b'C E L E B R A T I N G 7 0 Y E A R S9 5 2-20 2 Jewelle Yamada1 2A General Manager of Communications & Sustainability Promotion GroupN DDB NOYEThis is your 30th year at SCOA. How has the company evolved in these last three decades? I am really proud to have been part of the transition that SCOA has gone through over the last 30 years. I have seen a transformation not just in our business modelshifting from a predominantly traditional trading compa-ny, to more of a holding company model todaybut also changes in our physical operations, including being in 3 different NY office locations since joining. When I was recruited to join SCOA and establish its first Corporate Communications Department the Company was at a turning point inAmerica, as we were seeing the traditional trading business impacted by the Internet and were experiencing a significant shift in the way business was being conducted in America. The 90s was sort of the beginning of SCOAs evolution to localization by acquiring and investing in local businesses. Today, a majority of our profits come from many of our invested companies in the SCOA group. This year is SCOAs 70th anniversary and it has been exciting to reflect on the contributions that I have seen SCOA make over the last 3 decades. I hope to see this company continue to make bold new investments for sustainable growth. As the GM of the new Communications & Sustainability Promotion Group, how do you intend to grow this group, and what undertakings are you most excited about? This new assignment will give me the opportunity to help our company bring our motto enriching lives and the world to life. I see this new challenge to build the Sustainability Department for SCOA and the Americas region, very exciting because ESG is one of the most critical areas of concern for any organization to remain sustainable today. Additionally, the concept of sustainability is in our companys DNA, which was passed on by our founders more than 450 years ago. Our new department will begin to build the framework and processes for reminding everyone of that, and how managing ESG issues will make us even stronger going forward.Today SCOA is perfectly situated to be the incubator or catalyst for developing the solutions needed to support the achievement of ESG goals. The Sustainability Department will help promote our companys business initiatives that will help transform industries and companies by introducing new technologies and resources that can modernize operations of the future. We are involved in so many traditional industrial businesses that have old processes and legacy systems that cant just turn off the switch overnight. There needs to be a gradual process and I think our business teams have the capacity and opportunity to be the intermediary bridge to help in this transformation. I hope that this can be used as examples of how our company is making an impact through sustainable development.What role do you think the private sector including our company play in achieving the United Nations,Sustainable Development Goals by 2030? How are we fulfilling our responsibility as a UN Compact supporter? Our company and the private industry in general can really help accelerate the progress by being partners and truly investing in key areas for advancement. Throughout my career I have been involved in communicating on envi-ronmental issues, and actually was at the UN Earth Summit in Rio in 1992 and the UN Kyoto Protocol conference in Japan in 1997. Looking back at the discussions about climate change back then and fast forward to COP 27, I understand the complexities that still exist with meeting targets to reduce global warming, and how important it is for the private sector to take action on commitments going forward. I honestly think that the whole conversation of sustainability and ESG has already accelerated since a decade ago and I believe a lot of it is a result of the private industry now making the investments in change. The pressure of investors and consumers has definitely accelerat-ed the movement toward addressing climate change. I also think that NGOs have realized that they need the private industry to finance and advance their goals and today there are more actions being taken through partnerships between public and private sectors and NGOs. I remember attending the RIO Summit and at that time, they were talking about turning sugar cane to fuel, ethanol. They were just starting out then but now its everywhere because 14 visions Fall 2022'