Skip to content
  • MyNewMarkets.com
  • Claims Journal
  • Insurance Journal TV
  • Academy of Insurance
  • Carrier Management
Insurance Journal - Property Casualty Industry News

Featured Stories

  • Farmers Data Breach Could Impact 1M+ Customers
  • ‘Big Four’ Reinsurers Maintain Property-Cat Appetite
  • Articles
  • Jobs
  • Markets

Current Magazine

current magazine
  • Read Online
  • Subscribe
  • Login
  • Front Page
    • National
    • International
    • Most Popular
    • Magazine
    • Forums
    • Blogs
    • Videos/Podcasts
    • Newsletters
  • News
    • Most Popular
    • National
    • International
    • East
    • Midwest
    • South Central
    • Southeast
    • West
  • Magazines
  • Research
  • Directories
  • Jobs
  • Features
    • Events
    • Forums
    • Market Directories
    • Quotes
    • Polls
    • Rankings & Awards
    • Insurance Giving Back
  • Subscribe

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

By Coco Liu and Olivia Rudgard | March 5, 2025
Email This Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Article
  • 1 Comment

As the chief executive officer of Caelux, Scott Graybeal runs a technology startup in Baldwin Park, California, that makes high-efficiency glass for solar panels. For years, climate change had been a crucial part of Graybeal’s business conversations — until Donald Trump was re-elected last November.

“We have very quickly shifted gears to the other type of conversations,” Graybeal says. By that, he means to downplay his company’s role in producing carbon-free electricity and instead, highlight its contributions outside sustainability, such as domestic job creation, onshore manufacturing and energy independence — all of which resonate with the new administration’s priorities.

“It is not being manipulative; it is the actual truth,” says Graybeal of his new talking points. “With any messaging, you have to tailor your message to the audience and to gain the most receptivity you can.”

In the first month of his second term, President Trump pulled the US out of the Paris Agreement, froze funding for green projects, fired staff from agencies that do climate work and targeted agencies’ climate-related programs and language. Against that backdrop, Graybeal and other US executives are dropping the mention of “climate change” in meetings, even as they continue developing or deploying climate-friendly solutions.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) headquarters in Washington, DC. FEMA managers were instructed to compile a list of staff working on climate change for potential dismissal. Photographer: Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg

Meanwhile, companies in Europe are also trying to keep their climate actions away from public sight, in an attempt to avoid accusations that they’re overstating their environmental claims. All of this has accelerated a phenomenon known as “greenhushing”: the inverse of greenwashing, when companies exaggerate their green bona fides.

In 2024, 63 out of the 100 largest publicly listed firms in Britain were under-promoting their work in environmental protection, according to an analysis by the Manchester, UK-based research firm Connected Impact, which examined the differences between what companies disclosed in public filings and what they presented in promotional materials. When it came to US companies, the researchers found the desire for staying unnoticed was even greater — as many as 67 major public and private firms resorted to greenhushing.

“People were under-communicating and under-promoting what they were doing,” said Lucy Walton, chief executive officer of Connected Impact. “We will perhaps see a widening of that gap in the coming year.”

Jennifer Holmgren, chief executive officer of LanzaTech Global Inc., is also recalibrating her message under shifting political winds. Illinois-based LanzaTech specializes in capturing carbon dioxide from emitters and converting the gas into feedstock for chemical production. While her company’s technology prevents planet-warming CO2 from entering the atmosphere, Holmgren says she will talk more about job creation and economic growth, rather than emissions reduction, over the next four years.

Jennifer Holmgren Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

“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.”

This comes as some big corporations have already scaled back their climate commitments, due in large part to concerns over their financial performance and operational challenges. The US leadership change further propels that retreat. In January, the six largest banks in the US cut ties with the Net-Zero Banking Alliance, a United Nations-backed initiative that encourages financial institutions to zero out their greenhouse gas emissions. And for companies that haven’t changed course, fewer are willing to publicly display their interest in decarbonization.

Matthew Blain is a principal of Voyager, a US venture firm that has bankrolled climate tech startups serving heavy-emitting industries. While many of those emitters continue to explore low-carbon technologies to prepare for what Blain describes as “the economy of tomorrow,” he says they have become “increasingly nervous and hesitant to talk about the work they’re doing from a climate perspective.”

Along with the fear of political blowback, worries about reputational damage and regulatory scrutiny weigh on companies, especially outside the US. In Europe, where tackling climate change is still on governments’ agendas, researchers say companies are pulling away from publicizing their climate efforts due to the risk of being seen as greenwashers.

Unilever Plc, the British consumer group, has fallen afoul of UK regulators over alleged greenwashing and has faced consumer backlash. Last year the company announced it was watering down some of its environmental promises. Executives were being “cautious and possibly scared by greenwashing investigations,” a Unilever shareholder told Bloomberg News at the time. Meanwhile, regulators across Europe have further stepped up a crackdown on greenwashing — in the UK, it could result in a penalty of up to 10% of a company’s global annual turnover.

