Setting up a climate strategy or a carbon strategy is key in the fight against climate change. On the other hand, communicating about it without greenwashing is far from being obvious. And comes with risks: bad buzz, loss of trust in your consumers, customers or partners, and even a slowdown in the climate transition. So much so that some structures (maybe yours?) don't dare to communicate about this at all.

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Of course, it's better to keep your mouth shut if you don't know how to communicate. And the same if we have no data on its impact. But it is still a shame not to highlight the decisions made by your organization to improve your ecological impact. Above all, it is a missed opportunity to position yourself in the market, to create a relationship of trust with your customers and partners and to set an example towards a more sustainable and transparent society.

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That is why we are sharing here a list of 8 tips to help you communicate well without greenwashing in your carbon or climate strategy.

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Before we start, we remind you of the definition of greenwashing to make sure you are on the same page.

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“Greenwashing represents the marketing or communication techniques used by an organization to give itself an image of ecological commitment that is misleading because it is contrary to reality. In other words, it is any advertising message that can mislead citizens about the real ecological quality of a product or service. (or on the reality of an organization's ecological approach).”

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We therefore notice that the words deceitful and misleading come back. That is what greenwashing is all about: deceiving the consumer. It is therefore key to stop all greenwashing for a real ecological transition. Hence our desire to educate the sector on the subject. Now let's get to the heart of the matter.

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1. Avoid vague environmental claims

An environmental claim (green claim) is any statement that highlights an ecological property in a generic way. Concretely, these are words or expressions such as eco-responsible, sustainable, good for the planet, climate neutral, with a positive impact, etc.

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These terms are far too strong to describe a product, service, or business. Every product has an environmental impact. So it cannot be said that it is sustainable in a generic way. It's way too loud. This is what is commonly called a disproportionate promise (a typical case of greenwashing). Because there is a disproportion between the claim and the real ecological quality of a product.

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Therefore, we recommend that you avoid vague environmental claims. Instead, be explicit by saying exactly why you are more “sustainable.” For example, because your products consume 70% of Co2 equivalent less than the market average. This is an explicit environmental claim that is therefore precise and is not likely to deceive the consumer. Be careful, however, to have scientific data that proves that you are indeed better than the competition.

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2. Do not say that you are carbon neutral

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As a reminder, carbon neutrality makes no scientific sense at the level of a product or a company. It is a concept that is dynamic and collective, and not static and only accounting. This only makes sense at the macro, economic or global level.

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Worse, it conveys the message that a product or organization has no impact on the planet. So yes. There was just carbon offsetting to achieve a zero accounting situation. This is precisely the definition of greenwashing, because it misleads citizens.

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So stop saying that you are carbon neutral or climate neutral. Or that your product is “net zero.” Instead, use phrases like “Contribute to carbon neutrality.” It is a nuance, but it is very important.

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3. Create a web page or a document that explains your entire ecological approach and link to it during any external communication

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It is essential to allow anyone to find out about your environmental approach. So you absolutely need to create a web page or a document that details everything. Transparency is key to avoid greenwashing.

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Above all, put a redirection link or a QR code on ALL your external communications that talk about your climate or carbon strategy. Posts on social networks, emails to your customers, brochures or flyers, advertisements, etc.

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4. Be 100% transparent

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In addition to giving access to your approach, share EVERYTHING. Your carbon footprint, but also its characteristics: scope of study, period under consideration, scopes, etc. Transparency and honesty are the two words to remember. Because with transparency, you are not trying to deceive citizens.

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5. Highlight the positive AND the negative

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This ties in with the previous point. Being transparent means talking about the positive but also the negative. This is a state of mind that we are not used to, because we always want to talk only about what we do well and avoid topics that are potentially taboo. But we are in a society where trust is now needed between a brand and its customers or partners.

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By talking about what you are doing well as your weaknesses and areas for improvement, you will create a real relationship of trust. We'll know we can believe you. Because you're not trying to hide certain things. If you are still using polluting material or plastic packaging, for example, explain why you are doing it, why it is difficult to change today and what you plan to do in the future to improve the situation.

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The Brussels Beer Project example on this subject is great. We invite you to watch their communication on their site with their now famous “It's an imperfect adventure”.

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6. Don't use suggestive visuals in your carbon or climate communications

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By suggestive visual, we mean any illustration that is identified with nature or the planet. By doing so, you risk deceiving the consumer because you use the symbolism of these images to link them to your organization and thus indirectly improve your image. This is a case of greenwashing.

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So avoid images like this one. And we refer you to point 2 for carbon neutrality 😉

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7. Highlight the main impacts of your organization (not the minimal ones)

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Another typical case of greenwashing is highlighting off-topic (also called magnitude problems). Typically an organization that communicates about the hives installed in its garden or an airline about the fact that their cutlery is no longer plastic. Yes, they are great initiatives. But these represent a ridiculously small fraction of an organization's impact.

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By communicating on a small positive activity, you improve your image while the impact does not come from there, but from your core business (generally). In the case of the airline, the impact comes from the combustion of fossil fuels from airplanes, not from the plastic used on board.

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We therefore advise you not to communicate externally on these topics. Because you are going to be greenwashing. These are things that need to remain internal. Or you can also indicate the impact of your core business.

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8. Don't talk about commitments in the future without talking about the current situation

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Yes, it is essential for any organization to set goals. Reduce your carbon impact by 70% in 2040 for example. But don't focus the communication of your climate strategy on this. Because you then improve the image of your organization when nothing is being done today. This is a case of greenwashing.

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Instead, communicate on the actions you have already put in place and keep your goals internal. Nothing prevents you from communicating it to the general public as well, but it should not be the focus of your communication. And also, transparently, indicate that you are not perfect and that you still have work to do.

We hope you found this article helpful. We made it a webinar with Tapio, a carbon strategy toolkit, which we illustrated with concrete examples. You can find it HERE (start at 5 min).

We also support any structure on their communication (and their strategy) so that they are more responsible and without greenwashing at GiveActions. Contact us if you are interested. Contact us