Welcome to Information Wasteland, a series about the many ways misinformation is worming its way into our algorithms and minds, wreaking havoc on our culture. This story explains what greenwashing is, and how to spot and avoid it.
There isn’t anything inherently wrong with using buzzwords in marketing. They bring people in, grab attention, and they can connect the dots with easy-to-understand language. However, sometimes buzzwords can dilute meaning, and in fashion, that can have a sinister impact. Greenwashing is a deceptive marketing tactic in which brands or influencers promote marginal improvements in environmental impact and use them to indicate a larger shift. Like when a fast-fashion brand uses recycled polyester and calls it a sustainable move, while still overproducing large quantities of clothing that use significant amounts of water and contribute to the waste cycle.
It’s not the improvement that’s the problem; it’s the marketing. If a brand isn’t backing up its positive climate and labor initiatives with actions that will actually drive change, it’s misdirecting consumers.
And now, on social media, it happens constantly, and it can be impossible to avoid. “I think like all of social media, it’s brought out the best and worst of everything,” Jazmine Brown, a fashion content creator and founder of Sustainable Baddie, tells Teen Vogue. In October, SHEIN, a fast fashion brand known for overproducing large quantities of clothing made from fossil fuel-based materials, started a TikTok post with an earth and recycling emoji. The announcement? Seven facilities have been certified “Zero Waste to Landfill by TÜV Rheinland.” This is a good thing, but the brand is by no means zero waste. These seven were certified, but the company operates with 5,400 facilities and serves over 160 countries.
Not everyone is an expert in fashion supply chains (and they shouldn’t have to be), and they may not know that SHEIN has more facilities than the few that they are pointing out in this announcement. It could lead you to believe that the brand is making larger changes across all its facilities, even though nothing indicates that. And for people who like buying fast fashion for a variety of reasons — be it style or price — that claim might be enough to gloss over the rest of the environmental issues.
“Everyone’s algorithm is different. If someone is following a lot of brands, specifically fast fashion brands, on social media, they might be more susceptible to falling for greenwashing tactics and might not see the activism that is happening on the other side of the internet,” fashion content creator Miranda Sanchez says.
