I spotted this story in The Independent this morning about ‘Earth Lunch Hour’ and I have to say I’m amazed that this type of green wash story still has legs. Not that I’m against any idea that helps the environment, but a PR initiative from global electronics giant Panasonic encouraging people to ‘do a little bit’ for the environment in their lunch hour is nothing short of patronising and hypocritical.

Most multi-national corporations intrinsically operate in a way that is not friendly to the environment - it’s the nature of profit-making and capitalism to consume. So from a PR perspective, I can understand the need for a CSR programme to go some way to mitigating the impact this has on the environment. But the Greenpeace Guide to Greener Electronics which ranks the top 18 electronics companies currently has Panasonic languishing in 10th place, suggesting it still has some work to do before it can inject any credibility into its environmental campaigns.