UPSC Aspirant 2025-26

India still punches below its weight in global affairs, says Brahma Chellaney | Mint https://www.livemint.com/news/india/india-still-punches-below-its-weight-in-global-affairs-says-brahma-chellaney-11668593724358.html #psir #IR

#prelims2023

Context: UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned companies and other non-state entities pursing net-zero goals for themselves against indulging in ‘greenwashing’ Greenwashing: 1. It refers to the growing tendency of companies, organisations and even countries to mark all kinds of activities as climate-friendly, often with dubious, unverifiable or misleading claims (fibbing). a. Origin of the term: The term “greenwashing” was originally coined by prominent environmentalist Jay Westerveld in a 1986 essay in which he claimed the hotel industry falsely promoted the reuse of towels as part of a broader environmental strategy; when, in fact, the act was designed as a cost-saving measure. 2. In their bid to showcase their concern for the environment and nature, they often resort to short-cuts, obtain untrustworthy certifications, or indulge in plain intentional misinformation. 3. It is prevalent across the whole range of environmental activities. 4. Example: a. Developed countries are often accused of greenwashing their investments in developing countries, by highlighting climate co-benefits of the financial flows, often with little justification. b. Companies are accused of greenwashing their image by sponsoring a green award or conference, while carrying on with their environment-damaging business activities elsewhere. c. A good example that I can quote here is of Volkswagen emissions scandal: The company cheated on emissions testing by fitting a variety of cars with a “defect” device that incorporated software that could detect when an emissions test was being conducted and adjust the performance to reduce the emissions level. d. Coca-Cola's Innocent Drinks company; Nestle, and IKEA. 5. When two or more entities claim the climate benefits of the same action is known as double counting and is also considered as greenwashing. 6. The generation, certification and trade of carbon credits in voluntary settings often leads to lot of greenwashing. 7. Greenwashing can also happen when a business tries to hide its involvement in ecologically harmful actions by emphasising the sustainable qualities of a product. Concern: Greenwashing presents a false picture of the progress being made on the climate change front, thereby pushing the world towards disaster, while at the same time rewarding companies or entities for irresponsible behaviour. Developments so far: UN Secretary General had set up an expert group last year (now you know why there was question on greenwashing in UPSC CSP 2022) solely to look into this and recommend corrective measures. Green marketing: In simple words, it means promotion of ecologically friendly goods, services, and projects. it is also known as environmental marketing. #TermsInNews #prelims2023 ☑️Source: Indian Express