Through environmental education, we strive to raise the awareness of all our employees in order to develop a social viewpoint that enables them to conduct environmental activities on their own. Clean Up Australia Day is an important date in the Ricoh environmental calendar and we have been actively involved since 2003. Each year Ricoh staff and their families volunteer their time to assist local communities around the country to rid the environment of rubbish. We encourage our staff to involve their children in this initiative, as they see first hand the damage to the environment caused through littering. By concentrating our efforts in the same areas each year, we are able to see the benefits of our involvement, with the local community groups and councils who oversee the supervision of the sites, through the reduction in the amount of rubbish collected in successive years. Ricoh is proud of our Clean Up Team and their contribution to the environment, keeping waterways clear of plastic bags and polystyrene and other much larger items. Recyclable items such as plastic drink bottles and cans made up approximately one third of the items collected this year. A mobile basketball ring pulled from Curl Curl lagoon using ropes and some ingenuity was definitely the catch of the day!