As commercial actors fund more than 90% of In The Same Boat’s activities, we are often confronted with the question: Is this greenwashing?
What is greenwashing?
To elaborate on that we should quickly take a look at the definition of greenwashing. Greenwashing is a form of advertising that deceptively uses green marketing to persuade the public that an organization’s products, goals, or policies are environmentally friendly.
Companies that intentionally adopt greenwashing communication strategies often do so to distance themselves from their environmental lapses or those of their suppliers. An example of greenwashing occurs when an organization spends significantly more resources on advertising being “green” than on environmentally sound practices.
Are we helping commercial sponsors to greenwash their brand?
The answer is a clear and obvious NO – our commercial sponsors are paying us because they are taking responsibility for improving the health of our oceans, just as much as any corporation or individual relying on a thriving and sustainable nature.
Most of our contributors are from industries that use plastics in their value chains, and it’s impossible to avoid that some of it gets lost. They are obligated to clean up after themselves. By supporting In The Same Boat, they not only get help for the practical part of cleaning up but also support an organization that spreads awareness about the problem and works on long-term solutions to prevent pollution.
But shouldn’t we put pressure on commercial actors?
No, we have chosen to focus on helping our partners with finding solutions: To find practical ways to reduce pollution, helping them make better choices, and take practical measures to reduce the amount of plastic in the ocean.
Our knowledge, resources, technology, and effort can make the greatest positive impact on life at sea and nature in general alongside other organizations that support the same goals and ambitions using other forms of activities and activism.
If commercial actors wouldn’t fund our activism, who should fund it?
By collaborating with commercial actors, we make the environmental impact, the issues, and the solutions a natural part of the value chain of any product or service.
This is necessary to solve our current environmental challenges and sustainability issues. Environmental costs have to be part of any value chain, which eventually means that the consumer and society will pay the costs. By implementing these principles throughout the value chains of corporations, responsibility is directly related to the industries. They will be motivated to reduce their environmental footprint, as it will also reduce their long-term costs and give them a better position in the market.
To make this happen, we also need a combination of responsible consumers who choose the most sustainable products, responsible politicians who pass the necessary legislations, and a responsible government that follows up.
We will do our part, continue to challenge our partners and develop solutions to reduce marine litter as efficiently as possible.
We will also continue to expose the challenges we face and be transparent about our work and the results we achieve.