Greenshifting involves companies implying that consumers are at fault, shifting the blame onto them.
This strategy emerges when firms emphasize what consumers can or should do to reduce emissions or positively impact the environment, despite being aware of the significant impact of their products or services.
Advertising agencies are expected to be more cautious about adopting this approach in the future, as it’s one of the more easily identifiable greenwashing tactics.
Greenlighting occurs when company communications, including advertisements, highlight particular green aspects of their operations or products, no matter how small, in order to divert attention from environmentally harmful activities conducted elsewhere.
This practice aims to showcase the company in a positive light by emphasizing only certain aspects, while other less sustainable operations might be overlooked.
It’s a strategy that can mislead consumers, focusing their attention on environmentally positive initiatives while neglecting less sustainable activities.
Greenbickering refers to a strategy adopted by a company to identify and counter deceptive or unfair “green” communication practices by competitors.
The term is a neologism combining two English words, “green,” which refers to environmentally sustainable practices and policies, and “bickering,” which indicates a conflict or dispute.
Greenbickering action by a company can manifest itself in various ways, including legal appeals.
Composed of plant components and biodegradable polymers, it is a family of fully biodegradable and compostable bioplastics with which solutions and products with reduced environmental impact are created for everyday life.
Economic theory according to which the adoption of demanding environmental policies identifies a causal relationship between regulation, innovation and competitiveness between companies, encouraging healthy competition.
In energy, Grid Parity means the “parity” between the cost of production of energy from renewable sources and the cost of purchasing energy produced from conventional sources (mainly fossil).
Integrated biosystems connect different food production activities with other operations such as
waste treatment and fuel generation.
Integrated biosystems treat production and consumption as a continuous closed loop system where outputs of one operation become inputs into another, thus reusing resources and minimising environmental impact.
Net Zero refers to achieving a balance between the amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced and the amount removed from the atmosphere.
This is usually done by reducing emissions as much as possible through measures such as switching to renewable energy sources, improving energy efficiency and using carbon capture technologies, and then offset the remaining emissions by investing in projects that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, such as reforestation or soil carbon sequestration
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Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) is a technique used in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to systematically collect and quantify information about inputs, outputs, and environmental impacts associated with a product, process, or service throughout its life cycle.
The quality and completeness of LCI data has a significant impact on the accuracy and reliability of LCA results.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published standards for conducting LCAs, including ISO 14040 and ISO 14044, which provide guidelines for the LCI phase of evaluation.
UNI EN ISO 14044:2006 is a standard that provides guidelines for the conduct of life cycle assessment (LCA) of products and services.
This standard outlines the principles and framework for the implementation of an LCA, including goal setting, inventory analysis, impact assessment and interpretation of results.
The purpose of this standard is to provide a coherent and transparent methodology for assessing the environmental impact of products and services throughout their life cycle.
UNI EN ISO 14040:2006 is a European standard that specifies the principles and framework for the conduct of life cycle assessments (LCA) of products and services.
It provides a systematic and comprehensive approach to assessing the environmental impacts of a product or service throughout its life cycle, from raw material extraction and production to distribution, use and disposal.
The standard outlines four phases of the LCA process: goal and scope definition, inventory analysis, impact assessment and interpretation.
Zero Waste (translated “Zero Waste”) is a philosophy and lifestyle that aims to reduce the amount of waste that is generated and sent to landfills or incinerators.
The goal of zero waste is to redesign how we produce and consume goods so that nothing is wasted or thrown away.
The concept of zero waste is based on the idea of a Circular Economy, where resources are kept in use for as long as possible, and waste is minimized through the use of sustainable materials and production methods.
Environmental education is an educational process that aims to raise people’s awareness of environmental problems and provide them with the knowledge, skills and motivation necessary to adopt more sustainable and environmentally responsible behaviour.
The main objective is to promote a cultural change that leads to a greater awareness of the impact of human activity on the environment and a concrete commitment to reduce this effect.
