Webinar - Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information in E-commerce

Online shopping is a growing market that is here to stay and a great opportunity to mainstream sustainable consumption.

To better facilitate sustainable consumption patterns in online retail UNEP and adelphi have developed the Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information in E-commerce. This supplement to the original Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information explains how the ten existing Principles can be applied in an online setting. It also provides businesses with recommendations and good practice examples on how to adequately convene the sustainability information of products and services they sell and/or advertise.

According to a recent UNCTAD report, global e-commerce sales reached $ 26.7 trillion in 2019. The report also presents preliminary data suggesting that online retail sales as a share of total retail sales reached 19% in 2020. However, greenwashing is prevalent in the e-commerce sector. The European Commission together with European national consumer authorities have released results from a website sweep that state that in “42% of cases the claims were exaggerated, false or deceptive and could potentially qualify as unfair commercial practices under EU rules” (Source).

While this trend has been further accelerated by Covid-19, it will very likely outlast the pandemic. While on the one hand the supply side has grown, with formerly stationary retailers extending into the online commerce, also new user groups such as elderly people have strengthened the demand side. Other growing trends like click & collect (or curb side pickup) have added a digital component to the stationary retail while offering more convenience to shoppers.

It is not hard to imagine that the impacts of online consumption will be felt in the coming years, including its environmental impacts. Therefore, it is crucial that the constant growth of e-commerce is accompanied by the provision of reliable product sustainability information to consumers during the customer journey including the point of sale.

In other words, to help consumers make more informed choices, online retailers and e-commerce platforms must be prepared how to effectively communicate the sustainable attributes of products and services traded online.

The presentation of the new Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information in E-commerce will take place during webinars organized within the framework of the One Planet Network Consumer Information Programme.

Attendees can choose their preferred day and time:

·         22 November 2021, 10am – 11am (CET). Registration link: https://bit.ly/guidelines22

·         23 November 2021, 4pm – 5pm (CET). Registration link: https://bit.ly/guidelines23

Webinar outline

·1. Welcome by UNEP

·2. Overview on E-Commerce Guidance (incl. background) by adelphi

·3. Perspectives from invited stakeholders (max. 5min each)

o    Policy maker

o    E-retailer

o    Civil Society 

·3. Q&A

·4. Closing

Confirmed speakers

1. Youkyung Huh, Director, Consumers Korea, Korea

2. María Carolina Corcione Morales, Head of Consumer Protection at the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce, Colombia

3. Maciej Czapliński, Counsel at the Department of Market Analyses, Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (Urząd Ochrony Konkurencji i Konsumentów), Poland

The recording of the webinars is already available! 

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