Trump’s Return Prompts Companies to Stifle Climate Talk With ‘Greenhushing’⁠↗

“I think we have to stop talking about, ‘Everything we do is climate change,’ because it’s almost like there’s a visceral reaction to those words,” Holmgren says. “This isn’t a good time to put a red flag in front of the bull.”

“People are so frightened of doing the wrong thing, potentially accidentally greenwashing without intending to,” says Walton. The divergent political climate on opposite sides of the Atlantic also makes promoting green credentials particularly fraught for large global corporations. However, silence risks damaging trust, she says, and could confuse consumers who have watched companies go from making frequent and enthusiastic pledges and disclosures to saying very little.