“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.

Some industry observers say greenhushing is a positive tactic if it helps decarbonization continue in difficult circumstances.

Companies are “smart to play whichever cards are most likely to win at any given moment,” says Edward Maibach, a professor specializing in climate change communication at George Mason University. “The most important thing is that their products succeed in the marketplace so that we can bring the fossil fuel era to a rapid close.”

Maibach adds: “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”

Photo: Recyclable plastic bottles of Hellman’s Real Mayonnaise. Photographer: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg

Copyright 2025 Bloomberg.

Was this article valuable?

Thank you! Please tell us what we can do to improve this article.

Thank you! % of people found this article valuable. Please tell us what you liked about it.

Here are more articles you may enjoy.

Litigation Funder’s Plan to Invest in Law Firms Called ‘Bad Policy,’ With Big Impacts
TransUnion: Aggressive Shopping Continues for Home, Auto Coverage
Farmers Insurance Data Breach Could Impact More Than a Million Customers
Kraft, Other Companies Beat Test Lawsuit Over Ultra-Processed Foods

Written By Coco Liu

More From Author

Written By Olivia Rudgard

More From Author

The most important insurance news,
in your inbox every business day.

Get the insurance industry's trusted newsletter

Email This Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Categories: National NewsTopics: Climate Change, environmental social and governance (ESG), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), greenhushing, sustainability
  • Have a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk@insurancejournal.com

Latest Comments

  • March 5, 2025 at 5:50 pm
    PolarBeaRepeal says:
    CO2 is needed by plants to thrive. Plants are needed by animals to produce O. The circle of gas life.

Add a CommentSee All Comments (1)Add a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

*

More News
France and Germany Reject Trump’s Threats on EU Tech Legislation
Katrina’s Legacy: Louisiana Fortifies Itself Against the Next Storm
US Farmers Are Pulling Back on Spending in Threat to Rural Economy
NOAA Develops Tool to Predict Hourly US Wildfire Hazards
More News Features

Read This Next

  • Trump's Return Prompts Companies to Stifle Climate Talk With 'Greenhushing'
  • Maryland Screwworm Patient Recovered; Ranchers Criticize CDC Secrecy
  • 'Big Four' Reinsurers Maintain Property-Cat Appetite, Despite Signs of Rate Softening
  • Court Says Immunity Shields Former New York AG From Malicious Prosecution Claims
  • Man Staged Theft of His Own Vehicle for Insurance Money

Insurance Jobs

  • Insurance Account Executive/Manager Wanted Flexible Hours, Potential Equity - Dix Hills/Deer Park, NY
  • Data Analytics Associate Manager (Investment Plan & Analysis) - Remote, IL
  • Sr. Technology Commercial Underwriter, Account Executive Officer - Chicago, IL
  • Underwriter – Cyber / E&O Insurance – Remote - Remote
  • Premium Audit Manager - Walnut Creek, CA
MyNewMarkets
  • When Insurance Isn't the Optimal Risk Management Approach
  • Reputation Risk Can Overshadow Ransom in Cyberattacks, Aon Says
  • Tackling Cyber Risks: The Vital Role of Brokers in Third-Party Data Protection
  • DIY Home Inspections Are Taking Over, Firms Say
  • Six Things to Know About Umbrella Insurance
Claims Journal
  • Walmart Defeats Shareholder Lawsuit Over Opioid Probe Disclosures
  • Ex-Credit Suisse Executives Settle Risk Suit for $115 Million
  • Ford Recalling 500K Vehicles Over Brake Fluid Leak
  • When Luck Runs Out: Where $100B Hurricanes Might Happen
  • Cyber Outlook Report Finds Gaps, Outlines Holistic Approach to Protections
Academy of Insurance education
  • August 7 EPLI Basics
  • August 14 Managing and Insuring Reputational Risk
  • August 19 How To Write: Flood
  • August 21 Workers' Comp Crash Course

Insurance News

  • News by Region
  • News by Topic
  • Yesterday

Site Search

Features

  • Insurance Markets Directory
  • Forums
  • A.M. Best Company Ratings
  • Industry Events
  • Agencies For Sale
  • Newswire
  • Insurance Jobs
  • Rankings & Awards

Connect with us

  • Email Newsletters
  • Magazine Subscriptions
  • For Your Website
  • RSS Feeds
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Do Not Sell My Info

Insurance Journal

  • Submit News
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Reprints
  • Link to Us
  • Contact Us

Wells Media Group Network

  • Insurance Journal
  • MyNewMarkets.com
  • Claims Journal
  • Insurance Journal TV
  • Academy of Insurance
  • Carrier Management
© 2025 by Wells Media Group, Inc. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Site Map