Vanderbilt’s 295 solar panels show our commitment to sustainability.

Summary:

• Companies who practice greenwashing can make both deliberate claims and unintentionally misrepresent their sustainability efforts.
• As a Financial Advisor, you can help your clients avoid these bogus claims with resources outlined at the end of the article.

Many businesses promote their credentials with the promises of having green buildings, eco-labels, and clean technologies. But how many of these pledges are authentic? How many of them are just empty corporate spins? We called these inauthentic claims “greenwashing” in our past article “Will "Impact-Washing" Be the New Greenwashing?”

Each month Vanderbilt Financial Group features an advisor in the Vanderbilt family who exhibits the VFG values of Gratitude, Respect, Innovation, Teamwork and Trust on a consistent basis. These values impact their work with clients and VFG staff, and ultimately pushes for an excellence in their business practices that is unparalleled and incredibly unique. Beyond high-level producers, these advisors offer sage advice and best practices for boosting your business on your terms according to your values.  

This month we're thrilled to be trying out a new format! We're turning these interviews into short-form podcasts. You have to start somewhere and we decided to start with Stuart Valentine, a VFG Financial Advisor whose practice, Centered Wealth focuses on connecting one’s life-purpose with financial choices and investment portfolios. Below are the audio highlights from our interview. However, I found the content very meaty and decided to post the transcript not covered in the podcast below. It's long, but well-worth the read....

On Christmas Day 50 years ago, America was a divided nation. It was a tough year of troubled times and assassinations. We lost Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy, and the Vietnam War was in full swing with massive rampant protests. I can see the parallels between the issues we dealt with during that difficult year of 1968 and today, including moments and opportunities to bring us back together.