Goran Janjic’s Post

Fantastic breakdown of the mechanisms by which carbon offset markets enable greenwashing. If I would add a further impact is the reduced resilience of the timber forests against increasingly likely wildfires - the timber industry led, highly flammable spruce reforestation in Ontario, and the massive wildfires that have resulted from it is a prime example.

Don’t let greenwashing get in the way of a flashy story. This was clearly the view of Apple, with their “Mother Nature” video that went viral a couple of months back. Among their bold claims, they said that they had produced their first carbon-neutral product. However, those claims were found to be dubious at best when put under even a small amount of scrutiny: - NewClimate Institute said that the claim that all of their manufacturing only used clean energy was “highly contentious.” - Other research has found “systemic flaws” in the carbon offsets that Apple used to make its carbon-neutral claims. - You can find the whole dismantling of Apple's claims in this FT article: https://lnkd.in/drkAxjxZ Apple clearly is doing a great job of making their products more sustainable, but faking it till you make it doesn't really work for climate change: - It can mislead people into thinking everything is going to be okay, Apple has everything under control - It breeds complacency, leading to misallocation of resources that should be going toward fighting climate change - A loss of trust, meaning real policies won’t get the support they need - And, of course, the environmental harm and climate inaction we can not afford What does this tell us? Good storytelling is critical for people to care about climate change. But the storytelling has to come from a place of truth, transparency, and accountability. Backed up by audited data from companies like my company Good.Lab Spraying the green sheen across your products and services will never work in the long run for your company or the climate.

Apple talked a big game about the enviromental impact of their upcoming products in their latest keynote. Througout the presentation, the attorney in me's stomach turned more than the consumer in me (who enjoys Apple products) was excited about the new announcements. The EU Parliment and Council agreed just last month that "claims based on emissions offsetting schemes that a product has neutral, reduced or positive impact on the environment" shall be banned from 2026. Generic enviromental claims, such as "carbon neutral" is of course also banned as misleading "without proof of recognised excellent environmental performance relevant to the claim". Any progress is good and we should of course watch how much we scold companies for trying (for whatever reason), but the message is clear: greenwashing bad. It will be interested to see how and to what extend the regulation will be enforced. You can read more about the EU's announcement of the upcoming regulation here: https://lnkd.in/gjn28crY #greenwashing #marketinglaw

🌍 Understanding Net-Zero: Is It Enough for Companies to Claim This Status? In today's increasingly climate-conscious landscape, many companies proudly advertise that they want to achieve "net zero status". For stakeholders, investors and concerned citizens, however, the authenticity of these claims raises relevant questions. In simple terms, climate neutrality involves calculating, reducing, and offsetting a CO2 footprint. The outcome is a balance between emissions generated on one side and avoided emissions on the other – achieving neutrality. However, the journey to Net-Zero requires more than just declarations. It demands concrete #actions and #transparent initiatives: ✅ Transparent #Reporting: Companies must openly share accurate, comprehensive data about emissions and reduction strategies. ✅ Science-Based Targets: Setting goals aligned with scientifically validated criteria to ensure ambitious actions in line with climate science. ✅ Visible #Action Plans: Outlining specific steps and investments to reduce carbon footprints and actively combat climate change. 💡 ⚠ Statistically, while 6,380 global companies have committed to emission reduction under STBi, only 40% target net zero by 2050. Merely 7.3% have secured SBTi-approved 1.5C-aligned targets.* This illustrates the great distance we still have to cover on our journey to net zero. I thank Thomas Harre and Isaac Smadja for their insightful discussion during the "ESG Roadmap class" at HEC Paris on this topic! Additionally, here's an insightful article from the Financial Times questioning Apple's claim of a "carbon-neutral" Apple Watch. The European Parliament and Council's recent agreement aims to ban "misleading advertisements" related to environmental impact claims. --> https://on.ft.com/3SbABFt 🌿💡 #NetZeroCommitment #ClimateAction #ScienceBasedTargets #SustainabilityJourney *Numbers as of October 2023, sourced from the STBi website and the ESG Roadmap Course at HEC.

The new Apple Watch proves it: #communication on #sustainability is a big challenge. The term sustainability is used inflationary - it has lost its value. That is why communication focuses on concrete properties of the products, ideally on the fact that they are #carbonneutral. This is walking on thin ice, because #science and #marketing are in system competition here. What is #greenwashing, what creates an #impact and makes a substantial contribution to stopping #climatechange? The competition is on, and companies, consumers and politicians are called upon to discuss on criteria for evaluation. Marketing and #corporatecommunications must learn to make fact-based decisions about which stories they use to exemplify their company's sustainability promise and #purpose. This is our challenge and our opportunity, also at Clariant and in the whole #chemicalindustry. Saying nothing is not an option - it is not a time for procrastinators.   #eugreendeal #ESG #sustainability #climateneutrality #greenwashing

I took a careful look at what Apple meant when it said it launched its first "carbon neutral" product. Across the board, everyone I spoke with for this story agreed Apple's emissions reductions were impressive and its accounting transparency in its environmental reports was respectable. Apple was not able to reduce 22% of the emissions associated with the production of its watch. To compensate, Apple purchased what it determined to be high-quality carbon offsets. Depending on who you talk to, dubbing a product “carbon neutral” when the accounting requires buying carbon credits is either Apple acting responsibly and doing the best it can to contribute to climate mitigation strategies that are available right now, or an irresponsible misrepresentation of what “carbon neutral” should mean. The distance between those two analyses is substantial and virtually irreconcilable. It’s also a poignant indication of the distance between where climate mitigation ambitions and climate mitigation realities are right now. Thank you to Elizabeth Sturcken, managing director of the nonprofit climate advocacy organization Environmental Defense Fund; Barbara Haya, director of the Berkeley Carbon Trading Project at the Goldman School of Public Policy at University of California, Berkeley; Reena Skribbe and Thomas Day at the nonprofit organization NewClimate Institute; Michael Ackerman, CEO of Ecoforests Asset Management, a company that coordinate forestry investment in Latin America; and Sarah Chandler, Apple’s vice president of environment and supply chain innovation, for being willing to speak with me about this very complicated and nuanced topic. #CarbonNeutral #carbonCredits #supplychain #climatechange #climatetech