Social Life Cycle Assessment, or SLCA, is a methodology for assessing the social and socio-economic impact of a product or service throughout its life cycle.
The SLCA is based on a systematic and comparative assessment of social impact data in order to identify problems and opportunities for improvement throughout the supply chain.
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Extended Producer Responsibility is a legal principle that requires manufacturers of goods to take responsibility for the entire life cycle of their products, including final disposal.
In other words, manufacturers are required to manage their product even after it has been sold to the consumer.
REP encourages manufacturers to design products that can be safely and sustainably disposed of and implement waste management programs.
This implies that manufacturers must develop strategies for the recovery, recycling and management of their products at the end of their life cycle.
A Repair Café is a community-based initiative, where people share their experience and skills, on a voluntary basis, to other individuals and are places where people gather to repair household items, electronics and other everyday objects.
Overall, the Repair Café is a great way to promote sustainability by reducing waste and encouraging reuse and recycling.
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The Multifunctional Product is an object that summarizes several functions, such as smartphones or PCs, and the main objective is to provide the customer with added value, increasing its usefulness and convenience.
This product is of fundamental importance for the fight against waste, as it reduces the need to buy more products to perform different functions, which results in less waste, less material extraction and less environmental impact.
However, the realization of a multifunctional product can be a challenge, since it requires advanced design and technology, as well as a thorough knowledge of customers’ needs and their needs.
The product as a service(PaaS) is a business model that consists in offering a product as a continuous service, rather than as a single purchase.
In this model, the consumer pays for access to the product (temporary ownership), rather than for possession of the product itself, offering greater flexibility and freedom of choice, without having to bear the costs and responsibilities associated with ownership of a product.
paas requires a change of mentality for both consumers and companies, who must get used to thinking of products as long-term services.
The 9 R principle is a practical guide to reducing waste and promoting environmental sustainability.
The 9 Rs refer to nine actions that can be taken to reduce the environmental impact of an activity or a product, with a view to circularity, and are: Rethink, Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repair, Refurbish, Remanufacture, Recycle and Recover.
The term Green Hushing refers to false or misleading claims of corporate sustainability, and is used when a company has announced a climate goal, but does not intend to clearly advertise its commitment to achieving it.
It is the so-called “green silence”.
This can complicate the assessment of corporate climate goals, limit knowledge sharing on decarbonisation, lead to less ambitious goals and miss opportunities for cross-sectoral collaboration.
Anaerobic digestion is a biological process in which microorganisms decompose organic matter in the absence of oxygen to produce biogas, a methane-rich gas used as a renewable energy source.
Anaerobic digestion occurs in a closed environment called an anaerobic reactor.
The process involves bacteria that transform organic matter into a mixture of biogas and residual liquid called digestate.
Anaerobic digestion is a sustainable technology that can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, manage organic waste and produce renewable energy.
“Carbon zero” is a term similar to “carbon neutrality” and indicates the same goal of balancing the emissions of greenhouse gases produced by human activities with the ability of the Earth to absorb them.
In general, the term “carbon zero” refers to situations where the net environmental impact of human activities on the environment is zero in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, while the term “carbon neutrality” refers to situations where greenhouse gas emissions are balanced by a compensatory action that removes or reduces carbon emissions from the atmosphere.
Both terms are important targets for combating climate change and require concrete actions such as the use of renewable energy, energy efficiency and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
The BS 8001 standard is the English standard published in 2017 by the British standardization body BSI.
The BS 8001 standard aims to help organizations and individuals to consider and implement more circular and sustainable practices within their businesses, introducing better ways of working, providing more circular products and services or redesigning their entire business model.
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The AFNOR XP X30-901 standard is the French standard published in 2018 by the AFNOR standardization body and is the only international reference for the implementation of a management system for the circular economy of an organization.
It was created to be an international reference point for all companies that want to adopt circular solutions within their value chain, production systems or service delivery.
