The #InfineumCARES monthly series spotlights the volunteering efforts of colleagues from our sites around the world, as part of our ambition of supporting people and communities.

Colleagues at our Japan site have been volunteering to run a series of workshops for students at a local primary school since 2022, broadening the students’ exposure to the STEM industry and understanding of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

Cultivating an interest in the world of business

To help students learn more about the processes behind a finished car and conducting business in the real-world setting, colleagues ran sessions with students covering various related topics such as product design, supply chains and sustainability.

Through close collaboration with teachers at the school, colleagues organised a ‘sales workshop’ for students after these sessions, where students designed their own cars and promoted their designs to each other.

Besides providing students with a better appreciation for conducting business, the workshop was a refreshing take on sessions conducted by Infineum in previous years.

Hirokazu Saito, ENEL Technologist, says “It is always a great pleasure to see the students’ enthusiasm to learn new things and their ability to come up with creative ideas. This successful event was one of the most fulfilling moments of my time with Infineum and we look forward to continuing working with the school!”

Fostering a spirit of inclusivity

Colleagues had conducted two workshops on diversity for the students in the last two years, introducing the concept of diversity, unique cultures, and how diversity led to different beliefs.

Recently, they built on the students’ knowledge of DEI by conducting a third workshop focusing on inclusion.

To familiarise students with the theme of inclusion, colleagues broke down concepts such as unconscious bias and inclusiveness, illustrating these ideas through real-world scenarios. This enabled students to better put the concept of inclusion into perspective and understand why inclusivity was necessary for our diverse world.

Colleagues also helped students to understand how to demonstrate inclusivity in the process of achieving a shared goal with differing values.

The students were then tasked to plan a ‘graduation trip’ in groups, which challenged them to put the idea of inclusivity into practice by considering multiple ideas in the planning process. Each group presented their itinerary, difficulties faced, and how they applied takeaways from the workshop to the class.

Mitsuhisa Kamewada, Technical Services Specialist, says “Inclusion is an abstract concept, but I believe the students better understood it through the group project where they experienced differences in perspectives and values. While it may be challenging to apply the idea of inclusion in daily life immediately, I hope this workshop was a useful starting point for future scenarios the students may face.”

Infineum actively encourages our colleagues to give back to their local communities through volunteering. For more information about Infineum’s sustainability initiatives, please visit: https://www.infineum.com/sustainability/.