Sustainability White Papers & Research

Explore our collection of sustainability resources for marketing professionals, featuring whitepapers and research. Dive into the latest insights on sustainable advertising practices, climate communications, and strategies for reducing carbon emissions in the marketing industry.

The Global Media Sustainability Framework

By GARM, June 2024

The Global Media Sustainability Framework is a cross-industry collaboration between WFA’s Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) and the Ad Net Zero community. It allows advertisers, media owners and agencies to measure across six major media types.

The Not-So United States of Sustainability

By YouGov, February 2024

This report segments American consumers into five groups based on sustainability behaviours, revealing their eco-friendly habits and brand expectations for a greener future.

Hard Drive Re-Use Best Practices for Production & Post

By Ad Net Zero, May 2024

Top ad industry bodies, including Ad Net Zero, 4A’s, ANA, and more, unite to endorse new best practices for hard drive reuse, aiming to cut carbon emissions and reduce resource waste in production.

GARM Sustainability Quick Action Guide

By GARM, June 2023

The guide identifies 10 areas across planning, buying and activation where advertisers can take action right now to reduce the direct carbon emissions of their advertising activity.

Sustainability Marketing 2030

By World Federation of Advertisers, April 2023

The Sustainable Marketing 2030 initiative is a collaboration between WFA and Kantar’s Sustainable Transformation Practice which seeks to explore how the marketing function can be part of the solution to a sustainable future.

Digital Advertising Sustainability Study: How Brands, Agencies and Ad Tech are Powering More Sustainable Digital Advertising

By Adexchanger and Sharethrough, July 2023

Sharethrough and AdExchanger partnered to survey leaders from brands, agencies, and ad tech companies on how sustainability pressures and initiatives are already reshaping their business practices.

Sustainability and Purpose: Pave the Path-to-Purchase

By Magna Global, IPG Mediabrands, Kantar

How sustainability can drive short-term sales and long-term brand equity and how focusing on sustainability can support future business success.This white paper summarizes the results from “Purposeful Purchase Journeys” (PPJ), conducted across five different industries in the UK through a partnership between IPG Mediabrands’ Sustainability Practice, MAGNA UK, Kantar & Google.

The State of Sustainable Advertising

By Scope3

These reports from Scope3 showcase updated emissions data and estimated digital advertising emissions, with projections on the industry’s decarbonization initiatives.

More research from Scope3 here.

An Analysis of Problematic Placements

By Scope3

This analysis explores the nature of problematic placements, how they compare to other forms of ad waste and why leveraging placement-level data is a must for marketers.

More research from Scope3 here.

IAB Sustainability Playbook: Starter Guide for a Sustainable Programmatic Marketplace

By IAB Tech Lab, June 2023

In January 2023, IAB Tech Lab announced a new workstream committed to working with the industry to produce guidance, tools, and initiatives that can be used to reduce the carbon impact of the programmatic supply chain.

Ad Net Zero Annual Report 2023

By Ad Net Zero, 2023

This annual report from Ad Net Zero offers an overview of the progress made on measuring carbon emissions and decarbonizing the advertising industry.

By Users, For Users: Empowering User Choice for Sustainable Online Advertising

By Acceptable Ads Committee

In 2023, the Acceptable Ads Committee conducted a qualitative and quantitative study to better understand the perspectives of online users regarding sustainability.

This study addressed key questions, including user awareness of carbon emissions associated with their internet usage, their views on “sustainable advertising” and strategies to reduce carbon footprint.

A New Era in Climate Communications

Natalia Vega FOUNDER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NEW ZERO WORLD

This white paper from New World Zero is a collaboration of more than 60 organizations and contributors, laying the foundation for a transformed future through effective climate change communications and creativity.

Deep Dive: a Guide to Environmental Sustainability in Digital Advertising

By ExchangeWire and Sharethrough, October 2022

This Deep Dive between ExchangeWire and Sharethrough breaks down the carbon emissions of online advertising and review what solutions could lead to reducing them.

The Institute for Advertising Ethics (IAE) Charter for Greenwash Prevention

By The Institute for Advertising Ethics, 2024

This whitepaper from The Institute for Advertising Ethics focuses on what actions are needed from advertisers and agencies to avoid greenwashing and better the integrity of environmentally themed advertising.

Project Drawdown’s - Climate Solutions 101

By Project Drawdown

This course offered by Project Drawdown is an educational effort through a solutions lens that offers climate action based on science research and analysis, and discussions with global experts to make climate solutions more attainable.

Books Recommendations

The Carbon Almanac: It's Not Too Late

by The Carbon Almanac Network (Author), Seth Godin (Editor, Foreword), July 12, 2022.

A comprehensive guide on carbon’s impact on the climate through essays, graphs, tables and other helpful content. Put together from hundreds of contributors that span across industries and disciplines.

Can Marketing Save the Planet?: 101 Practical Ways to Use Sustainable Marketing as a Force for Good

by Michelle Carvill (Author), Gemma Butler (Author), March 19, 2024.

A resource for marketers to help navigate the complexities of sustainability in an easy-to-understand format while providing practical recommendations on aligning marketing and sustainability goals to drive business growth.

Also check out the podcast of the same name.

Sustainable Marketing: How to Drive Profits with Purpose

by Michelle Carvill (Author), Gemma Butler (Author), Geraint Evans (Author), January 21, 2021.

This book highlights how important sustainable marketing is and delivers a guide on how advertisers, agencies and other organizations can implement and drive sustainable practices.

The Solutionist: How Businesses Can Fix the Future

By Solitaire Townsend, April 25, 2023.

A blueprint with the steps and strategies to lead advertisers and agencies to become more sustainable. Featuring stories from global business leaders about how to drive business growth while solving the climate change crisis.

Greener Marketing

By John Grant, July 2020.

This book showcases up-to-date learnings, case studies and more while aiming to guide advertisers on how they can positively impact climate change. Read more

Sustainable Advertising: How Advertising Can Support A Better Future

By Matt Bourn and Sebastian Munden, March 26, 2024.

How every step in the advertising process can be made more sustainable and future-proof while still driving profits, and provides action plans that advertisers and agencies can take to improve their sustainability.

Net Positive: How Courageous Companies Thrive by Giving More Than They Take

by Paul Polman (Author), Andrew Winston (Author), October 05, 2021.

Former Unilever CEO Paul Polman and climate expert Andrew Winston reveal key lessons from Unilever and other leading companies about how fixing today’s problems can lead to greater profits.

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