B Corp Accused of Greenwashing by US Business Dr Bronner’s

Today’s ESG Updates

• B Corp under fire: Dr Bronner’s accuses B Corp of greenwashing, prompting a shift to stricter standards and launch of rival Purpose Pledge.
• Thai PM suspended: Leaked call with Cambodia’s ex-leader sparks ethics probe, deepening political instability.
• Sites to charge AI bots: Cloudflare’s ‘Pay per Crawl’ lets websites monetize AI content scraping.
• Europe hit by extreme heat: Heatwave forces school closures and wildfires, spotlighting climate urgency.

Global environmental certification hit by greenwashing accusations

B Corp is under fire. 

One of the most established and recognised sustainable certifications has been accused of greenwashing by natural soap maker Dr Bronner’s. 

Dr Bronner’s has criticized B Corp for enabling greenwashing by multinationals like Nestle-owned Nespresso, which Bronner’s claims has troubling environmental and labor history. B Corp currently uses a points-based system; however, starting in 2026, a stricter standard will be introduced to discard greenwashing practices. Dr Bronner’s, amongst other brands, argues that B Corp prioritises growth over genuine sustainability and encourages greenwashing practices. A new alternative scheme has been launched (Purpose Pledge) to focus on genuine sustainable solutions. 

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Further reading: The global environmental award hit by accusations of greenwashing

Thailand’s PM suspended over leaked calls to Cambodian leader

Thai PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended from office amid an ethics violation controversy with Cambodia’s former leader, Hun Sen. A leaked phone call between the two leaders has sparked a petition from 36 senators, as Paetongtarn is accused of compromising national interests. Her approval rate plummeted from 20.9% in March to only 9.2% whilst protestors demand her resignation. The government is left vulnerable to a no-confidence vote as tensions are high between the long-standing political battle between the Shinawatra family and the military-royalist establishment. 

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Further reading:  Thailand’s PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra suspended over leaked Hun Sen call

New site launched that allows websites to charge AI bots for scraping content

Cloudflare, which serves 20% of the web, has launched a marketplace allowing website owners to set prices for AI companies to access their content. 

Named ‘Pay per Crawl’, the system comes as AI companies like OpenAI and Anthropic scrape content for free (up to 73,000 times per referral), which threatens publishers’ traffic-based revenues. Media outlets, such as The New York Times, have already filed lawsuits against AI companies for training AI models on articles without obtaining permission. The new system would create a ‘permission-based’ content economy, charging companies to access and use content. 

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Further reading: Cloudflare launches a marketplace that lets websites charge AI bots for scraping

Heatwave sees Europe close schools as Turkey battles wildfires

Europe is experiencing its hottest days on record as countries struggle to cope with the extreme heat. Italy banned work today during the hottest hours of the day, whilst France shuts schools. Turkey battles wildfires, while Scotland issues flood warnings Scientists and the WHO attribute the heat to climate change, as heatwaves and soaring temperatures are now predicted to be the new normal conditions for Europe this summer. 

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Further reading: UK sees hottest day of the year so far and Turkey battles wildfires in Europe heatwave

Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed here by the authors are their own, not those of impakter.com — Cover Photo Credit:  Wikimedia Commons