Newsletter
Trademark Planning and Protection Topics - Riding the ESG Wave: Plan Early for Green Marks
I. Introduction
In 2024, countries around the world experienced the hottest summer in history. The melting of polar ice caps due to climate change has led to rising sea levels, submerging low-lying coastal lands and prime areas. The resulting increase in summer temperatures and prolonged dry seasons has in turn caused the drying up of vegetation, reduced food production, the spread of pests and diseases, and increased wildfire occurrences. Changes in seasonal and climatic rhythms have further deteriorated air and water quality as well as human and natural habitats.
In view of the tremendous harm caused by climate change, the United Nations in 2015 proposed the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, setting out 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Among them, "Clean Water and Sanitation," "Affordable and Clean Energy," "Responsible Consumption and Production," "Climate Action," "Life Below Water," and "Life on Land" have much bearing on business operators, as they concern the product's source of raw materials, production methods and energy use, product recycling or reuse, and marketing methods.
To urge businesses to implement sustainable development governance approaches and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, Taiwan published the "Sustainable Development Roadmap for Listed Companies" in 2022, laying out the following five aspects of sustainable development for achieving corporate governance: 1) Leading businesses to reach net-zero emissions; 2) Deepening the culture of sustainable corporate governance; 3) Enhancing disclosure of information on sustainability; 4) Strengthening stakeholder communication; and 5) Promoting ESG assessment and digitalization.
In line with these policies, all listed companies in Taiwan are required to prepare sustainability reports starting from 2025, enabling them to identify, assess, and report on major topics of their operations' economic, environmental, and social impacts. Initially, only listed companies with a paid-in capital of over two billion NT dollars were required to prepare such reports. However, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) later published the "Action Plan for Sustainable Development of Listed Companies," extending the requirement to listed companies with a paid-in capital of two billion NT dollars or less. Therefore, all listed companies must prepare sustainability reports starting next year (2025) and complete the submission by the end of August 2025. To this end, the FSC issued an official reminder for this new policy on 17 October 2024.
II. Businesses should make early plans for green marks in view of Taiwan's ESG regulatory framework
As Taiwan gradually implements its regulatory framework for environmental, social, and governance (ESG), devising a green mark strategy will help your business fulfill ESG ideals and practice.
For a mark to be "green," its representation does not have to contain any words or devices symbolizing ESG ideals; rather, as long as there is one "green" specification of goods or services designated for the mark, the mark will be considered "green." To define "green" goods or services, Taiwan referred to the green mark standards set by EU and categorized "green" goods or services pertaining to green marks into nine groups: 1) Energy Production; 2) Transportation; 3) Energy Conservation; 4) Reusable; 5) Pollution Control; 6) Waste Management; 7) Agriculture; 8) Environmental Awareness; and 9) Climate Change. After classification, keywords were screened from such goods and services relating to these nine groups. In a given trademark filing, if a specification of goods or services designated for the mark is found to contain such a keyword, such specification is considered to be "green," and the applied-for mark will accordingly be considered a green mark.
Green transportation, for instance, involves promoting the use of low-pollution, energy-efficient, and smart transportation tools to provide a safe, comfortable, environmentally friendly, and symbiotic sustainable transportation environment. Through increasing awareness and consensus among local governments and the public, the concepts of environmental conservation and resource regeneration associated with green transportation are effectively implemented. Furthermore, land use planning efforts guided by green transportation systems will save energy and reduce carbon emissions. The corresponding "green" goods or services include but not limit to the following: "batteries for vehicles; fuel cells; charging stations; devices for use with charging stations for electric vehicles" in Class 9, provided by the battery manufacturing industry.
Carbon trading refers to the market mechanism of controlling the amount of reduced carbon emissions by trading carbon emissions as a form of tradable commodities. This involves first setting a target of the total amount of carbon emissions allowed, and then allocating carbon emission allowances to various countries or companies. The emissions from each country or company must not exceed the allocated amount. However, countries or companies are allowed to purchase emission allowances from those that have not reached their emission limits, in order to offset their own excess greenhouse gas emissions. The corresponding "green" goods or services include but not limit to the following: "brokerage of carbon credits" in Class 36, provided by the industries relating to finance.
The latest statistics compiled by TIPO show that the top three groups of green mark filings in Taiwan are Energy Conservation, Pollution Control, and Energy Production, ranked in descending order. The total number of applications in these three groups accounts for 80% of the total applications for green marks. Therefore, these three groups should constitute the core areas for most businesses in terms of their plans for green marks and the goods or services produced for achieving ESG goals. The relevant industries encompass the goods and services in various fields of industries, such as telecommunications, 3C (computer, communication, and consumer electronics) manufacturing that produce mobile phones and computers, food manufacturing, home appliances, and online shopping, etc.
III. Conclusion
The foregoing examples briefly discuss the "green" goods or services relating to green transportation and carbon trading. Other ESG-related subjects and industries will have other corresponding "green" goods or services. If a business uses a mark to recognize the source of goods or services and designating it for the "green" goods or services in corresponding industry will make such mark a green mark.
When applying for trademarks, businesses should pay close attention to whether the goods and services offered by their brand align with ESG concepts. They should designate the corresponding "green" goods and services in their applications to ensure that the applied-for trademark becomes a green mark. This approach aligns with international goals and trends for sustainable development and administration, enhances the competitiveness of their goods and services, and fosters a positive corporate image in the minds of consumers.