Continuing where Part One of this series left off, let’s look at the next major stage of activities planned for the Global Ecolabelling Network (GEN). According to Board Chairman John Polak, there are a couple of key priorities.
First, GEN needs to recapture the high ground on ecolabelling. While GEN has by and large managed to debunk the global trade concerns that were at the forefront in the 1990s (mainly that ecolabelling would act as a barrier to trade), the mindset of ecolabels as over-abundant and unreliable hasn’t entirely gone away. This is because everything is being lumped into the ecolabel category. To combat misconceptions, John says that GEN is looking at launching a media campaign. The idea is to help increase awareness of what constitutes a real ecolabel – something (like EcoLogo) that would pass the screening test of the Six Sins of Greenwashing.
Second, GEN needs to address the scope of ecolabelling. Ecolabelling has become popular because companies are looking for environmental credentials. But while today’s ecolabels address design standards, process standards and performance standards, nobody yet provides credentials for how a business operates as a whole. This is a complex issue and one around which I have trouble even imagining all the pieces. Does creating a standard for how a business operates include regulations for individual employee behavior? Does it include regulations for profit spending? How about continued rates of improvement in environmental practices? And how are different factors weighted? The issue is one I’m happy to leave to the experts at GEN.
GEN’s near-term priorities are defined by the environment (no pun intended) that exists today. Not only is there renewed interest in environmentalism as a whole; there’s also renewed interest specifically in ecolabelling among organizations like the UN and the WTO. The time is right for taking ecolabelling to the next level, and GEN could and should have a large role in that transition.
Posted by Mari in Environmental standards, Marketing