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Real Talk
Illustration: Yann Bastard
Published April 22, 2021
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A couple of days before I started reporting this story, I ordered a cat scratcher from Amazon. When it arrived, I immediately felt guilty. The scratcher was made entirely of cardboard. It came inside its own cardboard mailing box. And
that box had been stuck inside another, much larger cardboard box and surrounded by bubble wrap. All of that, just to deliver intact something whose sole purpose is to be destroyed. I had to wonder: Did the way I acquired it help destroy the planet, too?
Photo by BigBlueStudio on Shutterstock.
As Amazon’s recently launched Climate Pledge Friendly program underlines, giving consumers opportunities to make green purchases can differentiate a brand and burnish its reputation as a sustainable retailer.
However, our research shows that online sellers including Amazon do not realize the full potential of green purchasing options. With the right messaging and supporting logistics systems, these retailers can provide sustainable buying choices that bolster their brands and lower logistics costs.
The power of the right sustainability messaging
The Climate Pledge Friendly program presents a special label to consumers when searching for more than 25,000 products on Amazon’s site. The label signifies that the products have earned one or more of 19 sustainability certifications created by the online giant.