Oil Majors, Biotech Giants Lead Greenwash Academy Award Nominees
South African Companies: "Don't Count Us Out"
Johannesburg -- On the eve of the 2002 World Summit Greenwash Academy Awards, carbon kingpins Shell, BP and ChevronTexaco, along with leading purveyors of Frankenfoods, Monsanto, Novartis and Aventis are vying for some of the glittering event's most prestigious awards. Local favorites Eskom and Sasol should not be counted out, however, according to insiders from the Academy.
With Awards in 11 categories, including Best Green Actor for corporate greenwash, Best Blue Actor (for masquerading as a corporate humanitarian), Best Supporting Government, Best Director, Best Picture, Best Makeup, and a Lifetime Achievement Award, the Greenwash Awards are the world's premier prize for companies acting -- but not behaving -- green. The multi-media award ceremony will include a display of some of the best examples of greenwash in the world today.
"Ten years ago in Rio, global businesses promised to deliver sustainable development. They have broken that promise and therefore cannot be awarded for sustainable development," said Oscar Green, this year's host for the ceremony. "However, they have delivered an onslaught of sophisticated greenwash. The Greenwash Academy will recognize their achievement."
In a last minute threat to the Green Oscars, Ronald McBellamy, a representative of McUnicef, has informed news agencies that he will disrupt the ceremony unless his agency is added to the list of nominees. McUnicef is a joint venture of McDonald's and Unicef.
Oscar Green says that "McDonald's and Unicef do make bedfellows of surpassing strangeness; however their nomination came too late to be considered by the Academy."
The Greenwash Academy Awards are presented by CorpWatch, groundWork and Friends of the Earth International.
A full list of categories and nominees can be found at www.earthsummit.biz.
- 101 Alliance for a Corporate-Free UN