Volkswagen: Unsinn, We Did Not Cave In To Greenpeace
Two days ago, Volkswagen announced “ambitious new sustainability targets.” The Wolfsburg company promised “30 percent reduction in CO2 emissions during the period from 2006 to 2015,” and “emissions below the 120 gram CO2/km mark for first time in 2015.” Plants of the group are to become “25 percent more environmentally compatible by 2018.”
TTAC ignored the announcement. I know VW quite intimately, and they make these announcements on a regular basis. A lot of the above had already been announced in 2011.
Our friends at Hybridcars.com have a different perspective, they think Volkswagen hoisted the white flag in the war with Greenpeace:
“Although Volkswagen Group today presented its “go-ahead for fundamental ecological restructuring” and commitment to a 120g/km CO2 emissions by 2015 target as its own idea, it could also be seen as at least partially caving under pressure from GreenPeace.”
Greenpeace had been on Volkswagen’s case for quite a while. Last Summer, Greenpeace slammed Volkswagen with a Star Wars persiflage, hosted on a server in environmentally responsible China (top.) In October, Greenpeace disrupted a European dealer meeting. Several protesters were arrested. A few days ago, Greenpeace continued to recycle its Darth Vader meme.
Volkswagen vowed then not submit to pressure. Volkswagen says it has kept that vow.
There had been no meetings with Greenpeace since last summer, says Ines Roessler, spokesperson for environmental matters at Volkswagen HQ in Wolfsburg. After that meeting, Volkswagen felt duped by Greenpeace, blue Volkswagen and Greenpeace are no longer on talking terms.
Says Ines Roessler:
“Of course our announcement has nothing to do with Greenpeace. Many of the targets that were communicated in Geneva already did exist for quite a while. The reduction of CO2 for instance can be found in our sustainability report , which was published in April 2011.”
Some of the newer announcements had actually been shared with Greenpeace during the ill-fated meeting last summer. Ines Roessler remembers:
“We had told Greenpeace at that meeting that the Golf 7 will have new technologies for additional reductions of consumption. To do this while the production is running is either impossible, or only possibly with huge investments. Therefore, these environmental technologies come with the new Golf 7. “
There is one thing that should have elevated the suspicion level at Hybridcars: Even Greenpeace did not claim credit after Volkswagen’s announcement. As Hybridcars writes:
“We also contacted GreenPeace today, but the U.S. representative spoken to had not even heard the news, and said he would have to consult with colleagues. Thus far we’ve not heard back.”
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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Americans have no idea how pathetic Germans have become over the environmental issue. Living on Earth has become a new shame requiring a plethora of new pentences to cleanse the politically correct soul. Daily life is filled with constant watch over one another's consumption habits. "If I buy this, will I damage the ozone layer?" "If I get this, how will I explain to my friends my acceptance of the plastic packing container it arrives in?" "How much water was used to wash these vegetables?" "How do I throw this away when it wears out?" Their economy would be in free fall if they didn't sell what they made to the world, because they have monitored consumption to an extent where folks are getting ulcers over scotch tape containers and how to recycle their urine. They aren't consuming, reproducing, and require a basket of beer to let down their guards enough to have fun anymore. American tourists are arriving daily, living like they always do, and dropping their trash wherever as Germans scowl over our farts. It has become a new High Church of Environmental Holiness. Proof that you recycle broken clothes pins as you wait for your leather undies to hang dry in your attic has replaced living a vice free life. So, now we see a major German corporation of international fame and success, kowtowing to a group of people who found power in shaming us because we breath. It's like hearing Cotton Mathers in Puritan Massachusetts giving instructions to Ford Motor Company on the need to serve caffeine free coffee in their lunch rooms or that he'll publically condemn the new 2012 Fiesta as an unholy beast of Satan. We must not allow people who savor their own self righteousness to dictate our lives. It doesn't matter if they are thumping a Bible, a Koran, or a copy of Carson's "Silent Spring". God loves us whether we covet our neighbor's wife, let a woman drive a car, or toss away a candy wrapper into a trash can. Instead of protesting a neighbor's choice of vehicle, start attending a strict church. You'll continue to enjoy judging other's behavior while not looking like a complete idiot for a change.
Greenpeace claiming credit for VW "cave in" would be like a rooster claiming credit for the sunrise.