Green Washing

 

The article that I decided to write my current event this week was title, "The VW Scandal Is a Wake Up Call for Every Company." Early this week in class someone mentioned something about Volkswagen, and the huge scandal surrounded around the company but we never went in detail about it. So, since I am somewhat of a car fanatic, I decided to do a little research for myself and see what was going on. Basically, without getting into too much detail, Volkswagon has always been known for providing one of the best diesel powered cars on the market. They not only got amazing gas mileage, but they were also marketed as being "better" for the environment in terms of emissions. And Volkswagen made sure to market it that way as well, that is why they are in big trouble. Anyways, what happened was that an independent company decided to do some research on their own and see just how "green" their diesel vehicles actually were. What they found out was that the cars had chips in them that would essentially "dupe" the emissions test, and in reality emit over 40 percent more nitrogen oxide pollutant than the regulated amount in the U.S. Yeah 40%! How crazy is that?

But that's exactly what I want to talk about. The concept that I'm here to talk about is "green washing." Yes, VW is screwed, BUT what is even more important to take away from this scandal is the effect it will have on large corporations. I am almost more than certain that Volkswagen isn't the only company who has been tricking consumers into buying their product that supposedly is "greener" than their competitors, when in reality its just as bad or worse. On top of that, now its going to make an already skeptical consumer base even harder to convince that their claims are more than just a marketing ploy. In a way in kind of sucks that some of these large corporations are taking advantage of people's beliefs, and are almost in a sense taking away their right to do something good for the environment. So yes, there are people that will try to trick, but I still think its important to keep on trying to make our world a better place, and like I always say, "Soon those people will get what they deserve!" Just look at Volkswagen hehe. Anyways, hope you liked my current event, and just remember stay green my friends!

Sources:
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/john-izzo/vw-scandal-a-wake-up-call_b_8287448.html
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-34324772