Reaching 2 million people through a collaboration between Dentsu Inc. and Rakuten. What is the “SOS Challenge,” which supports biodiversity through everyday “shopping”?

“We pay fees to celebrities when we feature them in commercials, but is it really acceptable that the animals used as corporate symbols receive nothing in return?”

The biodiversity conservation project“SAVE OUR SYMBOLSCHALLENGE” (hereinafter referred to as the SOS Challenge) began with this simple question from a Dentsu Inc. employee. So many companies use animals—whether it’s a panda, a zebra, or a lion—in their company names, logos, characters, and packaging that several examples immediately come to mind. However, the reality is that our daily actions as consumers are disrupting the balance of ecosystems.

Could companies that feature animals as symbols—by “banding together” like animals—create a significant social impact that no single company could achieve alone? In May 2025, Dentsu Japan (the domestic Dentsu Group), together with the Rakuten Group—which shared this vision—launched the donation-based shopping campaign “SAVE OUR SYMBOLS CHALLENGE supported by Rakuten ” on “Rakuten Ichiba.”

Going beyond mere CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility), the SOS Challenge—which balances sales with social contribution—what value will it bring to future society? We spoke with Mai Kawabata, Project Producer at Dentsu Inc.; Satomi Kinoshita, a copywriter and commercial planner at Dentsu Inc.; and Shunsuke Hata, General Manager of the Account Innovation Office in the Marketplace Business Division at Rakuten Group.

(Business Insider Japan Brand Studio)
*This article is a partially edited version of an article originally published on May 22, 2026, on “Business Insider Japan.”

A Unique Concept: “Companies That Use Living Creatures as Symbols”

—Please tell us about the background behind the creation of the SOS Challenge.

Kawabata: My team was running the “Okaimono” project, which connects everyday shopping to charitable donations. As we moved forward with this initiative, a sense of unease emerged: “We pay talent fees when featuring celebrities in commercials, but is it really acceptable that the living creatures used as corporate symbols receive nothing in return?”

There are numerous companies that use living creatures and nature in their company names, logos, characters, and packaging. These companies came together across industries to transform everyday consumer behavior into actions that give back to living creatures and nature. Once we conceived this framework and brought in Ms. Kinoshita, the representative of DENTSU Ecosystem LAB, the project really began to take off.

Kinoshita: I first heard about this about three years ago, when the world was beginning to focus on ESG (Environment, Social, Governance), TNFD (Task Force on Nature-related Financial Disclosures), and sustainability initiatives.

Since my twin sister was conducting research on wildlife reproduction at university, I had been involved in snow leopard conservation activities with her on a personal basis for some time. As my network gradually expanded and I accumulated more knowledge, like-minded members joined us, and that’s how we launched the creative unit known as the DENTSU Ecosystem LAB. Through that unit, we were sharing information via picture books and digital content.

When I heard about Mr. Kawabata and his team’s vision, I thought the concept was easy to understand and that it would be a project that could leverage the strengths of Dentsu Japan, which has connections with many companies.

――What exactly is this project?

Kinoshita: The SOS Challenge is a project in which companies that use wildlife or nature as their symbol, as well as those that support our cause, come together to work on the conservation of wildlife and the natural environment.

Currently, the number of sponsoring companies has grown to 16, and the project is built on three pillars: “Support,” “Nurture,” and “Communicate.” We’re running a donation-based shopping campaign in partnership with “Rakuten Ichiba”; developing a fieldwork-based “Inquiry-Based Learning Program” in collaboration with the TBS TV show “Doubutsu Kisou Ten’ai!” as well as zoos and aquariums; and disseminating information through our partner media outlets.

Kawabata: “While the ‘Shopping’ project was centered around brick-and-mortar stores such as drugstores and supermarkets, we anticipated that the range of products involved this time would be much broader. Therefore, we felt it was crucial to collaborate with major e-commerce platforms that handle a wide variety of goods.”

“Come to think of it, Rakuten’s mascot is a panda! ” I realized this, consulted with Mr. Hata, and we began discussing how we could work together.

Dentsu Inc. × Rakuten Collaboration Expands the Circle of Sponsors

――Mr. Hata, what was your initial impression when you first heard about this?

Hata: When I heard about the project, my immediate intuition was that “this is a highly creative initiative that aligns directly with Rakuten’s mission.” It also resonates with our philosophy of “empowering people and society through innovation.”

I saw this not as a mere donation, but as a way to leverage the “Rakuten Ichiba” platform for “social contribution through shopping,” connecting users, manufacturers, and social contribution activities. Recognizing this immense potential, I decided to participate in the SOS Challenge.

――Could you please give us an overview of the campaign conducted on “Rakuten Ichiba” in 2025?

Hata: The campaign ran from May 1 to May 31, including “International Day for Biological Diversity” (May 22). We set up a special SOS Challenge page on “Rakuten Ichiba.” When users purchased eligible products, 1% of the sales was donated to conservation organizations and research institutions. Rather than simply listing the products from participating manufacturers, we also included content that conveyed the manufacturers’ perspectives on how they are addressing environmental issues and other challenges.

During the campaign period, we secured exposure on the Group’s advertising spaces—such as the “Rakuten Ichiba” BIG banner—and were also able to promote the campaign on a segment of a TBS TV program, which was made possible through our collaboration with Dentsu Inc. I believe this contributed to expanding the campaign’s reach.

――Were there any challenges or insights you gained while carrying out the campaign?

Kawabata: We believed that for the SOS Challenge to succeed, it was crucial for many companies to “band together” across industry lines, so we adopted a policy of not excluding competitors and reached out to a wide range of companies. While we usually work primarily with corporate advertising, public relations, and CSR departments, that alone wasn’t enough to achieve the necessary reach. Rakuten reached out to sales promotion and e-commerce departments, and by sometimes visiting companies together with Mr. Hata, the discussions progressed smoothly.

