Social Day 2021 in Germany – Supporting Bees for Protection of Biodiversity

On September 10, employees from European Head Quarters Shimadzu Europa GmbH (SEG) and sales organization Shimadzu Deutschland GmbH (SDG) in Germany got together at Kantpark in Duisburg for involving in a “Social Day” project. Participants planted flowers for insects and cleaned up birds’ and bats’ nesting boxes for protecting biodiversity. 

What is Social Day?

For taking responsibility for people and environment, and providing a platform for social engagement to employees, SEG and SDG have organized Social Day action annually. Since 2013, SEG and SDG have been continuously working on various kinds of social issues in Duisburg, such as protection of animals, renovation of school, and planting trees, as part of Social Day project. 

It is not a Shimadzu’s independent activity. In Duisburg, the city has a platform for offering suggestions and providing opportunities for volunteer civic engagement. The City of Duisburg is a good partner for SEG and SDG’s Social Day team to choose the suitable topic for Shimadzu’s social engagement. The project is effective for establishing close relationships with the local community and building new links with other associations as well. SEG and SDG have a partnership with a beekeeper and an apiary as part of a project called “beeswe.love”, and therefore, the protection of biodiversity was selected as a topic of this year.

18 employees from SEG and 10 employees SDG involved in the project. Around 2,000 perennial plants were planted, and weeds were removed from flower beds for supporting local bees. In addition, the population survey of birds and bats was held when they cleaned the nesting boxes. 

Comments from participants from SEG

Participants from SEG made the following comments:

Personally, I think social commitment is very important - so the fact that Shimadzu offers an opportunity to be active locally is a great enrichment for me. When I saw what we have accomplished as a team at the end of the day, I felt our bonds stronger. (Marie-Luise Höning) 

It is great to give something back to our local community. The idea of Social Day enhances the social value of Shimadzu. At the same time, it is a good chance for team building with all colleagues. (Sebastian Westphal)

It is not only a contribution to our society, but also a very good chance to cooperate with people in the event. Also, we can communicate with people who take care of the project as well. In this way, we can learn more about the others and their demands. (Michael Stolberg)

It is always a pleasure to assist local projects by our own hands work. It increased my motivation to continue those projects and even to think about my behaviour in daily life; for example, reducing energy consumption and using less plastic. So please continue to support those kinds of activities on a global scale to motivate more people to join! (Nils Garnebode)

Comments from participants from SDG

Also, participants from SDG made the following comments:

The organization and implementation of the Social Day gave me a lot of pleasure. I am very proud of the willingness and commitment of the colleagues. It is therefore a personal concern of mine to continue to support this project and other social activities at Shimadzu in the future. (Saskia Schulte, Organizer)

Sustainable Project for “Team Shimadzu”

As the participants mentioned, this project is also valuable for improving the communication among employees from different department. Accomplishing something together outside of the regular work could help to make a strong bond as a team. Though the plan for next year is not yet decided, these continuous efforts will achieve positive impacts in many aspects.