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Saturated with greenwashing
In my opinion | Alex Conley
by Alex Conley |
"Actions speak louder than words."
English Idiom
Apparently, it's very easy being green. Everyone from computer manufacturers to television companies to tire companies is "going green," and all the companies really want everyone to know it.
We've all seen them. It's practically impossible to watch a commercial segment these days without seeing some kind of advertisement where someone sneaks in a mention of how the company is enviro-friendly. Televisions are "energy efficient," computers are "Energy Star certified," tires are "less resistant" (and therefore require less engine power to roll). The reasons companies give can range from the believable to the absurd, but my irritation with them is becoming more and more about how many there are, as opposed to their accuracy.
It seems like every public relations company has returned to middle school; one of the cool kids starts using a phrase and people pick it up in hopes of being cool themselves. The meme spreads until everyone in the school is saying it. Finally, we reach the point where we're sick of that particular phrase, and for the sake of our sanity we never say it again.
This tactic of spending more money on telling people how green you are instead of spending that money on actually doing something environmentally friendly has come to be known as "greenwashing." The phrase greenwashing was coined by Jay Westerveld in an essay that scathingly responded to the New York City hotel industry's practice of requesting that customers reuse towels to save the environment. Unfortunately, these measures by New York's hotels failed to cut down waste generation and failed to recycle more efficiently. Westerveld determined the hotel claims were only made for the profits they would reap from people eager to stay in a "green hotel."
In essence, greenwashing is the PR equivalent of putting a bumper sticker on your gas-guzzling SUV talking about how much you love the environment.
English Idiom
Apparently, it's very easy being green. Everyone from computer manufacturers to television companies to tire companies is "going green," and all the companies really want everyone to know it.
We've all seen them. It's practically impossible to watch a commercial segment these days without seeing some kind of advertisement where someone sneaks in a mention of how the company is enviro-friendly. Televisions are "energy efficient," computers are "Energy Star certified," tires are "less resistant" (and therefore require less engine power to roll). The reasons companies give can range from the believable to the absurd, but my irritation with them is becoming more and more about how many there are, as opposed to their accuracy.
It seems like every public relations company has returned to middle school; one of the cool kids starts using a phrase and people pick it up in hopes of being cool themselves. The meme spreads until everyone in the school is saying it. Finally, we reach the point where we're sick of that particular phrase, and for the sake of our sanity we never say it again.
This tactic of spending more money on telling people how green you are instead of spending that money on actually doing something environmentally friendly has come to be known as "greenwashing." The phrase greenwashing was coined by Jay Westerveld in an essay that scathingly responded to the New York City hotel industry's practice of requesting that customers reuse towels to save the environment. Unfortunately, these measures by New York's hotels failed to cut down waste generation and failed to recycle more efficiently. Westerveld determined the hotel claims were only made for the profits they would reap from people eager to stay in a "green hotel."
In essence, greenwashing is the PR equivalent of putting a bumper sticker on your gas-guzzling SUV talking about how much you love the environment.
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