Codo’s Insights

Codo’s Insights are a series of articles written by our team on topics we identify as strategic for our clients and partners. We cover developments across the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) dimensions of corporate sustainability, with the aim of bringing strategic insights from around the world to companies operating in Japan.

Codo's Insights, ESG Regulations, Renewable Energy

France’s and EU’s Fast-Fashion Crackdown and What It Means Beyond the EU

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For years, ultra-fast fashion operated in a regulatory blind spot, churning out thousands of cheap new styles a week, without regard to quality or where they would end up. France pushed back in 2024 through a law proposal to stop this trend. Two years on, it is now law, and reshaping how companies operate through a much bigger, EU-wide response. In this Codo Insights, we look at France’s new ultra-fast-fashion law, how the EU is moving towards more sustainable fashion, and how Japan is responding to the same pressures.

Codo's Insights, Renewable Energy

Starting at One Percent: How Japan Rewrote the Numbers on SAF

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On July 23, 2026, Japan rewrote the premise of its sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) policy. Fuel suppliers will face a SAF supply obligation from FY2030, but the starting point is one percent of jet fuel supply volume. The level previously designed into the framework worked out, in volume terms, to ten percent. Is this a retreat, or a design corrected to fit reality? Using the final investment decision deadline now closing in at the end of 2026 as our anchor, we map where Japan’s biofuel policy actually stands.

Codo's Insights, ESG Regulations, ESG Reporting

Uneven Ground: The State of ESG Disclosure in 2026

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Three years after the ISSB set out to create a universal language for sustainability disclosure, the world is speaking it, albeit unevenly. Some are moving forward, others are retreating, and one major economy is walking away from the table altogether. A mid-2026 assessment of where ESG reporting stands, and an update to our April 2025 Insights “ In Turbulent Times, Slow and Steady Wins the Race: ISSB, SSBJ, CSRD, and US ESG Regulations”

Codo's Insights, Interview

Interview | Yuka Amano, Director

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What does it truly mean for a business to create value for investors, for society, and for the people within it? Yuka Amano, Director at Codo Advisory and Investment Team Director for the Japan Evolution Fund, has spent her career working at the intersection of these questions. Having sat on both sides of the investor-entrepreneur relationship, she brings a rare perspective to impact investing in regional Japan. In this interview, we spoke with Ms. Amano about bridging the gap between businesses and investors, the hidden strengths of Kyushu’s owner-led companies, and why lasting change ultimately comes down to people.

Codo's Insights, Renewable Energy

Grid or Greenfield? Understanding how to Design your Transition Roadmap in Japan’s Developing Energy Mix: Energy of the Near Future Part 2

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This article will examine the current status, emerging technologies, investment and sustainability tradeoffs, and likelihood of target capacity achievement for both nuclear and solar to ask the question: In setting a transition roadmap, should corporations rely on Japan’s grid decarbonization or invest in their own greenfield projects?

Codo's Insights, Renewable Energy

Japan’s Ambitious Energy Strategy: Energy of the Near Future Part 1

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Energy demands are increasing at unprecedented rates, geo-political conflicts are enhancing the need for energy security, climate tipping points are being passed faster than expected, and economic shifts coupled with Japanese domestic political upheaval are driving development interests focused on critical infrastructure. For corporations in Japan planning their transitions to low-carbon business models, the availability of clean, reliable energy is critical. To achieve Japan’s energy goals, two main pathways have emerged: the return of nuclear power, and the rise of mega-solar. In the recent elections, the debate around each pathway raged among the public as politics shifted. In this multi-piece insights article series we will examine the science behind each strategy’s rhetoric. We will discuss the benefits, the costs, and the way each option fits into the broader landscape. This first article will cover an overview of the changing energy situation and the public sentiment towards nuclear and mega-solar as solutions. Our following article will deep dive into each technology and analyze which may be most appropriate.

Codo's Insights, ESG Regulations, ESG Reporting

Assessing the Components of a “Good” CSRD Report

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As Japanese companies begin preparing CSRD-aligned reports we are frequently asked how companies can ensure their reports can be viewed as credible compared to industry peers. To answer these questions, we have assessed published reports to prepare a case study for 5 CSRD reports from various industries to give concrete examples of what “good” and “poor” reports include.

Climate Change, Codo's Insights, Human Rights

An Introduction to Climate Change and Human Rights

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Are you familiar with the “intersection of human rights and climate change? Rather than treating “human rights” and “climate change” as separate issues, this field focuses on the impacts of climate change on people, and how they respond to it. Much of the literature on this topic discusses climate change and human rights as separate issues to be addressed – two sides of the same coin where either one or the other must be considered – but we at Codo Advisory believe it is critical to jointly consider both aspects in development planning.

Codo's Insights

Resilience: Sustaining Corporate Momentum through Turbulent Times, lessons for the world from the United States’ experience

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Political, economic, and environmental turbulence creates an increasingly uncertain landscape for corporations making long term investment planning difficult. It is tempting to simply withdraw from significant investment decisions until there is more certainty, but such corporate paralysis can be lethal in an inevitably shifting landscape. The US is more volatile than any other major market now, particularly with regards to corporate sustainability. US corporations are responding by pursuing resilience: the ability to withstand risk without contributing. This article describes four key learnings that Japan and other markets can take from the US experience before they, too, are subject to impacts from environmental turbulence.

Codo's Insights

Chief Sustainability Officer: Does Your Company Need One?

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A company’s board of directors and executive team typically includes indispensable “chiefs”: CEOs (chief executive officers), COOs (chief operating officers), CFOs (chief financial officers)… But in recent years, a new kind of CxO has emerged in boardrooms around the world: the CSO, or Chief Sustainability Officer. What is their mission? Are they essential to a company’s sustainability success? This article explores the evolving role of CSOs, their growing strategic importance, and whether companies should consider appointing one.