More and Better: Companies that offset should be praised IF they have a credible decarbonization plan. It is unrealistic to expect Apple to be at zero emissions immediately and if you do then you should not have a mobile phone at all. In fact, offsets should be mandatory for most companies as a financial incentive for them to get to zero emissions as fast as possible. Publications should Stop chasing sensational clickbait! #carbonfootprint #clickbait #carbonemissions #sustainability Verra Gold Standard Apple #carbonoffset #carbonoffsetting #apple https://lnkd.in/g7KfkAbp

Carbon credits! 🌳 It's a vast subject that is unleashing passions. This supposedly virtuous tool, which is supposed to help us achieve Net Zero, now has a bad reputation because of abuses and misuse. For a long time, it has been used by many companies to buy themselves a good ecological conscience without taking any real steps to make structural changes in their production methods. So does planting trees on one side of the planet give companies carte blanche to continue polluting on the other side? The question was raised again when Apple, at its latest keynote, presented its new Apple Watch, which it claims is its first 'carbon-neutral' product. So, is this carbon credit greenwashing or a genuine effort to reduce emissions? 🤔 It has to be said that they have made excellent use of carbon credits. Clean electricity, use of recycled or renewable products, drastic reduction in air transport... the carbon credits have only served to offset the residual emissions linked to the production of their watch This strategy, led by one of the world's largest groups, has put the spotlight back on carbon credits and what should be done with them. It's time to rethink the use of carbon credits, to make them a tool at the service of a global strategy to reduce emissions, because "net-zero" only exists on a global scale, rather than a means of corporate communication 🚀. 👉 https://lnkd.in/eYRsG-5v

Apple Commits to Carbon Neutral Products ! Exciting News. But beware the risk of misleading environmental claims.   Last Tuesday (12/09) Apple made a groundbreaking announcement! The tech giant pledged to produce Carbon Neutral Products, a significant push towards a greener future.   🍏 Apple's Vision: beyond technology. By 2030 every Apple's product should have a net-zero climate impact throughout the entire product life cycle. An ambitious GHG reduction plan will be deployed and remaining emissions will be offset with high quality carbon credits.   Applauding Apple's commitment to environmental stewardship is essential! It sets a great example for the industry and demonstrates that a company can excel in both innovation and sustainability.  👉Apple's commitment: https://lnkd.in/eHSwvgaU   ⚠Warning: relevant green marketing efforts can quickly backfire with risk of greenwashing charges⚠   While we celebrate such initiatives, it's crucial to be vigilant about green communication.  Given the increasing environmental awareness, companies must carefully choose how to communicate environmental claims. Strictest regulations, such as the European Union Greenwashing Directive that will ban misleading environmental claims such as ‘eco-friendly’, ‘green’, or ‘carbon neutral'.   Communicating about 'carbon neutral' products where product's carbon footprint is offset (even after a significant GHG reduction effort) is already considered as greenwashing, at least in the EU (facing possible legal and financial consequences).   To avoid backlash, companies should rely on a robust and credible communication at the core of their sustainability initiatives. It's not just about what you claim. It's also about what you prove and communicate.   Carbon Offset Certification is a Swiss-based and independent certification label developed in partnership with Bureau Veritas Group to guarantee credibility of environmental claims for carbon offset commodities, products or services through a transparent protocol based on strictest regulations, GHG accounting & carbon standards.   👉'EU Greenwashing Directive': https://lnkd.in/e6NMHFsb   🌱 A greener future 🌱  In this journey towards a more sustainable future, let's continue to celebrate companies making genuine efforts to reduce their carbon footprint and propose 'green' solutions. But let's support also robust verified and certified environmental communication.   💬 Your Thoughts? 💬  What are your thoughts on Apple's latest commitment to carbon neutrality? How can we collectively hold companies accountable for their environmental claims? 🌍✨     Chris Busch Aidan Turnbull Laura Meadors #Sustainability #CarbonNeutral #EnvironmentalCommitment #GreenTech #Apple #Innovation #ClimateAction #GreenwashingAwareness #Sustainability #CarbonNeutral #EnvironmentalResponsibility #GreenMarketing #EURegulations 

😅 Guess Apple Won't Be Selling Carbon Neutral Watches After All 😅 (At least not in Europe in 2026 😋) We've already got them to change their charging ports maybe we can get them to fix their marketing too 🇪🇺 So obviously Carbon Neutral is nonsense since, even if your offsets are valid (with stories breaking every month about established offsets being bogus), if everyone kept polluting and offsetting we'd all die just as hard. Yes to carbon capture and removal, no to pretending it allows you to business-as-usual. But also Carbon Neutral is actually a missed marketing opportunity. Customers don't understand Carbon Neutral nevermind care about it 🥱 1) Get yourself on the path to genuine systemic change, 2) prove it and 3) tell your story with the proof built in. That's the kind of content we all want to see right now 🚀 #greenwashing #greenmarketing #transparency #climatetech #sustainability