Workshops offer exciting opportunities to have a direct contact with the market facts. I think of them as pure reality checks. During these sessions I had the occasion to inquire about people's understanding of sustainability.
Bellow are some of the answers:
it's a marketing bullshit
it's an empty word
it's a corporate buzzword used by companies to appear socially responsible
it's a greenwashing façade to deceive people
it's a fashion parade, a meaningless show for the fools
I was taken aback at first. Then anger welled up in me. Then I calmed down and reasoned. Today I am grateful for this opportunity to witness these stark truths firsthand. While checking the insights, I found out the reasons for these harsh assessments and heated arguments. Here are a few of them:
Greenwashing – as known by now – is a form of marketing strategy used to create a positive perception of an organization's environmental efforts, even when these efforts are minimal or non-existent. Most of the companies engage in greenwashing to capitalize on the growing consumer demand for sustainable products and services. By presenting a green image, their wish to attract environmentally conscious consumers and gain turns into an advantage.
Caution is advised when hearing broad terms, like "eco-friendly" or "green" without concrete evidence or standards to support such claims. Also, skepticism should arise when encountering lack of proof or certification: many times claims are made without providing verifiable evidence or certifications from trusted third parties.
Greenwashing misleads. We make purchasing decisions based on false or incomplete information. It can undermine legitimate eco-friendly companies and impede progress towards true sustainability by diverting attention and resources from genuinely sustainable practices. And this is beautiful, academic language that translates into the diagnostic: the above-mentioned bullshit.
Therefore, the empty words need to be refilled again. With solid, verifiable truths.
We have developed our training sessions precisely based on structures like this: a hot insight, a debate and a proof that sustainability is more than protective. It is efficient in financial terms. It supports the business growth. It brings benefits in concentric circles: whether you start at the centre, at the individual and you gradually reach the community first, then the entire world, or you start from the large perspective and you focus further on the details.
Because the world is like this: made of individuals and groups, of details and large perspectives that must be sustained to survive as it is.
