You’ve probably heard about carbon offsetting, where companies or individuals can pay to remove carbon dioxide from the air to “cancel out” their emissions. But as we consider the next steps for our country, there are some important questions to consider: how exactly does it work and can we trust it? Is it actually helping the climate?

The idea behind carbon markets is simple. Companies that pollute can purchase ‘carbon credits’ from environmental projects that absorb or avoid releasing CO2, like planting trees or installing renewable energy. One credit equals one ton of CO2 removed from the atmosphere.

While this approach seems straightforward, investigations have revealed the risk of greenwashing — creating the misleading impression that a product or service is “environmentally conscious”.

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Greetings, eco-champions! I’m Agastya Karan Seth, a 16-year-old Grade XI student at The Shri Ram School, Moulsari, Gurugram, on a mission to combat the deceptive menace of greenwashing through my initiative GreenWatchers: Gaming for Transparent Sustainability. Let’s dive into the world of greenwashing, understand its impact, and explore how we can collectively drive positive change.

Greenwashing: The Wolf in Eco-Friendly Clothing

Picture this: Companies dressing up in eco-friendly attire while hiding harmful practices underneath. This is the art of greenwashing — a tactic that misleads well-intentioned consumers into supporting businesses that don’t truly contribute to sustainability. They do this by not disclosing the impact of their operations on the environment, a practice sometimes called “green-hushing”, or by making false, vague, exaggerated claims or by using deceptive images and symbols that make us believe we are supporting sustainable industries. The consequences are severe, as our choices shift support away from genuine eco-efforts and unintentionally contribute to the problem. This is where awareness becomes paramount.

Journey Towards Sustainability One Conscious Decision at a Time

GreenWatchers.in is a web-based tool for revolutionizing our understanding of, and hence our approach towards, sustainability. It features a game where players navigate a sustainable world, confronting challenges, collecting points, and, most importantly, exposing false sustainability claims. The eco-conscious journey equips you with an electric vehicle to navigate through your path to sustainability.

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