality.