Summary of ECO CERTIFICATE GUIDE pt I // what are they telling you – and what AREN’T they

00:00:00 - 00:15:00

The video discusses different ways that companies can become certified as sustainable, including green alibi, fair trade, and guaranteed fair trade. It also discusses the pros and cons of each type of certification, as well as the importance of industry and politics in order to achieve sustainable business practices.

• 00:00:00 This video discusses the different types of green sustainable certificates and their meanings. It also discusses the cost and availability of these certificates, as well as the importance of industry and politics in order to achieve sustainable business practices.
• 00:05:00 The three types of certification available to businesses are green alibi, fair trade, and guaranteed fair trade. Green alibi certification is based on a company's donation of one percent of its total revenue to a charity, while fair trade certification is based on price and commits companies to paying farmers a minimum price in case the overall market price falls, and guaranteed fair trade is based on a company's audit, assessment, and peer-review by a world fair trade organization. While the certification process for all three types of certification is good, the fair trade certification is the most promising as it requires companies to commit to a wide range of social and environmental standards.
• 00:10:00 The video discusses the differences between the two certification labels, the PETA approved label and the Certified Humane label. The Certified Humane label requires higher standards of animal practice than the PETA approved label, and is designed to provide consumers with a false idea of what happens to livestock and animal agriculture if the label is used on products. The main goal of the Certified Humane label seems to be more aimed towards protecting farmers who keep livestock, neglecting to have any real focus on the environmental consequences of the industry.
• 00:15:00 The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is an international non-profit that describes themselves as a labeling system that recognizes sustainable fishing practices. The 2012 United Nations report showed that 30 of the world's wild fisheries are over exploited and 57 are closing in on their limit. The MSC certifies fishing practices with conditions meaning that they don't actually meet the standards of the MSC, but they will eventually get there. There are ethical questions about transparency and profit interests of allowing bigger companies to license their label even though their standards might be lower. Several experts have questioned the MSC's commitment to the environment and claims that their focus is increasingly just on doing good business, which means allowing bigger companies with more revenue to be licensed. The MSC also certifies some fisheries with conditions meaning that they don't actually meet the standards of the MSC right now but they will eventually get there. Lost and left behind ghost gear is a big problem in the fishing industry, and the MSC has no plan of action or standard for waste management or ghost gear pollution. This means that a lot of companies that are still certified sustainable can still be leaving behind a lot of plastic waste.