Justine Calma

Tree planting campaigns are a popular gimmick for brands looking to make themselves look green. But it’s controversial in the conservation world. Done poorly, the trees likely won’t survive. And instead of restoring forests back to health, some of these schemes create tree plantations that can actually do damage to the local environment. The devil’s in the details.

Synthetic fibers like polyester make up more than 90 percent of the microplastic polluting Arctic waters. And like Adidas points out, 👏 recycling 👏 doesn’t 👏 solve👏 the 👏 problem. But manufacturers can design clothes to last longer, shed less, and find more sustainable materials.

The key word is “partly.” Only one-third of the controller is made with recycled material. That’s because plastic quality deteriorates with each use, so it’s really difficult to make a device using entirely or even mostly recycled plastic. It has to be reinforced with virgin material, which just means more plastic manufacturing and waste in the end.

The most important thing a company can do to tackle climate change is to slash all of its emissions, from its supply chains to its products and operations.

Apple says it has “decreased its comprehensive carbon footprint by over 45 percent since 2015, even as the company’s revenue has grown by over 68 percent during that same period.” That’s the kind of progress to look out for to see if a company is serious about climate change.

Hint: building a seawall could hurt more than it might help, which I learned when writing this story last year.

Reuters has a first look at where these hubs might be located and who the biggest players are. Hint: oil and gas companies want a piece of the pie.