Corporate “greenwashing” has become a significant barrier to achieving China’s “dual carbon” goals and high-quality development. Based on upper echelons theory, this study examines the impact of executives environmental backgrounds on corporate “greenwashing”, focusing on Chinese A-share listed companies from 2011 to 2022. The empirical results indicate that executives with environmental backgrounds can effectively curb corporate “greenwashing”, and this conclusion remains robust after a series of tests. Mechanism tests reveal that executives with environmental backgrounds inhibit corporate “greenwashing” by enhancing corporate environmental awareness, improving corporate environmental legitimacy, and reducing corporate environmental costs. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the inhibitory effect of executives environmental backgrounds on corporate “greenwashing” is more pronounced in companies that voluntarily disclose environmental information, heavily polluted companies, and companies located in inland cities.