I’ve been expecting a green backlash for a long time. To be honest I thought it would happen sooner and be much more aggressive. Of course there are still the ‘climate sceptics’ and we could all think of individuals who simply refuse to believe that doing their bit can help change the world but I consider encouraging them to think differently as a work in progress.

What I didn’t expect was a backlash from people who are supportive of environmental issues!

This is a very specific backlash I speak of; one towards green and ethical business. Although, as I type ‘green’ and ‘ethical’ I get a sinking feeling. It seems these and others like them have become dirty words.

Here are a few real examples of conversations I’ve had and discussions I’ve read.

“100% Green Hosting? There’s no way it can be 100% green!”

“Look out for greenwash – terms like eco-friendly”

“I don’t play up the whole green and ethical side of things because I don’t like what the big businesses are doing”

Am I behind on what is the appropriate terminology? Or am I observing a green sickness which has been caught by even the most dedicated eco enthusiasts?

It is true that many big businesses seem to be taking advantage of customers’ demand for more responsible products and services – This keen reaction to the market is probably one of the reasons that they are big business. It is also true that not all of these businesses are as genuinely committed to being environmentally friendly as they’d have us believe.

But why let the proliferation of these terms affect your decisions as a consumer?

I use these terms all the time but not without the knowledge that they are completely subjective. I use them to briefly label the multitude of things we do to try and run our business in a responsible, caring and sustainable way. One person’s view of green or ethical is likely to be very different from then next person’s view but just because some may be using these terms to name some questionable practices doesn’t mean we all are.

This is where we need to be smarter consumers, don’t assume green is good but don’t assume it’s dirty either. Ask yourself, does the business describe their so called green and ethical practices? If they do then you can make an informed decision about whether their version of green and ethical is good enough for you.

Short of inventing new words, what more can us green and ethical business owners do?

Take a look at my series of articles “How can a web design company be green and ethical” to see how we sum Make Hay up with these two words.