EDM Sustainable Business 2022

SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS 2022
Go Ahead and Greenwash!
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In the fight against climate change, companies
must now take responsibility and step
up efforts in the area of climate protection.
This is true even if strategies and plans are
not yet perfectly developed. Inaction and
hesitation out of fear of possible criticism
harm everyone: the climate and the companies
themselves. A plea for quick action
and against inconsiderate “greenwashing”
accusations.
Stopping climate change is our global task of
the century. Unfortunately, we are three ways
behind in tackling this task: Total greenhouse
gas emissions, time, and money.
As a society, we are still emitting far too many
greenhouse gases. No matter whether you look
at the reports of the Intergovernmental Panel
for Climate Change or the presentation of the
Climate Action Tracker. Also, the decarbonization
of our economy and our lives is still well
behind schedule. For mobility and production,
we keep on pumping and, above all, burning
fossil fuels.
A shockingly unnecessary reason for this is that
it is still worth it. The cost of switching energy
supplies to renewables and changing processes
and supply chains - transportation is just one
small example in a larger problem area - still
seems to be considered higher than continuing
with the status quo. Admittedly, we also see “divestment”
activities, i.e., a stop to all financing of
fossil industries, which should not be underestimated.
Nevertheless, these existing business
models are still seen as tempting diversifying
investments, especially from the perspective
of large pension and retirement funds. Where
climate change is already being experienced
today, it deprives people of their livelihoods.
Mitigation and recovery mechanisms exist, but
financial resources are lacking.
These three aspects - that we are emitting too
many emissions, that we are behind schedule,
and that we are underfunding or misfunding -
reinforce each other. To overcome this dilemma,
every immediate contribution counts. The rule
that “fast” beats “perfect” also applies to climate
protection.
Too afraid of Trial and Error
The “trial and error” principle, i.e., a typically
Anglo-Saxon approach, is a tried and tested
method for corporate climate protection as
well. Unfortunately, there are concerns that a
climate plan that has not yet been fully thought
through and strategically implemented will
provoke a negative, contrary reaction; after all,
no company wants to be suspected of greenwashing.
Not to be misunderstood: No one
denies that there is such a thing as “greenwashing.”
But “real” greenwashing is much less often
behind actual accusations than it might seem.
Indeed, empty bluster, the deliberate exaggeration
of small, ineffective fig leaf activities, is
wrongly conflated in the debate with climate
protection in its early stages and with a learning
curve. And as a result, the accusations of “greenwashing”
achieve the opposite effect. Efforts
in climate protection are kept on a low flame,
concealed or not implemented at all, which is
fatal.
Long-distance race of
corporate climate protection
The path to a sustainable economy is a marathon,
not a sprint. The goal is clear: companies
should aim for “net-zero” operations. Net-zero
deliberately accepts the lowest possible residual
emissions, which are then offset, for example,
by projects that remove CO2 emissions from
the atmosphere (carbon capture). In terms of
today, this means that CO2 emissions must be
drastically reduced at the corporate level.
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