It also allows organizations to provide a methodology for managing and reporting on one or more projects for the transition to circular economy models.
Carbon Neutrality consists in achieving a balance between the emissions of greenhouse gases produced by human activities and the absorption capacity of the planet.
In order to achieve this, which the EU has declared as a target to be achieved by 2050, greenhouse gas emissions must be drastically reduced through more sustainable practices and the use of clean technologies, such as renewable energy sources.
In addition, it may be necessary to offset residual emissions through forest conservation, sustainable agriculture and other methods that remove carbon from the atmosphere.
ISO 14040 is an international standard that provides guidelines for life cycle assessment (LCA) of products and services.
The standard describes the principles and requirements for carrying out a life cycle analysis and establishes the procedures for the environmental impact assessment.
Life Cycle Analysis is a methodology used to assess the environmental impact of a product or service throughout its life cycle, from production to disposal.
ISO 14040 establishes the following principles for life cycle analysis:
The use of ISO 14040 provides useful information to improve the sustainability of products and services and to promote the adoption of sustainable practices in industry.
The carbon footprint is a measure of the environmental impact of human activities, in particular greenhouse gas emissions from energy consumption, transport use, industrial and agricultural activities, and waste management.
The carbon footprint measures the emissions, in particular, of carbon dioxide (CO2), but also of other gases such as methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), emitted into the atmosphere due to human activities.
The carbon footprint can be calculated at the individual, company or entire country level, and is expressed in tons of CO2 equivalent.
The calculation of the carbon footprint takes into account all phases of the life cycle of a product or service, from production to distribution, from consumption to disposal, and evaluates the energy used, the materials used, the distances travelled and other variables.
The carbon footprint has become an important tool in the fight against climate change, as it allows the identification of the main sources of greenhouse gas emissions and the identification of the actions needed to reduce them.
The Green Deal is a comprehensive plan proposed by the European Union (EU) to tackle climate change and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
The main goal of the Green Deal is to transform the EU’s economy to a sustainable, low-carbon, and circular economy that will benefit both the environment and society.
The Green Deal focuses on several key areas, including:
The Green Deal is a significant and ambitious initiative that requires a collective effort from all EU Member States, businesses, and citizens to achieve its goals.
Environmental Social Governance (ESG) is a set of criteria that are used by investors and companies to assess the degree of sustainability and social responsibility of business activities.
In particular, the ESG criteria are divided into three main categories: Environmental, Social and Governance.
The adoption of ESG criteria has become increasingly important in recent years, as these factors are increasingly relevant to investors and consumers who want to support companies with a sustainable footprint.
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Environmental certification is a certificate that certifies, through technical and regulatory criteria, a company’s commitment to limiting its negative impact on the environment.
Examples of certification are the Ecolabel, ISO 14001, EMAS, ISO 50001.
To obtain these recognitions, companies must apply to an authorised independent body. In Italy, authorisation is given by Accredia, the Italian Accreditation Body.
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The environmental label is a labelling and certification system that is used to identify products that have a reduced environmental impact compared to other similar products on the market.
The Environmental Label aims to declare the sustainability characteristics of a product or service.
They are fundamental tools to combat the practice of Green Washing by bodies, organizations and companies, so as to make communication to the final consumer as transparent as possible, so that they can make more sustainable purchasing choices.
In addition, the environmental label can also motivate companies to produce more sustainable products, as companies that obtain the environmental label can stand out from the competition and gain a reputation for sustainability.
In Europe, the most well-known environmental labelling system is the EU Ecolabel, which indicates that the product has been produced according to strict environmental standards established by the European Union.
Renewable energies are those sources of energy that regenerate naturally over time and do not run out, such as the sun, wind, water, biomass and geothermal energy, and can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and limit climate change.
These energy sources are becoming increasingly important globally, as they represent a sustainable alternative to non-renewable energy sources, such as oil, gas and coal, that are finite and produce greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change.
