In terms of sustainability, what society expects most from an automaker today is clear. Around the world there is rising concern over the sustainability of our automotive culture.
At Nissan, we welcome this wholeheartedly because concern and consensus for action among billions of people around the world is the ultimate motive power of environmental progress.
Our global automotive culture is very democratic. No matter what country you live in, your choice in buying a new car amounts to a significant vote. And the votes add up quickly. Today, automakers feel and react to even the slightest change in consumer preferences.
Consumer demand drives us. But until recently environmental performance has been well down the list of factors behind consumers' actual demand. If from now on concern for the environment makes greenness the critical factor in buying a car, then progress will come very quickly.
At Nissan, a company built on technological innovation, we welcome the "greening" of consumer demand with enthusiasm. We much prefer to compete on innovation than so-called incentives.
If consumers keep up the pressure by consistently rewarding real environmental performance, they will ignite a race that engages all the effort, passion and massive resources that were devoted to the "space race" of the 1960s. And we are now ready for the race.
The key to sustainability is profit-because without profit you cannot fund the huge R&D effort required. Eight years ago, when Nissan's financial condition was perilous, we did not have that key. Now we do.
Since 1999, annual R&D expenditures have doubled to nearly ￥500 billion in fiscal 2007.
We are also able to combine our R&D efforts with our Alliance partner, Renault.

Spending is only one measure, though. We have increased the efficiency of our R&D efforts significantly. And we have made CO2 measurement and reduction required goals in all our operations.
With these resources now in place, in December 2006 we launched an ambitious plan-Nissan Green Program 2010-that aims to make Nissan one of the leaders in real environmental progress.
Our Green Program pursues all promising avenues of environmental progress because, at this point, no single technology offers a comprehensive near-term solution. More importantly, we believe it is not engineers who will decide which solution prevails. Just as consumers will drive progress forward, so their choices will steer it.
Already, we can see each continent moving in a different direction. Japanese are moving decisively to smaller cars. Brazilians enthusiastically embrace ethanol. Europeans prefer advanced diesels that offer tangible, affordable near-term progress. In the United States, hybrids have captured media attention and a growing market niche.
Competition to develop next-generation technologies will bring dramatic change?but it is going to take time. So we should also focus on near-term opportunities. For example, we can make huge strides quickly by taking older vehicles off the road in developed markets, and by ensuring in emerging markets that new vehicles deliver high environmental performance. In both cases, the key is to ensure that green progress delivers affordable value.

Within Nissan, throughout our operations, we are discovering that sustainability makes good business sense: by doing more with the same or fewer resources we eliminate waste and create value. In this way, environmental progress will make a significant contribution to our long-term growth.
Creating sustainable value in every aspect of our business is the goal. We look forward to hearing from you how we can do better.