Hata: Some companies were concerned about being placed on the same level as their competitors, and others declined due to global regulations. However, as we carefully explained the concept, we began to sense a positive response. Initially, we had planned to focus our sponsorship requests on companies that use animal logos or characters, but surprisingly, even companies that didn’t fit that description started asking, “Can we participate too?”

Biodiversity conservation is closely linked to the environment, and in the manufacturing sector in particular, many companies are committed to environmental conservation as part of their CSR activities and efforts to achieve the SDGs. By broadening our scope in this way, the number of sponsoring companies continued to grow.

Kinoshita: The interest from companies that don’t use animals as symbols was a pleasant surprise for us, and we also saw interest from pet-related companies, such as those dealing with dogs and cats. As the saying goes, “One Health, One World”—humans, animals, and the environment are all interconnected. I was reminded once again that the true significance of this project lies in taking a broad perspective.

Reaching Over 2 Million People, with Voices Saying, “We’ve Been Waiting for This!”

――How successful was the campaign?

Hata: As a campaign involving many sponsoring companies, this was the first initiative on “Rakuten Ichiba” focused on social contribution—including biodiversity . We succeeded in reaching over 2 million people in just one month, and I believe we achieved results that led to sales and donations exceeding our expectations.

To begin with, “Rakuten Ichiba” is an e-commerce mall that brings together over 50,000 stores brimming with originality. Compared to other e-commerce sites, users spend more time on the platform, making it easier to deliver content and messages. This environment was likely a good fit for the SOS Challenge.

Furthermore, the decision to include external links—an exception to our standard practice—proved effective in helping users deepen their understanding of the biodiversity conservation efforts carried out by our partner organizations.

Kawabata: The 5-point user rating under the special page, asking “Did you like this?”, also appeared to be significantly higher than usual. We were greatly encouraged by the numerous positive comments we received, such as “A great idea,” “A wonderful initiative,” and “I’ve been waiting for this!”

――What was the reaction from sponsoring companies and beneficiary organizations?

Hata: Since this was a project with social value, we offered sponsoring companies ad spaces on “Rakuten Ichiba” that they wouldn’t normally have access to. As a result, the percentage of new users was higher than usual, and we’ve received many comments—especially from the e-commerce division—saying, “We’d like to participate again.” There were also candid comments that initiatives like this, which contribute to society rather than being mere sales promotions, “make it easier to get internal approval.”

Furthermore, this campaign aligns with the concept of “Shopping is Entertainment!” that Rakuten has cherished since its founding. By allowing users to choose where their donations go and encouraging them to take proactive action, I believe we successfully conveyed both the significance of participation and the joy of making a choice.

Kinoshita: We selected four organizations as donation recipients: the Japan Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the Kyoto University Center for Wildlife Research, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Japan Committee, and the Japan Nature Conservation Association. We didn’t limit the donation to a single organization because we felt that biodiversity conservation requires a multifaceted approach. By offering a choice, we believed it would create an opportunity to draw interest and donations toward the activities of each of these organizations.

In particular, wildlife research is a long-term endeavor, making it difficult to secure sustained funding—so much so that people have even joked, “Researchers might go extinct before endangered species do…” While properly understanding the creatures we aim to protect (wildlife) is fundamental to conservation efforts, that very foundation is now crumbling.Furthermore, when we look within Japan, it’s actually a little-known fact that there are countless endangered species living here. Driven by a desire to address this situation, we selected four recipient organizations for this campaign.

We plan to hold the next event in October in conjunction with “World Animal Day.”

――When do you plan to launch the second phase of the campaign?

Kawabata: We’re currently working on a plan to focus on “World Animal Day” on October 4, 2026, and see if we can create a campaign with simultaneous, widespread outreach. For the next campaign, we’re considering expanding beyond e-commerce to include brick-and-mortar stores as well. Ultimately, we want to create a movement so significant that people think, “If I’m going to buy it anyway, I’ll buy it during the SOS Challenge period.”

Hata: We’re also coordinating with relevant parties on “Rakuten Ichiba” to make this a reality. In the first campaign, over 2 million people visited the special page, but only a fraction of them actually made a purchase. For the next campaign, we not only want to increase the number of people who buy, but we also want to devise initiatives that encourage even those who don’t buy to take proactive action, thereby deepening their understanding of environmental and biodiversity conservation.

For example, we’re thinking of offering Rakuten Points as a reward for answering a quiz after watching a video, or giving away tickets to zoos and aquariums—we hope to develop a more advanced format like that.

――What are the future goals of the SOS Challenge?

Kinoshita: Japan has a thriving character culture, and the SOS Challenge—where “banding together” with friends leads to social contribution—is a project that’s very Japanese in spirit. When it comes to biodiversity conservation, we won’t truly know what the right answer is until we see what the future holds. That’s precisely why I want to work with participating companies in the spirit of “Let’s just give it a try together, ” without hesitation.

Kawabata: To protect endangered species, we have no choice but to keep taking on new challenges. We named this initiative the “SOS Challenge” with that sentiment in mind, but the fundamental purpose of advertising is to change consumers’ awareness.

It’s difficult to change people’s minds overnight , but by gradually shifting their awareness through everyday actions like shopping, we hope to create a better future. To that end, we’d like to gain more partners who support this initiative—which balances donations with sales—and join us in this collective effort.

▼ Click here for more details on the “SAVE OUR SYMBOLS CHALLENGE”
https://sos-challenge.com/

▼Click here for more information about dentsu Japan
https://www.japan.dentsu.com/jp/