1.13.2003 ET

(CSRwire) NEW YORK,NY – The World Environment Center's Nineteenth Annual WEC Gold Medal for International Corporate Achievement in Sustainable Development has been awarded to the Ricoh Group ("Ricoh"), a leader in enviromentally-friendly office automation products and processes. The WEC Gold Medal is awarded by an independent Jury of distinguished international environmental experts to a corporation that demonstrates preeminent industry leadership and contributes to worldwide environmental quality.

The Award will be presented at a formal gala on Thursday May 15, 2003 at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. in recognition of the company’s global leadership in sustainable development. Mr. Masamitsu Sakurai, President and Chief Operating Officer of Ricoh Co., Ltd., will accept the award on behalf of Ricoh's more than 74,000 employees in Japan, the Americas, Europe, China and Taiwan, and the Asia-Pacific region.

Commenting on the award, Mr. Sakurai reflected on the company’s strategy for sustainable success, “To survive in the new century as a respected corporation in the global community, a company needs to excel in environment-conscious management and social responsibility and obtain the support of society. Recognizing that fact, the Ricoh Group promotes sustainable management from a global point of view, making efforts to revitalize the economy of local communities and nurturing its personnel by laying emphasis on the following three points.

“First, the active participation of the top management and all group-wide employees is a key to success. Next, creating economic value through environmental management is essential to engage in environmental conservation activities continuously. And finally, we must establish a reputation for social reliability by publicizing our activities. The Ricoh Group further promotes activities that restrict the environmental impact of its business activities so that the environment can recover. We humbly accept the WEC award, which we see as a testament to the strength of our beliefs and operating principles.”

The Jury cited Ricoh for its integrated commitment to the environment and sustainable development. The Jury based its award on a complete and comprehensive group of achievements that demonstrates superior performance in the areas of policy, implementation, and leadership constituting a compelling program of sustainable development.

“Guided by a philosophy the organization calls ‘our earth, our tomorrow,’ Ricoh believes that we all share the planet and are obligated to protect and preserve it,” notes Dr. Joel Abrams, Professor Emeritus of the University of Pittsburgh and Chairman of the independent Gold Medal Jury.

The Signature Contribution on which the Jury based its award decision is Ricoh’s outstanding performance combined with complementary programs in world class energy efficiency technology, reduction of global climate-warming emissions, zero-waste production and products, green suppliers pipeline, and a cutting edge environmental management system globally applied.

“Collectively, these accomplishments serve as a model for corporations to achieve success through sustainability,” according to Dr. Abrams, “The Jury believes this model will provide an excellent standard for the office landscape of the future and as an example for other similar enterprises.”

The World Environment Center Gold Medal for International Corporate Achievement in Sustainable Development was established in 1985 to recognize preeminent industry leadership initiatives and contributions to worldwide environmental quality and sustainable development. The Jury carefully examines all award applications submitted by qualified multinational companies each year. The Jury examines each nomination for a clearly articulated set of values, a history of proven accomplishment, a global outlook and a commitment to sustainable development. A complete list of Jury members, the Citation for the 2003 WEC Gold Medal Awardee, and a list of previous recipients are available at the WEC website: http://www.wec.org/wecgm.htm. The WEC Gold Medal Jury is completely independent of WEC and its programs, and is composed of international environmental leaders from academia, government, industry, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

About Ricoh

Ricoh Company, Ltd., was established on February 6, 1936. The Ricoh Group consists of 376 subsidiaries, and 28 affiliates. The Ricoh Group engages in such global-scale activities as the development, production, marketing, after-sales service, and recycling of office equipment, including copiers and printers, information equipment, optical devices, and other electronic equipment, in five regions around the world. The Group has more than 74,000 employees. For more information about Ricoh, please visit http://www.ricoh.com/ .

About the WEC

The World Environment Center (WEC) is an independent, not-for-profit, non-advocacy organization. Working with the private sector, international organizations, non-governmental organizations and academia, the WEC promotes sustainable development by encouraging environmental leadership, improving health and safety practices worldwide, and fostering the efficient use of natural resources to protect the global environment. The WEC supports its mission through three central programs: the International Environment Forum (IEF); the WEC Gold Medal Award; and Capacity Building Programs. For more information about the WEC, please visit http://www.wec.org/ .

Previous recipients of the WEC Gold Medal are: CEMEX, The Royal Dutch/Shell Group, International Paper Company, Eastman Kodak Company; Philips Electronics N.V., Compaq Computer Corporation, Alcoa, Ciba-Geigy Limited, S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc., Xerox Corporation, Procter & Gamble Company, Rohm and Haas Company, IBM Corporation, The Dow Chemical Company, The BP Group, E.I. Du Pont de Nemours & Company, Exxon Corporation and 3M.

For more information please contact: