It can be inferred that the author considers the Keep America Beautiful organisation:

Question

Option 1: an innovative example of a collaborative corporate social responsibility initiative.

Option 2: a sham, as it diverted attention away from the role of corporations in plastic pollution.

Option 3: an important step in sensitizing producers to the need to tackle plastics pollution.

Option 4: a "greenwash" because it was a benevolent attempt to improve public recycling habits

AfterBoards · Accepted Answer

The author clearly criticizes Keep America Beautiful as a corporate-backed organisation that shifted blame from companies to consumers. > “These efforts seem benevolent, but they obscure the real problem: the role corporate polluters play in the plastic crisis.” Another direct clue: > “Keep America Beautiful [was] the first corporate greenwashing front… [it] helped shift the public focus to consumer recycling behaviour.” So, the organisation is seen as a "greenwashing front", not a genuine environmental effort. It made people focus on individual recycling, while hiding the role of corporate plastic producers. However, don't get confused with option-4 as the activity was not benevolent! Hence, option-2 is the answer (a sham = similar to a "scam")

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