Ahead of Prime Day, Amazon Launches Climate Pledge Friendly for Sustainable Shopping

TECHNOLOGY

Photo: Amazon

Photo: Amazon

As of Monday, September 28, 2020

While Amazon’s announcement that Prime Day would be held Oct. 13-14 occupied a lot of media buzz after the dates were revealed on Sept. 28, another bit of news from the Seattle-based company also made headlines. Through its Climate Pledge Friendly program, Amazon has sought to ease the sustainable-goods shopping experience for customers by identifying products that meet sustainability standards.

Relevant products from different categories such as grocery, household, fashion, beauty and personal electronics will be identified by a Climate Pledge Friendly label. As part of the Climate Pledge Friendly program, Amazon also announced Compact by Design, a validation that is performed externally by a third party and identifies more efficiently designed products.

“Climate Pledge Friendly is a simple way for customers to discover more sustainable products that help preserve the natural world,” Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO, said in a statement. “With 18 external certification programs and our own Compact by Design certification, we’re incentivizing selling partners to create sustainable products that help protect the planet for future generations.”

This new identifier from Amazon will fortify the company’s commitment to reach the Paris Agreement ten years early and accomplish net-zero carbon by 2040. The more than 25,000 Climate Pledge Friendly products will be labeled with the program’s stamp of approval upon proving that they meet one or more of 19 different sustainability certifications, such as Global Organic Textile Standard, Fair Trade, Bluesign and Cradle to Cradle.

“Cradle to Cradle certification provides a framework for product optimization based on the principles of designing with safe and healthy materials, using clean renewable energy and water, celebrating diversity, and eliminating the concept of waste,” said William McDonough, co-founder of the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute. “We love that Amazon is making it simple for customers to find sustainable products. Amazon’s new program will expand our reach and enable us to empower more brands to deliver safer and more sustainable products for the circular economy.”