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Letter to Toyota’s New CEO Koji Sato

Read the pdf here.

March 30, 2023

Dear Mr. Koji Sato, 

The undersigned 54  consumer and environmental groups representing millions of supporters from 26 countries write to ask that as the incoming CEO of Toyota, you commit to phase out all internal combustion engine vehicles in the U.S and Europe by 2030 and globally by 2035, and end Toyota’s anti-climate lobbying immediately upon assuming your new role.

Under your predecessor, Mr. Akio Toyoda, Toyota Motor Corporation lobbied to delay electric vehicle (EV) adoption so rigorously that the company was ranked the most obstructive automaker in the world on climate policy for two years running. Toyota’s commitment to sell 3.5 million all-electric vehicles per year by 2030 would only account for one third of your company’s current vehicle sales, despite surging consumer demand for EVs. Over 50% of car buyers globally say they want their next car to be electric. EV sales jumped from 3.2 million in 2020 to more than 10 million per year in 2022.

Toyota’s refusal to lead a rapid transition to electric vehicles as well as advocacy against EV policies also harms consumers. Air pollution from burning fossil fuels is responsible for one in five deaths globally. With no tailpipe emissions, electric vehicles are better for our health and essential to keeping our planet livable. Increasingly, zero-emission vehicles are also required by law, pushing the market more rapidly towards its inevitable shift away from internal combustion engine cars. 

As incoming CEO, you have the opportunity to change course on decades of harm and deceit caused by Toyota and lead the industry toward its electric future. In addition to Toyota’s aggressive opposition to EVs, the company has cheated on emissions testing and executives have overstated the benefits of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV)s as shown by recent research indicating that PHEVs’ real-world fuel consumption and carbon emissions are on average three to five times higher than expected.

As CEO of Lexus, you led electrification and publicly pledged to meet industry-leading standards. We call on you as incoming Toyota Motor Corporation CEO to immediately commit to:

  1. phase out internal combustion engine vehicles (including hybrids and plug-in hybrids) in the U.S. and Europe by 2030 and globally by 2035;
  2. align advocacy and lobbying with the goal of phasing out internal combustion engines, and be a voice for 100% renewable energy economy-wide;
  3. require 100% renewable energy use throughout your supply chains globally by 2035;
  4. by 2025, sign a procurement commitment for fossil-free primary steel with a steel producer and additionally commit to source 100% fossil-free steel by 2050;
  5. require responsible sourcing of your battery minerals, and develop battery design that allows for easy reuse and recycling of minerals;
  6. establish a clear commitment to Indigenous Peoples’ right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent, which should be extended to your suppliers.

Sincerely,

Public Citizen, United States

350 Pilipinas, Philippines

Action Speaks Louder, Australia

Asociación Argentina de Vehículos Eléctricos y Alternativos (AAVEA), Argentina

Asociación de Emprendedores para el Desarrollo e Impulso del Vehículo Eléctrico en el Perú (AEDIVE), Peru

Asociación de Movilidad Eléctrica de El Salvador (ASOMOVES), El Salvador

Asociación de Movilidad Eléctrica Dominicana (ASOMOEDO), Dominican Republic

Asociación de Vehículos Electricos de Chile (AVEC), Chile

Asociación Ecuatoriana de Movilidad Eléctrica y Sostenible (ASECMOVEL), Ecuador

Asociación Paraguaya de Vehículo Eléctricos (APVE), Paraguay

Austrian Sustainable Mobility, Austria

Better New Zealand Trust, New Zealand

Brazilian Association of Innovative Electric Vehicle Owners (ABRAVEI), Brazil

Center for Biological Diversity, United States

Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice, United States

Clean Cities Campaign, Europe

Coltura, United States

Costa Rican Association of Electric Mobility, Costa Rica

Earthjustice, United States & International

Earthworks, United States

Ekō, United Kingdom

Elders Climate Action, United States

Electric Vehicle Association, United States

Electric Vehicles Promotion Foundation (FPPE), Poland

Enter Nusantara, Indonesia

Environmental Health Coalition, United States & Mexico

Environmental Working Group, United States

GreenLatinos, United States

Greenpeace Australia Pacific, Australia & Pacific

Greenpeace Japan, Japan

Industrious Labs, United States

Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities, Philippines

League of Conservation Voters, United States

Les chercheurs d’air, Europe

Mighty Earth, United States

Movilizatorio, Colombia & Mexico

New AutoMotive, United Kingdom

New Weather Institute, United Kingdom & International

Oil Change International, United States

Project Green Home, United States

Provincial Electricity Authority, Thailand

Rainforest Action Network, Japan & United States

Rapid Transition Alliance, United Kingdom

Respire, France

SanDiego350, United States

Savesun co.,LTD, Thailand

Sierra Club, United States

Smart Energy Council, Australia

Society for Threatened Peoples, Switzerland

Stand.earth, United States, Canada

SteelWatch, International

The Southern California Coalition for Occupational Safety & Health (SoCalCOSH), United States

The Sunrise Project, Australia

Trottier Family Foundation, Canada

Read the pdf here.