To the Moon and Back: Suntory Walks for a Healthier Planet

This past October, we held our second annual “One Suntory Walk,” a health and wellness program that encourages Suntorians around the globe to join in walking for a cause. This friendly competition was designed to encourage physical activity while raising funds to help support three charities that are engaged in environmental activities related to water and nature conservation.

As part of our commitment to protecting natural water resources and coexisting with nature, we invited our global employee base of 38,000 people to participate in support of one of three environmental charities: Charity: Water, a non-profit dedicated to "bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing countries"; World Wide Fund for Nature, is an international NGO working on wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment; or National Park management organizations who are designated by the Ministry of Environment (Japan), committed to "conserving the unique ecosystem and natural environment in the national parks in Japan for future generations.” Each participant chose one charitable organization to support with their steps and Suntory donated funds to each organization based on the total number of steps walked by all employees.

Last year, participants walked 1.2 billion steps, donating $200,000 to three charities. We’re excited to announce that together this year we walked more than 114 billion steps and 538,822 miles in total – the equivalent of a round-trip from the earth to the moon!

We are proud to donate the funds to three organizations that not only align with our own mission, but have also made the important task of coexisting with nature, specifically through the careful and sustainable use of water, their top priorities.

This year, National Park management organizations received the most steps pledged in its honor, with 6,524 steps per day, receiving a $80,000 donation as the prize! World Wide Fund for Nature followed with 5,220 steps per day and a $70,000 donation and Charity: Water placed third with 5,089 steps per day and a $50,000 donation.

Though One Suntory Walk 2018 may have ended, we’re already looking forward to walking again as one company next year. Here’s to many more meaningful steps!