Amid lockdowns, unemployment, and increased loneliness and stress, the pandemic has wreaked havoc on people’s mental health. To unpack these emotions, many Americans are looking to counseling, with younger generations especially eager to confront and improve their mental health.

The ways that people interact with businesses have been overhauled in 2020, with the COVID-19 pandemic and Black Lives Matter protests amplifying demands for brands to acknowledge and respond to social ills. So, how can companies translate their values into meaningful action?

High-profile examples of woke-washing and green-washing have made many people sceptical of brands’ social activism, perceiving their efforts as profit-driven. Canvas8 spoke to Tulsi Achia, a social psychologist and allyship specialist, to learn how organisations can best signal their solidarity.

With people demanding their voices be heard more than ever before, taking a moral stance on all sorts of things is the new normal. Canvas8 spoke to Dr. Jillian Jordan, postdoctoral fellow at the Kellogg School of Management, to find out how brands can appeal to our desire to be morally good.