Promoting an Insurance-Based Circular Economy

Our team consists of members who volunteered for this project through an internal application system, and we work in different locations. The idea of leveraging insurance to support the transition to a circular economy came up during our discussions on addressing social issues through our insurance business.

The concept of a circular economy encompasses various aspects, such as resource recycling and extending the product lifespan. Our focus has been on developing insurance policies that promote resource recycling and circulation. As part of these efforts, we have partnered with JEPLAN, INC., a company, that has commercialized its unique chemical recycling technology for polyethylene terephthalate (PET), used in clothing and PET bottles production. Together, we have been working to provide insurance solutions that support recycling efforts, as well as establishing a system for waste collection and redistribution.

My department works with manufacturers of everyday products and consumer goods. We have been engaging with our customers - companies that generate waste - about their needs and challenges in resource recycling and have been developing proposal documents based on these discussions. This process has allowed us to understand how an insurance company would be committed to advancing circular economy, and to uncover broader challenges that we cannot solve on our own.

In my department, that serves customers of the chemical sector, we are learning about chemical recycling and other innovative technologies, while also working on construction of an ecosystem that combines one of our company’s strength - collection of extensive loss data- paired with customers’ technologies. Among other activities, we initiated pilot testing to develop a system for collection and recycling waste materials from end-of-life vehicles, in collaboration with the Mitsubishi Chemical Group and ABT Corporation. This approach, which differs from traditional perception of insurance companies, has been well received within our organization and beyond. We are determined to expand these types of initiatives as we move forward.

The idea of a circular economy encompasses a broad range of concepts and is not yet well understood, even within our company. This has motivated my efforts to promote our activities internally. In partnership with JEPLAN, we introduced a plan of installation of clothing donation boxes in agent offices and customer stores, utilizing our internal experience with resource circulation (collecting used clothing from employees and producing original eco-bags). I am convinced this initiative has great potential, not just for enhancing global resource recycling starting with our customers and agent offices, but also for strengthening engagement with local communities.

In order to raise awareness of our initiatives externally, we collaborated with our local branches to organize events centered on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including an exhibition at the Messe Nagoya trade fair and an SDG-themed event at our corporate building. Additionally, the recycling of plastic bottles through JEPLAN's innovative chemical recycling technology has captured great interest of local governments, which have been supportive of our collaborative efforts. Going forward, we look forward to expanding the program across all of Japan.

The transition towards a circular economy is becoming a top priority for our customers, and it not only needs to be addressed as a sustainability-related challenge, but it also requires a collaborative effort between various companies to turn it into an actual economic venture. We are committed to contributing to the development of this ecosystem based on feedback and insights gathered from partner companies and municipal authorities.