Earth Day is deeply rooted in environmentalism; it’s become a corporate social responsibility movement regarding concerns for environmental protection. If there is one thing influencer marketing is especially important for, it is the ability to align brands with social movements.
A value-based influencer marketing strategy is when brands collaborate with influencers who align with and support brand values in order to connect with like-minded customers in a meaningful and authentic dialogue.
So, in honor of Earth Day, we are featuring 10 awesome sustainability influencers who support the values of sustainability and environmentalism and the brands that collaborate with them, along with campaign examples and tips to run an effective eco-friendly campaign.
Tip: Also take a look at these sustainable fashion influencers, and learn about corporate sustainability trends.
10 Sustainable Influencers to Follow
Leveraging influencers to improve your image as a sustainable brand starts with making the right connections. Let’s meet the top eco-friendly influencers and learn what they’re passionate about.
Side Note: The following influencers have sizable audiences that can help you reap the benefits of brand exposure. However, you can also find micro-influencers who have smaller followings but highly engaged audiences.
1. Aditi Mayer (@aditimayer)
Aditi Mayer is one of the top sustainable fashion influencers and an advocate for labor rights and social justice. Her journey began in 2014 after she learned of the Rana Plaza factory collapse that killed over 1100 people and injured countless others. For Mayer, this tragedy served as an awakening to the poor labor conditions and dirty secrets of the fashion industry. She is now a sustainable development influencer who has become a leading voice on sustainability, thanks to her services on the councils of Intersectional Environmentalist and State of Fashion.
2. Bea Johnson (@zerowastehome)
Bea Johnson is the author of the bestselling book Zero Waste Home, having turned her ideas from a blog into a movement. She has brought awareness to hundreds of thousands of homes on how they can reduce consumption and waste. She has boldly stated that her family’s annual household trash amounts to a single jar. Bea offers tons of resources to inspire and lead others, including a tool to find places to make bulk purchases, tips for getting started with waste-free living, and sustainably purchased items that naturally result in less waste.
3. Immy Lucas (@sustainablyvegan)
Vegan influencer Immy Lucas is a UK-based YouTuber and environmental influencer. As a full-time content creator, Immy started the Low Impact Movement to share how she approaches a low-waste and low-impact lifestyle. Her channel, Sustainably Vegan, also shares insights on veganism and how it’s helping to combat climate change.
4. Rob Greenfield (@robjgreenfield)
Also known as the Trash Man, Rob Greenfield proves that one man’s junk truly is another man’s treasure. He’s gone to the extreme in living a sustainable, waste-free life, including scrounging in the trash for food and clothing and cycling across the United States on a bamboo bicycle.
5. Kathryn Kellogg (@going.zero.waste)
A staunch advocate for plastic-free living, Kathryn Kellogg is among the top environmental influencers on Instagram with a following of more than 379K. She runs the website Going Zero Waste and serves as the Chief Sustainability Officer of One Movement. Her content focuses on helping others go plastic-free and find more sustainable alternatives to traditional products.
6. Isaias Hernandez (@queerbrownvegan)
Isaias Hernandez has built his platform on veganism and environmental justice. With more than 112K followers on Instagram, he is heavily invested on creating a sustainable future. Combating climate change, improving the food chain with veganism, and fostering a safe community for environmentalists are among his core values.
7. Lauren Singer (@trashisfortossers)
With 379K Instagram followers, Lauren Singer is a firm advocate for the zero-waste lifestyle. She’s been living her sustainable lifestyle since 2012, when she first started collecting all of the waste she created in a single mason jar. She now shares tips for others to do the same on her blog, Trash is for Tossers.
8. Jessica Clifton (@jess.cliftonn)
Owner of the website Impact for Good, Jessica Clifton is one of the top sustainable living influencers. She shares product reviews, tips on living a waste-free lifestyle, and other advice on her channel. She started her venture by going plastic-free, which grew into choosing more eco-friendly products and eventually sharing her ventures through social media.
9. Tara McKenna (@zero.waste.collective)
Founder of the Zero Waste Collective, Tara McKenna is a Canadian influencer with one of the largest sustainability influencer followings on Instagram. She recognized a need for change at the global level after having traveled to various countries to witness the significant trash problem firsthand. She now offers coaching on living sustainably as well as tips and advice on social media.
10. Andrew Burgess (@wandythemaker)
With an Instagram following of over 86K and more than 13K followers on YouTube, Andrew Burgess has become a go-to source for sustainable DIY projects and upcycling ideas. His mission is to inspire others to see the potential in what they already have, showcasing how sustainability can be both fun and fashionable. He criticizes fast fashion's reliance on environmentally damaging practices and encourages consumers to support brands that prioritize sustainability and ethical production.
3 Sustainability Collaboration Examples
Let's take an additional look into three examples of sustainability influencer collaborations for your inspiration:
1. Jessica Clifton and Grove Collaborative
Jessica Clifton is a sustainability influencer with a wide following of over 200K followers across Instagram and TikTok. She provides useful tips to her followers on sustainable living by partnering with brands that support her values. With an average of 32K engagements per post, Jessica is an ideal partner for brands looking to promote their products and values to a highly engaged and passionate network.
Grove Collaborative is an eco-friendly household and beauty brand that provides conscious consumers with ethical alternatives to everyday products. Currently, the brand’s social media following is 90% females with an average age of 30, which means they are connecting more with millennials than Gen Z. Perhaps in a bid to engage a younger demographic, the brand is running creative life-hack ads on TikTok, as seen with Jessica Clifton.
2. Andrew Burgess and Puma
Voices of a RE-GENERATION | PUMA®
Recently, Andrew Burgess teamed up with Puma for their Voices of a Re:Generation campaign. The campaign is all about promoting sustainable fashion and reducing waste. Burgess is a perfect fit for this message, as he is known for his creative upcycling projects.
For the Re:Generation campaign, Burgess created a series of upcycled Puma sneakers. He used old Puma sneakers, as well as other materials like discarded fabrics and plastic bags. The result is a collection of unique and stylish shoes that are also good for the planet. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the sneakers will be donated to environmental organizations.
3. Rob Greenfield and VIVOBAREFOOT
Rob Greenfield is an extremely unique influencer because his activism is at the heart of all that he does. It might be more accurate to call him an influactivist or an actifluencer. For example, a recent post presented a three-course gourmet meal made entirely of wasted food. His content is powerful and mission-oriented, something his 173K followers will certainly subscribe to.
Rob had a very interesting collaboration with VIVOBAREFOOT, a shoe brand that vows to reclaim and resell all worn shoes rather than tossing them in landfills. Why is this partnership so important? As part of Rob’s environmental activism, he has largely gone barefoot for 10 years as a boycott of the industrial fashion and clothing industry.
However, when he learned about Vivo’s mission to reclaim old shoes and stop the cycle of fast fashion, he realized that he finally found a shoe brand he could support. This collaboration produced an extremely strong and effective value-based campaign, presenting VIVOBAREFOOT as the only alternative to boycotting fast fashion.
