Sustainability Communication for Startups ![rw-book-cover](https://img.youtube.com/vi/7_PIB32OkkA/maxresdefault.jpg) 🔗 **Source:** [Sustainability Communication for Startups](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_PIB32OkkA#transcript) Um, for all of those that haven't attended any other sessions today, my name is Emily. I'm a contractor on the community team at Lovable, but I'm actually a season one participant. So, I was in your shoes and I'm so excited to um introduce someone else that has been in the shoes. Her name is Eleanor and she's going to talk to us today a little bit about communication and um yeah, I'll leave it to her. So, go ahead, Elanor. Thank. Thank you, Emily. It's so fun to be here. And we had some technical issues here at the beginning. So, I'm happy that is solved. I'm gonna start my screen sharing so we can see if that works properly. Okay. Do you see my screen? >> Yes, we can. >> Thank you so much. And again, so happy to be here. My name is Ellen Noir. I'm based in Sweden. And just like Emily said, I was a part of Sheil season 1. H that was so fun. Really intense 48 hours. So you guys are up for a ride. It will be so fun and also fun to look at all these webinars before the actual hackathon. Uh and like like I said, I'm based in Sweden. I'm working with sustainability and today we will talk about sustainability communication. So how to build trust and not greenwashing of sustainability communication for startups and this is what we will talk about today. And just to make sure are you seeing what we will talk about today now on the slide. Perfect. I see thumbs up from Emily. That's great. Thank you. Two thumbs up. That's even better. So what we will talk about today what is sustainability and what is greenwashing and green hushing. We will then move on to how to actually avoid greenwashing. And then lastly we will do a summary a checklist you can use when you are building your lovable projects on how to actually avoid greenwashing. So this is what you have in front of you. Okay. So if we begin then with what actually sustainability is. So when different people people talk about sustainability they can often mean so many different things. So this is what I mean when I talk about sustainability and that is that sustainability often is talked about as three different pillars. So we have the E the environmental pillar, S the social pillar and then G the governance pillar. So ESG. So the environmental pillar that is connected to climate change and energy and biodiversity, water use, waste, circularity, pollution and chemicals, those kinds of things. And then if we have the social part that is more connected to work life balance, psychological health, safety, gender equality, diversity, force and child labor, adequate wages, privacy, culture rights, freedom of expression and discrimination. So the social part is more connected to that. And if we then move on to governance that is more connected to ethics and regulatory compliance, corruption, bribery, whistleblower protection, tax transparency, data security, responsible loving. So in front of you now you have so many different terms and sustainability is connected to all of these terms. So sustainability can mean so many different things and if we do like this yes we are going to focus on the environmental part of the sustainability area today. So we are going to focus more on the green parts. So if we then move on what is actually greenwashing and green hushing then. So greenwashing is, if we're going to set the definition, that's the practice of making a company, product, or service appear better for the environment than it actually is. So you don't want to be accused of greenwashing. It's not a good thing. But then if we have green hashing, that's the practice of making a company, product, or service appear less beneficial for the environment than it actually is. So that's not a good thing either. You don't want to be accused of green hashing either. So when we talk about sustainability communication, you want to be somewhere in between. So you don't want to be in the gray green hashing area and you don't want to be in the red greenwashing area. You want to be somewhere in between. So if we take an example of this of what greenwashing actually is. So, imagine that you go into a store and you want to buy a new t-shirt and you see two different t-shirts in front of you, a blue one and a pink one. And both of them are mark marketed marketed as buy our echco-friendly t-shirt. Sounds great. You think you're about to make a more sustainable choice, a well-informed choice. Now, it's just up to choose what color that you think that you will like the most. But then you look a little bit closer and then you look at the, you know, inside of your shirt, you usually have that tag usually on the left side of your body with more information about the piece of clothing that you're wearing. And you look at those tags and then you see that the blue t-shirt that is actually made out of 20% recycled cotton. And then the pink t-shirt is actually made out of 80% recycled cotton. So now when you have that information, you immediately know that the pink t-shirt is the one that is better for the environment, the more sustainable choice. But you didn't know that before when you only read the buy our eco-friendly t-shirt marketing statements. And that's when it becomes confusing. And that's when green washing comes into play. So, uh, I'm gonna move a little box here. So, so echofriendly, that's actually a subjective term that has no exact definition. So, different people may interpret the