Green messaging has been a ubiquitous part of corporate strategies for close to a decade now. From reusable shopping bags and paper straws to renewable energy and electric vehicles, consumers and regulators alike are driving organisations in every industry to operate more sustainably and create products that are more aligned with a more modern, sustainability-conscious public. However, new research points to a growing trend. Consumers are becoming more cynical when it comes to corporate sustainability claims. A growing awareness of greenwashing, greenwishing, and greenhushing is driving the trend, accoding to industry experts.
“Green and conscious consumer demand is rising, but there is growing scepticism about the accuracy and completeness of sustainability claims,” the report released by professional services consultancy Alvarez & Marsal notes.
Greenwashing
The practice of making misleading or flat out false claims about a company’s sustainability actions. For example, inflating or obfuscating emissions data to make a company or product appear to be “net zero”. Also, greenwashing companies apply legally unprotected terms like “climate friendly” and “eco” to products or services that are no more environmentally friendly than those sold by their direct competitors. The term can also refer to companies making bold, long-term commitments to reducing their environmental impact without concrete plans. Declaring plans to be “net zero” or “climate positive” by 2030 without an action plan, for example, is a common example of greenwashing.
Greenwishing
When a company publicly expresses the desire or intention to address its environmental impact, but fails to make any serious, meaningful steps towards becoming more sustainable. Referred to by KPMG analysts as “unintentional greenwashing” greenwishing occurs when “a company hopes to meet certain sustainability commitments but simply does not have the wherewithal to do so.”
Greenhushing
One of the most common ways a company can work against not only its own green reporting but its whole industry. Greenhushing refers to a company’s refusal to publish its ESG information, hiding emissions data and other key details that might result in a loss of public trust and pressure from its shareholders or board to make changes. KPMG notes that, while greenhushing isn’t fundamentally dishonest, it also “limits the quantity and quality of publicly available information. Without this transparency, it becomes challenging to analyse corporate climate targets, share best practices on decarbonization and calculate Scope 3 emissions, which by definition require widespread reporting.”
Growing scepticism
Awareness of the practices of greenwashing, greenwishing, and greenhushing is growing among consumers, creating a sense of cynicism that threatens to also undermine genuine sustainability efforts made by some firms, as disillusioned consumers dismiss these attempts as intentionally misleading.
“Awareness of terms such as greenwashing, greenwishing, and greenhushing is increasing, along with criticism of claims about carbon neutrality and the integrity of carbon credits,” notes the Alvarez & Marsal report. “To gain credibility with consumers, regulators, and investors, companies are urged to make genuine and verifiable improvements in their sustainability practices. Overstating progress or making unrealistic forecasts that may not be achieved economically can be risky in today’s environment.”
