Greenwashing is the attempt by a corporation, government, or other organization to persuade the public that its environmentally harmful products, goals or policies are actually environmentally friendly or environmentally beneficial. It has become increasingly common as the public has become more aware of environmental issues.
Greenwashing can be accomplished in many ways, including through adjustments to an organization's name, logo, product design, product packaging, advertising, and public relations. One of the simplest and most common techniques has been to use the color green in the logo, packaging, advertising, etc. Another is the clever use of wording in an organization's name or product names, including the use of words such as 'green,' 'clean,' and 'natural.'
One of the most egregious examples of this trick wording is the phrase 'clean coal,' which was was popularized in 2008 by coal industry groups when the U.S. Congress was contemplating climate change legislation. Its purpose was to create the illusion that technology existed, or could be easily developed, to burn coal without significant adverse environmental effects. Another example is the replacing of the term 'tar sands' with the less toxic-sounding 'oil sands' in an attempt to deemphasize the massive environmental destruction that is resulting from obtaining petroleum from this source.
But greenwashing extends far beyond these simple tricks. It includes large, powerful industry organizations that have been set up and spend many millions of dollars annually for advertising and lobbying for the purpose of deceiving the public and influencing governments. Closely related to this has been the partially successful effort to convince the public that climate change and other forms of damage to the natural environment are just a hoax and are thus nothing about which to be seriously concerned.