Watchful Eye for Greenwash

Recently I started a job with a sustainable investment conference and consultancy, know as TBLI.  Among my responsibilities with them, I’ll be handling alot of their web presence including the TBLI blog which is now listed in the right hand margin under “I also publish”. First let me say it is refreshing to work for a organization that does not look at blogging or ME blogging about work related themes as suspect.  Cause for this blogger, being free is essential to my work, and keeping secrets is just lame.

So as you’ll eventually pick up from reading the TBLI blog, the conference is all about sustainable development. A noble goal that more most rational humans makes sense.  Bringing people together, large corporations, small entrepeneurs, activists, I’ve seen a pretty good cross section of talent and experience. AND YES, I’ve seen names of corporations that I simply do not like or trust, for their environmental human rights records.  But nevertheless, ignoring them isn’t a sure bet for changing anything, so perhaps it is useful that there is place where they too can join the conversation and debate.

One guiding principle that stays with me in all my work, including here on the blog, is to always keep an eye out for greenwashing.  Meaning those that would pretend to be ecological, caring for how their company impacts the environment and the future of the earth. It is no secret that being green has become a catch-all, a marketing tool, a smoke screen for conducting business-as-usual.

I mention this because some of the latest items coming from the New Internationalist get into detail about just that; greenwashing.  They also tear into the realm of corporations pretending to be socially responsible and the manipulation of the United Nations to that end.  I intend to get in touch with some of these reporters for an upcoming podcast. I also recommend you read and beware aware in your daily choices, about who is lying about being responsible.

One more thing tho… just because there are corporations out there, lying about being green. Does not mean people should simply give up trying to be responsible consumers or responsible investors.  There are still ways to verify what is or is not ecological… sustainable.. and if people set their minds to it.. we can certainly find out.