It is considered "greenwashing" any behavior or activities that lead people to believe that a company is doing more to protect the environment than it actually does.¹. This type of behavior by companies and organizations is not new. On the contrary, examples of greenwhashing have been described since the 1960s, two decades before the term "greenwashing" was even coined.².

Origins of the term "greenwashing

The term "greenwashing" was originally coined by the American environmentalist Jay Westerveld in 1986². Westerveld used the term to refer to an advertising campaign launched by several hotels asking their guests to contribute to saving the planet by reusing their towels. However, behind this advertising campaign there was no environmental conservation strategy, but rather a cost-saving measure for the company in terms of laundry.³. Ironically, these same hotels that asked for the cooperation of their guests to conserve the environment were expanding without considering their impact on the coral reefs in the area.².

Why do they resort to greenwashing?

Environmental problems caused by environmental pollution have made more and more people concerned about and committed to environmental conservation. This has put great pressure on companies to demonstrate their commitment to the environment and produce eco-friendly products.⁴. Similarly, the fraction of consumers willing to pay more money for products from companies with sustainable practices has increased.⁵. This increases the attractiveness of any product that is eco-friendly or at least appears to be eco-friendly.

References

1. 1. Cambridge Dictionary | English Dictionary, Translations & Thesaurus. Available at: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/. (Accessed: 19th November 2021)
   2. Watson, B. The troubling evolution of corporate greenwashing. The Guardian (2016).
   3. Becker-Olsen, K. & Potucek, S. Greenwashing. Encycl. Corp. Soc. Responsib. 1318-1323 (2013). doi:10.1007/978-3-642-28036-8_104.
   4. de Freitas Netto, S. V., Sobral, M. F. F., Ribeiro, A. R. B. & Soares, G. R. da L. Concepts and forms of greenwashing: a systematic review. Environ. Sci. Eur. 32, 1-12 (2020).
   5. Corcione, A. What Is Greenwashing? Business news daily (2021).

Author: Diana L. Delgado Rivera, Ph.D.
B.S. and Ph.D. in Biology, University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras