A couple of things:
1) The less rosy article by Fast Company is based on Stand.earth's methodology. Their methodology is focused on how well brands are attempting to shift their supply chains away from fossil fuel. So instead of scoring brands against an average, or against each other (which is what most methologies do), they score brands against one hard yardstick.
2) The more rosy W Magazine article is focused on touting brand's innovations to combat myriad sustainability issues, from GHG emissions to microplastics to ethical sourcing.
What's my take? I like Stand.earth's concept of focusing on fossil fuel use. They are correct in stating that- generally speaking- manufacturing tends to be the highest emitter of GHGs, and the majority of that is based on the energy used. Some greenwashing does happen when there is no evidence of changing the hotspots in GHG emissions. In addition, changing your supply chain is incredibly complicated because of all the pieces involved; brands that are trying to shift to renewable energy at every step of their manufacturing and shipping should be lauded.
On the other hand, sustainability (as I've explained to a lot of non-sustainability people) is much more than carbon accounting. The environment is a dynamic, non-linear system; fossil fuel is tied to water scarcity, land use, and biodiversity. Cotton, for example, is much more water-intensive than many other fabrics, and organic cotton is better in this regard. At the same time, some may argue that synthetics have a longer lifespan than cotton. I could go into this incredibly complicated topic much more......
Both articles however point to the concept that brands are innovating at a rapid pace, while not doing enough at all. The truth is, none of us are doing enough, which is why we're in this mess in the first place. While it's great to applaud the innovative steps we take, and therefore raise enthusiasm and curiosity, ultimately we need to take approaches like stand.earth for a more robust measurement against reality's yardstick. I'd love to see a future where we take a measurement approach for all sorts of sustainability issues.
Originally published on 2021-09-18
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