industryopinion
Why addressing Greenwashing and
Greenhushing needs to be a
top priority for every CEO By Steve Haskew, head of sustainability and social leadership at Circular Computing.
I
n an age of increased environmental and sustainability pressures, businesses of all sizes are facing pressure to illustrate their green credentials. Some choose to be overt,
advertising sustainability and net-zero claims front and centre in their communications. While others are choosing to say nothing at all and sit back hoping it doesn’t get brought up. Yet neither approach is likely to be the best course of action for most businesses and has led to increased policy and economic issues with greenwashing and greenhushing. The two terms, perhaps seen as sustainability buzzwords of
our era, do in fact roughly summarise where many CEO’s sit on sustainability – either letting marketing teams run wild with sustainability claims, or trying to hide a dodgy underbelly from the outside world. The reality is that the well-intentioned claims of sustainability and faux efforts to become more sustainable as seen in Greenwashing often fall short of the mark – and can even be just as dangerous as doing nothing at all. Simply put our planet is now at a point where the term
Green cannot be ‘washed’ or ‘hushed’ anymore, it needs to be rooted at the centre of all business decisions and operations. To make a real difference, prioritising the growth of the circular economy will help businesses understand how to achieve true sustainability and move beyond the smoke and mirrors tactics we see by many today.
Why greenwashing and greenhushing are dangerous Greenwashing happens when a company makes an environmental claim unsupported by data-driven evidence. Though the claim may have some element of truth regarding the positive effect on the environment, it likely fails to consider the true impact on the planet and with potentially increased sales, may even do more damage than another more unsustainable product. A 2021 European Commission report found that 42% of green claims made by organisations were deceptive or exaggerated in some way, highlighting that this is becoming a common place tactic amongst many businesses. But as we see a crackdown on companies overly exaggerating
their sustainability claims, seen in new EU anti-greenwashing legislation, there is another seriously concerning green strategy in greenhushing. With businesses under-fire over the credentials
14 | July/August 2023
of their sustainability claims, many have chosen to try and fly under the radar. Companies from industries such as tech, finance, and the engineering sectors are often choosing not to update on their environmental and climate action. A report published by South Pole found that nearly one in four of the 1,200 large private companies from 12 countries that have set net-zero targets have
yet to publicise their progress. For many business leaders preoccupied with the day-to-day
running of their business, sustainability is likely something they feel is better suited to another member of the board. And while the rise of the chief sustainability officer is a positive one, the need for the CEO to take on the responsibility of greening their business is more important than ever. Often sustainability is left to the marketing team to communicate, which in order to come across better, can lead to exaggeration. As a result, by leaving sustainability to other departments, CEOs are letting their brands create a false reality that they are sustainable without addressing it operationally. Reviewing procurement strategies and working with truly sustainable suppliers is a quick win that many CEOs can start actioning right away. For example, second- life remanufactured laptops are certified to perform as good as or better than new, with a financial saving and at no extra cost to the environment. The circular economy has direct benefits to the bottom line as
well as demonstrating genuine sustainability credentials and to consumers and employees.
How you can communicate your sustainable credentials Leading sustainability from the top is key, never more so than when communicating it to the outside world. For many business leaders, being honest and transparent about their sustainability progress is daunting, but there are ways to ensure you’re walking the walk as well as talking the talk. Using science-based targets, such as those set out by the Science Based Targets Initiative (STBI), will ensure robust evidence to help you avoid misleading customers and unknowingly harming the planet. Achieving true sustainability means business leaders leading
by example and ensuring the CEO is involved in addressing greenwashing and greenhushing will go a long way to eradicating bad practice from within the business.
www.pcr-online.biz
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