Combating Greenwashing Tactics and Embracing the Economic Success of Sustainability

Keywords: Green washing, Sustainability, Legislative framework, Consumer education

Abstract

Green Washing refers to the deceptive practice of making a company or its products appear more environmentally friendly than they genuinely are, often to capitalize on the growing consumer demand for sustainable and eco-conscious choices. Eliminating Green Washing is essential for the development of sustainable business practises and for safeguarding customers from fraudulent, greenwashed promises. The paper seeks to bridge theory and practise by offering an analysis of ten firms accused of greenwashing. Thus, the paper considers deliberate organisational and communicative practises that go beyond greenwashing's most obvious forms. Based on these instances, prevalent communication blunders and corporate misconduct behaviours in corporate sustainability are exposed. A strong legislative framework is urgently needed to make sure that businesses that make false environmental claims are held accountable and subject to severe fines to have a deterrent impact. Better consumer education and knowledge about the problem of "green washing" and how to spot it are also necessary. Businesses can adopt third-party certification programmes and independent audits. Companies should endeavour to be upfront and honest in their environmental claims, prioritise sustainability, and encourage good governance to avoid "greenwashing."

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Baum L (2012) It’s Not Easy Being Green … Or Is It? A content analysis of environmental claims in magazine advertisements from the United States and United Kingdom. Environ Commun 6(4):423–440. https://doi. org/10.1080/17524032.2012.724022

Chen Y, Lin C, Chang C (2013) The influence of greenwash on green word-of-mouth (green WOM): the mediation effects of green perceived quality and green satisfaction. Qual Quant 48(5):2411–2425. https://doi. org/10.1007/s11135-013-9898-1

De Freitas Netto, S.V.; Sobral, M.F.F.; Ribeiro, A.R.B. et al.: Concepts and forms of greenwashing: a systematic review. Environ Sci Eur 32, 19 (2020), URL: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12302-020-0300-3

Delmas M, Burbano V (2011) The drivers of greenwashing. Calif Manag Rev 54(1):64–87. https://doi.org/10.1525/cmr.2011.54.1.64

Gupta, A., Mittal, P., Gupta, P. K., & Bansal, S. (2022). Implication of Privacy Laws and Importance of ICTs to Government Vision of the Future (pp. 383–391).

Gupta, P. K., & Mittal, P. (2022). Fuzzy bundling of corporate governance practices and performance of Indian firms. Corporate Governance (Bingley), 22(2), 257–277.

Hsu T (2011) Skepticism grows over products touted as eco-friendly. https://www.latimes.com/business/la-xpm-2011-may-21-la-f-green wash-20110521-story.html.

Mandal, A., Saxena, A., & Mittal, P. (2022). Financial literacy and digital product use for financial inclusion: A GETU model to develop financial literacy. In 2022 8th International Conference on Advanced Computing and Communication Systems (ICACCS) (pp. 1614–1619).

Nyilasy G, Gangadharbatla H, Paladino A (2014) Perceived greenwashing: the interactive effects of green advertising and corporate environmental performance on consumer reactions. J Bus Ethics 125(4):693–707. https:// doi.org/10.1007/s10551-013-1944-3

Pearson J (2010) Turning point. Are we doing the right thing? Leadership and prioritisation for public benefit. J Corp Citizensh 2010(37):37–40. https://doi.org/10.9774/gleaf.4700.2010.sp.00006

Tateishi E (2017) Craving gains and claiming “green” by cutting greens? An exploratory analysis of greenfield housing developments in Iskandar Malaysia. J Urban Af 40(3):370–393. https://doi.org/10.1080/07352 166.2017.1355667

Published
2023-09-11
How to Cite
Verma, M., & Bharti, U. (2023). Combating Greenwashing Tactics and Embracing the Economic Success of Sustainability. VEETHIKA-An International Interdisciplinary Research Journal, 9(3), 6-12. https://doi.org/10.48001/veethika.2023.09.03.002
Section
Articles