greenwashing

when companies pretend to be environmentally friendly when in fact they are not.

Both are examples of "greenwashing".

- planting a tree to clear your conscience of your new carbon emitting SUV purchase.

- Kyoto accord, the theory of emissions credits, where a country may go over their limit, but instead of dealing with the issue they just buy the unused credits off of a country that has not used all of theirs.

by Pete @ Humber October 2, 2007

Greenwashing

Taking superficial, PR actions to make your company or organization appealing to people concerned about the environment.

BP's greenwashing campaign to appeal to the climate change crowd has caught up with them.

by TartanMarine June 26, 2010

greenwashing

The act of corporations using public relations propaganda to distract from corporate malfeasance in their environmental policy, in order to give the impression that the degraders are benign, beneficial, or caring about the environment.

Instead of addressing environmental concerns, all Exxon Incorporated did after their last oiltanker spill was a greenwashing of the issue by printing up lots of glossy advertising posters with happy children playing in the ocean, talking about the 100 birds they scrapped oil off of out of the kindness of their hearts--while completely ignoring they destroyed hundreds of square miles of oceanfront.

by mdw January 20, 2004

greenwashing

an attempt by companies to take their products and making them seem more biologically and/or environmentally friendly

greenwashing to me is a form of hypocrisy

by Sexydimma March 20, 2021

greenwashing

an attempt by companies to take their products and making them seem more biologically and/or environmentally friendly

greenwashing to me is a form of hypocrisy

by Sexydimma October 29, 2017

Greenwashing

Haters working hard for the first time in their life to ruin the incremental improvement to being more sustainable.

Stop greenwashing bro, it's embarrassing.

by Theguys2021 April 2, 2021

greenwashing

When a celebrity, business owner, company, etc. puts up a front of being sustainable so that the public approves of them and their business. Most times this is because they got called out for being unsustainable and following fast-fashion practices.

"Did you hear Kim K is trying to greenwash herself AGAIN!"

"Shein is so sustainable!"
"Girl don't believe them. They're just greenwashing themselves."

by not._home. November 21, 2022