ZDHC in Response to Licence to Greenwash Report by Changing Markets Foundation

ZDHC has always welcomed reports such as the Licence to Greenwash report produced by Changing Markets, published 24 March [https://changingmarkets.org/portfolio/fossil-fashion/]. The views in the report are valuable and have an important role to play in driving industry accountability, government responsibility and public dialogue on multiple issues facing society and our environment. The report shines a light on the work that we at ZDHC, as well as other organisations featured in the report, still need to do. ZDHC has not shied away from the fact that our work is far from done. While we feel we have made some progress in tackling an extremely complex challenge, our organisation is still in its infancy, and we have a long way to go to create permanent change. 

Many of the issues written about in the report are valid — especially when considering the size and complexities of the global fashion supply chain — alongside the need to drive holistic, industry-wide systemic change. These reports always offer us an opportunity to look in the mirror, to learn and reflect (internally) on what we do, how we do it and where we need to focus next.  Equally important is how we communicate the topic of sustainable chemical management — which in itself can be technical and complex to communicate in simple, everyday language.

We acknowledge the enormous amount of research and effort that has gone into writing this report. At the same time, we firmly believe that some of the observations made about ZDHC do not accurately reflect our organisation and some of the hurdles we are trying to overcome. This is not a criticism of Changing Markets, but rather to point out where we at ZDHC try to drive real change through our approach, activities and impact.  

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Unfortunately, we did not have the opportunity to see the full report before its publication. However, we would welcome the chance to have an open dialogue with Changing Markets to ensure they can have a full understanding of ZDHC and how we see our contribution in this complex industry. 

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