Eco-Business

Korea Electric Power Corporation has been accused of failing to disclose material climate-related risks, including its coal reliance until 2050 and exposure to volatile gas prices, in a US$11 billion bond listed on the Singapore Exchange. The bourse has acknowledged receipt of the complaint and will be reviewing it.

Disinformation on solar and wind energy, fueled by Trump, has stalled projects in the West. In Asia, the world's most fossil fuels-dependent region, renewables misinformation has helped to slow the energy transition.

Petronas was highlighted for greenwashing five times by RimbaWatch's greenwashing tracker

The findings barely scratch the surface of the greenwashing problem in the region, said RimbaWatch, the Malaysian NGO behind the database. Southeast Asia needs provisions for penalties and better policing of green claims, it said.

Trump 2.0 promises to add to the uncertainties that chief sustainability officers have had to tackle over the last year. Sustainability became harder to sell in the boardroom, and in Asia, the talent crunch is still a problem.

By Rhick Lars Albay

By Shi Yi

By Robin Hicks

Thomson Reuters Foundation

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Major industry players are working together to create a voluntary global standard that can certify minerals as responsibly produced. But such a framework would consolidate the power and influence of these mining giants and allow them to act with impunity, while providing false assurances to investors, governments, and consumers. By Chelsea Hodgkins

Measuring environmental impact has historically been prohibitively expensive, but technology can change the equation. Blockchain advocate Sunny Lu argues that verified sustainability can help brands build trust with eco-conscious consumers. By Sunny Lu

Asean's growing carbon trading initiatives present vast opportunities for emissions reduction and economic growth, but equitable frameworks and robust regulations are critical to their success. By Julie de los Reyes and Katrina Navallo

A provision store in Bandung with many plastic sachets

Consumers including millennials choose carefully, increasingly aware of deceptive environmental claims by businesses. By Ridho Bramulya Ikhsan

By Arne Nygaard

By Rebecca Van Amber and Saniyat Islam

By Douglas Stuart and Irene Marie Herremans

By Hendri Yulius Wijaya

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A growing number of companies are admitting that they can't meet their sustainability targets. Has the era of "corporate vulnerability" begun, where companies are more honest about their sustainability progress?

While some companies greenhush, others are upfront about their inability to meet sustainability targets. Eco-Business asked experts at the Ecosperity conference if it pays for businesses to be "vulnerable" about sustainability progress.

In the video, environmental law group ClientEarth compares the oil and gas giant's advertisements on its low-carbon investments to a burger chain claiming that they’re vegan because they’ve got salad on the menu.

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Some data sources indicate that greenwashing could be declining after years of rising incidences of problematic sustainability claims.

Despite a decline in cases of greenwashing, academic Kim Schumacher tells the EB Podcast that the problem isn't going away, it's just taking on a different form as companies roll back sustainability commitments.

The heat is on Formula 1 to curb its carbon footprint.

Formula 1 emits the carbon equivalent of 30,000 homes as it roars through 21 countries in a season. Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 head of sustainability Alice Ashpitel says the sport's ambition to decarbonise by 2030 is not unrealistic.

A protest for climate justice in the Philippines

The new head of Japan and Southeast Asia for ClientEarth tells the Eco-Business Podcast how the law can be used to hold polluters to account in the world's biggest emitting region. She also says it's time the legal profession faced scrutiny for greenwashing.

Japan-based academic Kim Schumacher, who coined the term "competence greenwashing", believes that the pursuit of societal harmony might be standing in the way of Asia calling out greenwashing. He tells the Eco-Business Podcast how exaggerated ESG claims are likely to be tackled in 2023 and beyond.

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