Renewable energies can be used to produce electricity, heating, cooling and transport.
Among the technologies used for the production of renewable energy are photovoltaic solar panels for the production of solar energy, wind turbines for the production of wind energy, hydroelectric power plants for the production of hydroelectric power and geothermal systems for the production of geothermal energy.
The green economy is a model of economic development that aims to achieve sustainable economic growth and environmental protection simultaneously.
The objective of the green economy is to create production and consumption systems that are able to preserve natural resources and promote social and economic welfare.
This model is based on the idea that sustainable development is only possible if innovative solutions are found to meet environmental and economic challenges.
In essence, the green economy aims to create a fairer and more sustainable economic system that can meet the needs of current generations without compromising the resources and opportunities of future generations.
The EU Ecolabel is a voluntary eco-label that is subject to certification by an independent organisation and is based on a set of scientifically established selection criteria that consider the environmental implications of goods or services for all their life cycle (competent body).
The European Union Ecolabel (EU Ecolabel) identifies goods and services that, while maintaining high performance requirements, are distinguished by a lower environmental impact over their entire life cycle.
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According to a specific idea known as “green chemistry”, chemical and chemical engineering studies are based on the creation of goods and procedures that reduce or completely eliminate the use and production of hazardous substances.
It refers to the entire life cycle of a chemical, including its creation, use and disposal.
It is, by definition, the design of chemical products and processes that minimize or completely avoid the use or generation of compounds that could endanger people or the environment.
Since it is preferable to avoid waste rather than treat it or dispose of it after its production, synthetic arrangements for the use and production of chemicals with the least possible amount of toxicity should be established.
In order to find the most environmentally friendly design solution, product or service throughout its life cycle, taking into account the profitability of the market, minimum environmental criteria (CAM) are environmental requirements established for the various stages of the purchase process.
By decree of the Ministry of Ecological Transition, CAMs are defined as a component of the Plan for the Environmental Sustainability of Consumption in the Public Administration Sector.
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The study and imitation of biological and biomechanical processes in nature and living beings is known as biomimicry and serves as a source of inspiration for the progress of human endeavors and technology.
Nature is used in the design of technical products and articles as a model, measure and guide.
The creation of projects based on biomimicry requires an understanding of how natural systems work to apply these principles to human inventions.
Biomass is the organic material produced by plants and animals that has been specifically treated for use as biofuel in power plants.
It is a renewable energy source that reduces dependence on fossil fuels. The organic materials from which energy is derived are agricultural waste, green twigs from forestry and agriculture, municipal organic waste, processing waste from the agri-food industry, firewood residues and algae.
The combustion of biomass produces heat and generates a quantity of carbon dioxide similar to that produced by a typical process of photosynthesis in nature.
The 2030 Agenda, approved on 25 September 2015 at the General Assembly of the United Nations and signed by the 193 UN member countries, indicates 17 objectives (sdgs) and 169 “targets” or sub-targets to be reached by 2030.
It represents the new global reference framework for national and international efforts to find common solutions to the great challenges of the planet, such as extreme poverty, climate change, environmental degradation and health crises.
They are common Objectives that concern all countries and all individuals: no one is excluded from them, nor must they be left behind along the necessary path to bring the world on the path to sustainability.
According to the definition of the European Commission, the bioeconomy “concerns all sectors and systems based on biological resources (animal and plant species, micro-organisms and the resulting biomass, including organic waste)”, or includes “all primary production sectors using and producing biological resources (agriculture, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture), and all economic and industrial sectors using biological resources and processes for the production of food, feed, bio-based products, energy and services”.
Moving away from fossil raw materials towards a circular and sustainable economy based on biological resources and processes and oriented to the natural cycles of materials, is what represents the concept of bioeconomy.
Sustainable Finance is that branch of finance that operates within the market by analysing investments through two main instruments: ESG criteria and Socially Responsible Investment (ESG).
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