What is “greenhushing”?

“Greenhushing” is a practice of deliberately choosing to hide ecological or environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) references to avoid accusations of greenwashing.

This practice is increasingly common among businesses that want to avoid criticism related to their environmental sustainability from customers, investors, and other stakeholders. Actors in the textile and clothing industry are particularly exposed to this phenomenon due to the extensive scrutiny and criticism directed at them.

Some investment funds have also chosen to no longer be classified as funds with sustainable investment goals to avoid criticism. It is important to note that greenhushing could be seen as the next step in the evolution of increasingly sophisticated greenwashing.

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What is Greenhushing?

“Greenhushing” (hushing which means “to silence” in English) is a new term used to describe the practice of deliberately choosing to hide references, environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) actions to avoid accusations of greenwashing.

This can happen when businesses are hesitant to share progress on sustainability initiatives and choose not to incorporate sustainability into their brand communication. They prefer to progress silently towards their goals. This term was first covered by the consulting firm Treehugger in 2020.

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What are the risks of Greenshushing?

• A loss of confidence on the part of customers and investors in businesses that practice greenhushing, which can have negative economic consequences for these businesses.

• A lack of transparency and visibility into the real sustainability efforts of companies, which can make it more difficult to move collectively towards a sustainable transition.

• An obstacle to the inspiration and emulation of other companies, which need to see the progress made in order to commit themselves to ambitious sustainability goals.

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What are the causes of Greenhushing?

The fear of reproaches or the “Let's live happy, live hidden”

It is possible that the concerns raised about the attitude of businesses to greenhushing are linked to a certain high level of requirements from civil society and investors in terms of communicating their commitments.

Management teams might feel cautious about reporting their ecological or sustainability progress, for fear of not meeting high standards or facing accusations of greenwashing.

It can also be a simple derivation from the current management philosophy: "'under-promise and over-deliver'.

An evolution of greenwashing

Planet Tracker has released a new report warning that corporate greenwashing has become a “multi-headed beast.” Indeed, Greenwashing has become a complex and multifaceted practice, which includes several different types of activities that aim to disguise the real actions and commitments of a company.

Greenhushing is one of the many faces of this beast, which involves deliberately withholding environmental or sustainability information to avoid scrutiny.

Greenhushing can be seen as an evolved form of this practice, which now involves not communicating about a company's harmful environmental policies rather than simply presenting them in a favourable light. By hiding this information, businesses can avoid criticism and pressure to improve their sustainability record, and it can be more difficult for consumers and investors to know if a business is truly committed to the environment.

It is important to remember that transparency is essential to ensure the trust of investors and civil society, but it is also important to consider the challenges businesses may face in collecting and sharing sustainability data.

Greenhushing example

For example, a company can reduce carbon emissions by investing in renewable energies or by optimizing its industrial processes to be more energy efficient. However, instead of highlighting these initiatives in its reports or communication campaigns, it chooses not to talk about them for fear of criticism on other less efficient aspects of its climate record.

In this case, although the company is making real progress in reducing its footprint carbon, she practices Greenhushing by failing to share these efforts to avoid accusations of Greenwashing or not meeting the high expectations on climate issues. This prevents stakeholders from having a comprehensive view of its actions to reduce emissions and hampers progress towards greater transparency in the fight against change. climatic.

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What are the challenges for businesses when it comes to collecting data?

Data collection costs

Collecting quality data on sustainable development performance can be resource-intensive (human and financial), time consuming, and complex. Especially for businesses that have extensive supply chains and global operations, when they are not equipped with an expert and specialized solution.

Data complexity

Data on extra-financial performance can be complex to understand and use. Businesses may have difficulty determining which relevant CSR indicators to track and using them for communication.

The non-standardization of data

There is a lack of standardization in collecting and reporting sustainability performance data, making it even more difficult for businesses to gather data.

Data uncertainties

Data uncertainty can also be a barrier for businesses that want to communicate about their sustainability performance. Businesses may be hesitant to share data that could be questioned, which can lead to a lack of trust from investors and customers.

Regulatory pressure

Businesses may also be hesitant to communicate about their sustainability performance due to increasing regulatory pressure. Regulators may be more likely to investigate misleading claims and businesses may prefer to avoid the risk of legal proceedings by not communicating about their performance.

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How can businesses avoid greenhushing?

To avoid the Greenhushing, businesses need to take a more transparent and proactive approach to sustainable communication. This may include:

• The regular publication of reports on ecological initiatives, for example, sharing the CSR actions implemented or the results of your carbon footprint.
• The adoption of sustainability data collection and reporting tools, such as those offered by solutions like Ditto, in order to ensure better accuracy and transparency of the information provided.

Transparency is key to building trust with stakeholders. Businesses should also recognize the challenges associated with collecting sustainability data, including costs, complexity, and standardization. However, by investing in specialized solutions, they can overcome these obstacles and avoid the pitfalls of Greenhushing.

Conclusion

In summary, collecting quality data on sustainability performance can be expensive, complex, difficult to standardize, and uncertain. Businesses may therefore be hesitant to communicate about their performance to avoid costs, uncertainties, and regulatory risks. This can lead to a lack of transparency and trust on the part of investors and stakeholders. To meet all these challenges, businesses can choose to invest in a specialized data collection solution like Ditto.

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