Why Bluesky Could Be a Crucial Platform for Renewables and Sustainability Brands

Elon Musk’s controversial policies on X, including a permissive stance on extremist rhetoric, have prompted a wave of high-profile departures. From government bodies like Devon County Council to football clubs such as Hamburg’s St. Pauli, many organisations are walking away from the platform in search of alternatives.

Enter Bluesky: a decentralised social media platform spearheaded by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. For brands in the renewables, cleantech, and sustainability sectors, Bluesky offers a fresh opportunity to connect with audiences in a more controlled, positive environment.

In this blog, we explore how Bluesky is altering the flight-path of the social media skyscape and why sustainability-focused brands could be ahead of the game in considering it as part of their digital marketing strategy for the year ahead.

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1. X-Odus: A Shift in Audience Behavior

The mass departure from X (formerly Twitter) has seen a decline of 8.4% in daily active users in the U.S. since early October, as reported by Similarweb. 

During the same period, Bluesky experienced exponential growth, with its user base skyrocketing by 1,064% to approximately 2.7 million, a shift perhaps reflecting users’ preference for a platform that prioritises moderation, transparency, and community-focused values.

Early adopters on Bluesky include prominent brands like Duolingo, Hulu, and Netflix, actively experimenting with organic posts and building connections in the platform's growing community. Meanwhile, other major names, such as Xbox, have taken steps to secure their handles but have yet to activate their presence. 

For sustainability brands though, this user migration is perhaps more significant than for other sectors. The audience on Bluesky appears to value thoughtful discourse, diversity, and innovation—traits that align well with the ethos of renewable energy and cleantech. 

It also highlights Bluesky's potential as a fresh marketing frontier for proactive brands willing to lead the way.

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2. An Opportunity to Shape the Conversation

Many thought leaders, journalists, and organisations have left X due to concerns over hate speech, misinformation, and lack of moderation. This includes influential voices in environmental and social activism who have sought platforms like Bluesky for healthier dialogue.

The highly respected ‘energy transition optimist’, and one of the 10 LinkedIn Top Green Voices in the UK, Jan Rosenow, posted his last ‘X’ in November. He stated:

“I will focus my efforts on the other place [Bluesky]... Join me over there as this place is going downhill and fast.”

In December, The European Federation of Journalists also left X. The organisation, which represents over 300,000 journalists worldwide, confirmed it would “no longer ethically participate in a social network that its owner has transformed into a machine of disinformation and propaganda”.

This follows The Guardian’s departure from the platform stating its motivators as, “the often disturbing content promoted or found on the platform, including far-right conspiracy theories and racism.”

Sustainability brands can seize this opportunity to lead conversations on Bluesky, leveraging its focus on community and meaningful exchange to position themselves as thought leaders in a space that–at least at present–values authenticity and ethical engagement.

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3. A Values-Driven Platform with Added Extras

Bluesky’s appeal lies in its ‘decentralised model' and commitment to building a safer online space. 

But what does this actually mean?

Rather than being controlled by a single company, Bluesky has been built on an open-source framework that enables users to control what they see in their feeds and select their own moderation filters.

Bluesky makes personalising an organisation’s online experience easy:

Block and Mute Lists

Want to clean up your feed? Community-curated lists allow brands to block or mute accounts with ease.

Content Labels

Self-labelling posts with sensitive content encourages responsible sharing and respects viewer discretion.

Starter Packs

One of our team’s favourite features of the platform, these curated collections of accounts are a fast pass to finding people who share your organisation’s space and interests—or blocking groups you'd rather avoid—all with a single click. 

Custom Feeds

Tailor the experience further by exploring or joining unique feeds through the # symbol or the app’s menu.

With these thoughtful tools, Bluesky feels more like a community your company can control and less like the chaos some platforms have become. Brands whose missions are often deeply intertwined with sustainability and ethics, aligning with Bluesky can amplify their credibility and reinforce their values-driven narrative.

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4. ‘Good Vibes Only’: User-Control and Anti-Toxicity Measures

Bluesky distinguishes itself from X by offering users greater control over their experience and incorporating tools designed to foster healthier interactions, as we covered above. But this culture of ‘good vibes only’ is supported by robust moderation policies, promising a safer brand environment.  

• Customisable Algorithms: Unlike X, which dictates users' feeds based on proprietary algorithms, Bluesky allows individuals to select or create the algorithms that curate their content. This feature enables users to tailor feeds specifically to their interests—such as renewable energy news, climate advocacy, or sustainability discussions—creating a more meaningful and focused online experience.
• Verification-Enabled Handles: Bluesky lets users incorporate website URLs into their handles, which could serve as a verification tool for businesses, public figures, and organisations. For sustainability brands, this offers an opportunity to reinforce credibility and make it easy for followers to connect with their official digital presence.
• Anti-Toxicity Features: Bluesky takes proactive measures to combat harassment and unwanted interactions, contrasting sharply with X's recent decisions to ease blocking features. Users can "detach" their posts from someone else's quote post to limit engagement with trolls or hostile users. For brands in sensitive spaces like sustainability, where misinformation or hostile comments can hinder productive discourse, this is a significant advantage.

These features offer a safer, more customisable, and user-focused platform, supporting authentic engagement with stakeholders without the risk of reputational harm from unmoderated hostility: musts for renewable and sustainability brands. 

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First Steps for Renewable Energy Brands to Take to Bluesky

Establish an early presence

Follow the lead of global organisations like the International Renewables Energy Agency (IRENA) and create a handle to secure your brand’s name on the platform, even if you do not post or build a community yet. 

Remember that Bluesky allows users to customise their handles with their own domain names for a personalised brand touch. 

Engage with feeds

You can curate your content via feeds that enable you to view discussions relevant to your organisation–some are as specific feeds on solar and wind energy, or EVs, such as those created by this useful handle: @renewableenergy.bsky.social  

Keep an eye on who joins

You might be surprised who you find has had the same blue sky thinking as your organisation… start to follow companies in your space.  

Follow us on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/wildtribe.bsky.social

Keep it personal

With its values of authenticity and person-to-person conversation, join up with a personal account to understand the platform. You can still add your company’s website URL to your profile, making it an effective step to soft launch your brand on the platform. 

Assess your brand’s marketing strategy

Before you take to the skies, check and balance your current output. We have a resource to help with that.

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Although Bluesky’s user base is still dwarfed by its rivals, legacy platforms like X face declining satisfaction in those that remain. 

Bluesky offers sustainability-focused brands a chance to connect with a highly engaged, values-aligned audience in a less polarised and more community-driven environment. 

Bluesky’s rise presents an opportunity to redefine digital marketing strategies especially for companies in the cleantech and renewable energy sectors. Early adoption could be the key to establishing a lasting impact on this emerging platform.

If you’re interested in how the platform could be leveraged in your digital marketing strategy in 2025, we can help. 

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Talk to our team for renewable and sustainable marketing expertise. 

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And for a regular dose of B2B marketing know-how for renewables, cleanteach and all comers to the sustainability space, subscribe to our monthly newsletter, The Buzz. 

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