Green everywhere? Institutional greenwashing and injustice in the green economy

Kirstie O’Neill

Chapter 16 in Research Handbook on the Green Economy, 2024, pp 258-278 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: The concept of a green economy has proven popular for policymakers, offering a potential tool to address a wide range of concerns, from climate change to economic recovery following recessions and pandemics. However, this fluidity has led to concerns over greenwashing, whereby the mainstay of the economy remains unchanged, or where green developments are limited to particular sectors. This chapter examines the different interpretations of the green economy and suggests that the mainstream green economy narrative represents a form of greenwashing, institutional greenwashing, which conceals the inherent injustices in a green form of capitalist business-as-usual that has not realised its promises. To counteract this, we need to attune ourselves to (re)imagining other possible worlds. In this chapter, I offer a critical reading of the green economy, outline injustices inherent in the green economy, and discuss alternative perspectives drawing on degrowth and postcapitalist thinking.

Keywords: Economics and Finance; Environment; Geography; Politics and Public Policy Urban and Regional Studies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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