term differently. So, if you walk into a room and ask 10 different people, what do you think that h that echofriendly [laughter] actually mean? you will probably get 10 different answers and that's the confusing part. So if we then have two different examples or two different situations where we instead see those two t-shirts already from the start being marketed as buy our t-shirt with 20% recycled cotton or buy our t-shirt with with 80% recycled cotton. you immediately know which t-shirt that is the more sustainable choice. So in the first case when they marketed the t-shirts as buy our eco-friendly t-shirts that's greenwashing and the other example that's good sustainability communication because in the greenwashing example you are or the store is making it harder for the consumer to make the more informed sustainability choice. And in the other example, the store is making it the store is making it easier for the consumer to make the more well-informed sustainable choice. So if we're going to move talk a little bit more about this, we have some more terms that may increase the risk of greenwashing and that are more example of terms that actually lack an official or widely accepted definition. So we have environmentally friendly as an example, green, conscious, responsible, eco-friendly, low carbon, future friendly, clean, energy efficient. So all these terms are subjective and they can be interpreted differently depending on who hears them. And that's the issue. companies are not or you when you are building your lovable project if you're using these terms people can understand your marketing messages in different ways and that's not really what you want to accomplish right so how do you actually do to avoid greenwashing then and this is the most important slide from today so if it's sometime that you really gonna uh listen it's Now, so my best tip for you to avoid and reduce the risk of greenwashing is to not use these vague passwords. Instead of, and what do I mean with that? So, instead of claiming that something is environmentally friendly or green or conscious, explain the evidence behind the claim. Explain the evidence behind the claim. And what do I mean with that? I mean if we take an example let's say that you are uh building a website during the hackathon for some kind of product that you are selling and you have a packaging uh or a shipment um solution connected to that. You're maybe saying that your delivery is climate friendly. What you can say instead to [clears throat] make it a little bit more clear with what you actually mean is we ship all orders using fossil free transport. Then your customers, your target group has an easier way to understand what it actually is that you want to tell. And if we take another example, let's say that you have uh also a product company and you are selling something that is in a box. You are maybe saying that then that your packaging is sustainable. Instead to make it even more sharp, even more crystal clear is to say our packaging is made from 100% recycled cardboard. Then it's even more clear what you mean. In the same way, you can say that your app is environmentally friendly. But what do you mean with that? Instead, you can say our app is hosted in data centers powered by 100% renewable electricity. That's more clear. We continue. A company can say we care about the planet. But instead to make it a little bit more crystal clear, you can say that we have a company policy to only serve vegetarian food at company conferences and events and we continue. You are getting the format. Now our genes collection is sustainable. But instead a company can say that these these genes require 15% less water to produce than last year's collection. or our solution help companies become more sustainable. Instead, you can maybe say we help companies travel more by train than by plane. And lastly, instead of saying our tote bags are environmentally friendly, you can say our tote bags are made from secondhand fabric. So that's maybe a bit more clear to say. Now let's see. I think maybe I lost you. Or do you still hear me? Let's see if it works. Can someone just shout out? No, >> we can see you and hear you properly >> and I can't see you. But good that you can see me. And now I can see you again. Do you still see my screen? No. >> Yes, we can. We see the presentation. >> You see a presentation. Okay. I'm just going to start resharing it again so I can see it properly. The thing that's messing with me is my screen time. It think in Sweden it's late in the night. So, my computer think it's time for me to go to bed. So, let's see where we are. Okay. Do you see my screen now and all the different examples that we were talking about recently? >> Yes, we can. >> Yes. Perfect. Thank you so much. Okay, where were we? The last thing I want to say in this slide is that I want you to use precise language to help the average consumer of your product service to understand exactly what you are communicating. That's the main thing. So, we then move on to the summary slide. And this is the checklist that I want you to bring with you when you're building your lovable projects. And I mean, you only have 48 hours for the actual hackathon. So, maybe you don't have time to do this during these 20 48 hours uh since I guess you have so much else to do. But keep this in mind and maybe have a look at it after those 48 hours. So I want you when you have uh your project your website ready to scan it and think are am I using any kinds of vague passwords. So make sure that you are not using any vague passwords like green echofriendly responsible