A beginner’s guide to greenwashing and four ways to avoid falling for it

nito/Shutterstock, CC BY-NC-ND Lala Rukh, University of Galway

Growing up in a Pakistani village in the 2000s, sustainability was embedded throughout my daily life. My family has always been cautious of wasting energy, gas or water because these resources are expensive. We grew most of our own vegetables and reared poultry for eggs. By just buying a few essential groceries from the nearby market, we produced very little household waste. Food scraps were fed to our cattle, and we’d save any plastic bags to reuse.

Editor’s note: When a hurricane like Helene or Milton ravages coastal communities, already-strained first responders face a novel, and growing, threat: the lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles, store PV solar, e-bikes, and countless gadgets. When exposed to the salty water of a storm surge or extreme heat, they are at risk of bursting into flames — and taking an entire house with them.

“Anything that’s lithium-ion and exposed to salt water can have an issue,” said Bill Morelli, the fire chief in Seminole, Florida, and the bigger the battery, the greater the threat. That’s what makes EVs especially hazardous. “[The problem] has expanded as they continue to be more and more popular.”

On December 14th 1982, a blockade was launched to stop the construction of a hydroelectric dam that would have flooded Tasmania’s Franklin and Gordon rivers and surrounding old-growth forests. Over the next 3 months, over 1,340 people were arrested for trespassing, occupying roads and work sites, and chaining themselves to equipment. The protest gained widespread national and global support and played a major role in the cancellation of the project.

Tasmanian Wilderness Society blocks dam construction (Franklin River Campaign) 1981-83

By Asha Miriam Stobbe Reimer / THE COMMONS

Editor’s note: This article was written over a year and a half ago. Things are so much more worse now. Overshoot

Critics of ‘degrowth’ economics say it’s unworkable – but from an ecologist’s perspective, it’s inevitable

Shutterstock/Matt Sheumack Mike Joy, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington

You may not have noticed, but earlier this month we passed Earth overshoot day, when humanity’s demands for ecological resources and services exceeded what our planet can regenerate annually.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Organization: Save Long Beach Island, Inc. (Save LBI)

Contact: Bob Stern, Ph.D., President Email: info@savelbi.org Phone: 917-952-5016

Contact: Attorney – Thomas Stavola, Jr., Esq.                                                       Email: tstavolajr@stavolalaw.com Phone: 732-539-7244

January 13, 2025

Save LBI Sues U.S. Agencies and Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, Challenging Federal Approvals Greenlighting Marine Ecosystem Devastation, Including Risks to Critically Endangered Whales

LONG BEACH ISLAND (LBI), NEW JERSEY, January 13, 2025 – Save LBI, an organization that has been actively litigating issues surrounding marine mammal, human health, economic and other impacts connected to offshore wind industrialization off New Jersey since 2022, has filed suit against the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Marine Fisheries Service, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, U.S. Department of Interior, and the Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind project for violations of a number of federal environmental statutes.

Editor’s note: “75 of the world’s largest 114 fossil fuel companies have now made net zero by 2050 commitments, yet not a single fossil fuel company has committed to phasing out oil and gas production by 2050 nor have any committed to ending exploration for new oil and gas fields or halting the extraction of existing reserves.”

" Real Zero, not greenwashed ‘net zero,’ is essential . As the Corporate Accountability report concludes, it’s time to reject the big polluters’ agenda and implement programs that rapidly phase out fossil fuels and truly eliminate greenhouse gas emissions."

By GERRY MCGOVERN, SUE BRANFORD / Mongabay

In 2022, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres declared that the “lifeline of renewable energy can steer [the] world out of climate crisis.” In saying so, he echoed a popular and tantalizing idea: that, if we hurry, we can erase the climate emergency with widespread adoption of renewables in the form of solar panels, wind farms, electric vehicles and more.

But things aren’t that simple, and analysts increasingly question the naïve assumption that renewables are a silver bullet.

Join Us During the New Moon For A DGR New Year’s Eve! 🌑

No matter how dark the night, the sun will return.

Join DGR on Facebook for some New Year’s Eve tidings of comfort and joy . . . and bears and lions, cave paintings and bison, hope and resistance.

We have a live hour-long program, featuring Derrick Jensen, Lierre Keith, and Deanna Meyer–and you! There’s time at the end for your questions.

By Olivia Rosane is a staff writer for Common Dreams from Dec 02, 2024

Environmental organizations cheered as Norway’s controversial plans to move forward with deep-sea mining in the vulnerable Arctic Ocean were iced on Sunday.

The pause was won in Norway’s parliament by the small Socialist Left (SV) Party in exchange for its support in passing the government’s 2025 budget.

“Today marks a monumental victory for the ocean, as the SV Party in Norway has successfully blocked the controversial plan to issue deep-sea mining licenses for the country’s extended continental shelf in the Arctic,” Steve Trent, CEO and founder of the Environmental Justice Foundation, said in a statement. “This decision is a testament to the power of principled, courageous political action, and it is a moment to celebrate for environmental advocates, ocean ecosystems, and future generations alike.”

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash