A guide to climate buzzwords and what they say about corporate promises

• Thousands of companies with climate goals use confusing jargon like "carbon neutral" and "net zero."
• Corporate climate advisors told Insider what makes a pledge credible or misleading. 
• Global efforts are underway to rid the market of greenwashing.

The amount of jargon thrown around in climate circles can feel dizzying.

Corporate climate pledges are rife with terms like "carbon neutral," "net zero," and "carbon negative," leading to  confusion among consumers and investors, among others, about what it all means.

It's little surprise so many of us are perplexed. There's no standard definition of these claims, nor are there many institutions policing whether a company is using them to mislead the public about its climate record.