What exactly is green washing?

Greenwashg?WHAT EXACTLY IS

Compiled by Kerry-Ann Scrase

Greenwashing is when a company or organisation spends more time and money on marketing themselves as environmentally friendly than on minimising their environmental impact. It is a deceitful advertising gimmick intended to mislead consumers who prefer to buy goods and services from environmentally conscious brands.

The term arose in the 1980s after American environmentalist Jay Westervelt noted how at a hotel he visited, there were signs asking guests to reuse their towels in order to “save the environment”.

Westervelt considered the vast amount of wastage he had encountered throughout the rest of the hotel, where there were no obvious efforts being made towards sustainability. Instead, he concluded, the hotel was simply trying to reduce costs by not having to wash towels as much but were trying to market this as eco-friendly behaviour.

Whilst this trend is concerning, greenwashing is not always entirely intentional or a malicious plot to deceive – more often than not, it is as a result of overenthusiasm and the need to impress a new generation of consumers.

This is because being seen as ethical helps drive brand popularity and profitability. Basically being socially conscious sells.

Research has shown that Gen Z (people born roughly between 1995 and 2010) are more likely to spend money on companies and brands seen to be ethical, than previous generations. Corporate Sustainability Report, 66% of consumers would spend more on a product if it comes from a sustainable brand, and that figure jumps to 73% among millennials.

Greenwashing is all about misdirection, showing one thing to distract you from what is really going on. More significantly, however, is that greenwashing takes up valuable space in the fight against real environmental issues like climate change, plastic ocean pollutions, air pollution and global species extinctions.

The unfortunate part is that many companies do it by accident, as they don't have the expertise to know what is truly environmentally beneficial, and what is not.

Is there a difference between green marketing and greenwashing?

There is a fine line between green marketing and greenwashing. Unlike greenwashing, green marketing is when companies sell products or services based on legitimate environmental positives. Green marketing is generally practical, honest and transparent, and it means that a product or service meets these criteria:

· Manufactured in a sustainable fashion. · Free of toxic materials or ozone depleting substances.

Able to be recycled and/or is produced from · recycled materials. Made from renewable materials (such as · bamboo). Does not use excessive packaging.· Designed to be repairable rather than · disposable.

However, it is all too easy for green marketing to translate to greenwashing when an organisation doesn't live up to the standards of sustainable business practices. "Eco-friendly, organic, natural and green" are just some examples of the widely used labels that can be The best thing to do is to use your gut – if it looks too good to be true, it probably is. Greenwashing can only succeed if you choose to blindly believe. Previously consumers had to rely on television, radio and print media for facts, nowadays we have the benefit of having a lot more information at our fingertips. Fact checking is the best way of making sure you do not get caught out. Do not simply rely or believe what you read on the internet, however it is a good source of information and will often confirm or dispel what you think you know.

HOW TO AVOID GREENWASHING

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FLUFFY LANGUAGE: 5Look out for words or terms that have no clear meaning or context such as "eco-friendly"; “sustainable” or “natural”. If these terms are used then check what they are used for – packaging, only one ingredient

etc. 6 7 8

GREEN PRODUCTS vs. DIRTY COMPANY:

Whilst the product itself may be better for the environment, for example efficient light bulbs, what about the company manufacturing it – how sustainable is its operations?

SUGGESTIVE PICTURES:

Images that give an (unjustified) impression of being good or kind to nature (e.g., flowers blooming from exhaust pipes). These are just Photo cr edit: Fr eepik meant to make you feel better but have no real value beyond being just a design element. "BEST-IN-CLASS" BOASTS: Beware of companies that say they are better than the rest – which is only relative especially if 'the rest' are all really terrible.

IRRELEVANT CLAIMS:

This is the same situation as the bad company that produces one environmentally good product. Beware of claims that focus on one tiny green attribute when everything else is anti-green.

GOBBLEDYGOOK:

Do not be duped by big words that sound impressive. Jargon and information that only a scientist could check or understand are often used to try an impress and may not mean much.

NO PROOF:

This refers to claims about products that could be plausible but there is no real or only anecdotal evidence that the claim is true. This is often found on 'natural' products. Vague statements are often not grounded in much fact.

OUTRIGHT LIES:

In this instance the claims or data are just complete fabrications or lies. [Info sourced: Business News Daily]