The platform has been joined by more than 250 brands to date, including Microsoft, T2 Tea, Afends, Scoop Wholefoods, Brew Dog and Huskee, with the company hoping to have more than 500 brands before it launches for consumers early next year.

Greener has also partnered with the City of Sydney, and the Australian Retailers Association.

The latest funding will enable Greener to iterate on both its business and consumer side platforms with further tests before a broad launch next year, with NAB Ventures managing director Todd Forest saying the platform has clear potential.

“We all have a part to play in climate action and NAB certainly recognises our role,” he said.

“We’re continuously looking at ways we can support our customers and colleagues to take action to reduce their carbon footprint.”

Ferrier said Greener was highly focused on customers who want to feel good about helping the environment, but still wanted convenience. It also plans to offer a rewards system to entice shoppers who may not be environmentally minded at all.

“We look at a number of independent third-party verification methods, look at what businesses are doing across reducing emissions, reducing waste, using better materials or being a more responsible business,” Ferrier said.

“And we then shine a light on those to the consumers through the app, with a simple badge mechanism.”

Not all businesses highlighted by Greener will be the pinnacle of environmentalism, with Ferrier saying the point was to encourage businesses to make progress while offsetting their emissions. But the platform does have a “red line” that disqualifies companies from participating if they engage in certain practices. This includes things like extracting fossil fuels, testing on animals or not paying fair wages.

On emissions, Ferrier said Greener only used high integrity carbon offsets, and had worked with the University of Sydney to come up with the most comprehensive carbon database for the Australian economy.

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“But it is really important to note we’re not just an offset engine,” he said.

“We really are focused on helping consumers and businesses reduce their emissions to start with, then when they do need to buy something, buy things that are better for the planet, and then we carbon offset the remaining emissions, if anything.”

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