you remember the list we looked at a couple of minutes ago. And then I also want you to make sure that the average consumer can understand the claim. You shouldn't need to be a sustainability expert to understand what you're saying. So, and I'm 100% sure that all of you who are building your amazing products know your target group really well or that you are about to know your target group really well. So I guess that you can guess what kind of experience and knowledge level that they have connected to sustainability. So try to have the average consumer in mind all the time. Do they actually understand what I'm saying? Do are you using a a specific language or not? And the third thing on the checklist, make sure that the claim is unlikely to be interpreted differently by different people. So, like we said before, if you are saying that something is environmentally friendly in a room with 10 different people and if you ask these 10 different people what environmentally friendly actually means, they will probably give you 10 different answers and you don't want that. So, try to be as specific as possible in your language. And then the fourth thing on the list, make sure that you can provide evidence or documentation to support the claim. If you can't prove it, don't claim it. And this is really hard being a startup or just beginning with your project. Sometimes I mean when you are in the beginning of project in your startup journey, you don't always have all the data. You don't always have all the documentation in place. So this is really difficult. But if you end up in a situation where someone comes and asks you, oh you said this, can you tell me more? Can you show me any proof? I'm curious to learn more. You are building trust if you can answer those kinds of question in a credible way. So remember, transparency builds trust and as a startup you won't always have the perfect data, but lack of data is not the problem. Lack of transparency is. So just try to be as transparent as possible at where you are in your journey, where you're heading, where you're going, and then I think every everything will be just fine. Oh, I think this was the last slide. Yes, it was. So, thank you so much for this. We have been talking about sustainability communication and what you can think of when you are talking about sustainability. So, thank you so much for that. >> Amazing. Thank you so much, Eleanor. That was such a great um presentation. I can't tell you how much I agree that transparency creates trust. And it's so interesting to hear it from a perspective of of sustainability and keeping that in mind. Um I'm curious in general, this is just like a question for myself, but what do you see in regards to like opportunities to build for sustainability right now? like maybe someone's going into it that could relate but what ideas do you have that you're open to sharing? >> Yes. I mean you can do so much because I I mean we are standing in front of a I mean we have to do all that we can to save the planet. we have to do everything and I do really believe that sometimes you do not really know what or okay let's say like this as a young person you maybe do not have the the money or the tools that you want to have in order to I think I'm messing with myself. Let's start over. [laughter] >> No, you're good. You're doing great. Oh, you can do so much. So, it's only your fantasy that is the limits. And we didn't have those tools three years ago. So, we have so much more opportunities right now. >> Yeah. >> And like I said before, my computer is saying for to me that it's time to go to bed. I'm thinking that my mind is also saying it's time to go to bed to take another question. >> Let's see. Have you did you see any other um otherwise I can throw another one out there? >> I just saw one come through our chat on YouTube and it's how long have you been building with Lovable? >> Oh, I've been building almost daily at least weekly since I think April last year. So that was when I discovered Lovable and it's amazing. And sometimes you have to oh no, not more today. I can't waste any more credits. I have to have more credits for the end of the month as well because you can do so much. Uh so yes, since April. >> That's amazing. Have you looked into what level builder you are um in your account and shared it on your LinkedIn? Do you know what I'm talking about? >> No, I haven't yet, but I really should do that 100%. >> You should if anyone listening as well as you, Eleanor. Um, when you go into your Lovable account, you can like click on your picture and it will come up um, in there and you can share it on LinkedIn. I was shocked to find out I was a diamond builder and I'm sure a lot of you might be in here or you it sets a goal for you to strive to and can boost some credibility on your LinkedIn which is always always awesome. So, um, cool. But I think well since it's so late your time I think we're gonna let you go to bed. Um, thank you so much for a great session today um, and supporting. Where can are you available in the Discord? Like where can people connect with you um, if they have any more questions? >> Yes, Discord is 100% perfect. I'm there. So, it's just to reach out if there's anything. >> Awesome. Cool. Well, we'll see everyone in Discord or at the next session here within the next half hour or so. and Eleanor, thank you again so much for sharing all the knowledge today and supporting this co cohort of season 3. I really appreciate it. Perfect. Thank you so much and good luck everyone., Sustainability Communication for Startups, YouTube, 01kv89argsn98a67yya0m7ymak.