Message From the Editor
Happy New Year! As 2024 kicks off, we’re hard at work and have an exciting slate of articles coming this month, starting with this analysis that revealed three-quarters of green advertising awards go to agencies that also work for the fossil fuel industry.
Want a preview of what else we’ll be keeping our eyes on this year? DeSmog’s writers and editors weighed in on four key issues that will be on our radar. 2023 was also a big year for climate accountability litigation and we expect more of the same in 2024, with several cases moving closer to trial. We’ve got your climate lawsuits primer here.
The courts aren’t the only place where fossil fuel companies are under pressure. Investigative reporter Stella Levantesi explored the pressure activist shareholders are putting on Big Oil — and the way Big Oil is fighting back.
Shareholder activism can take many forms, but generally refers to efforts by shareholders of a company to influence its policies, management, or strategic direction, from voting during annual general meetings to submitting shareholder resolutions, and, in certain instances, even resorting to litigation, Paul Benson, senior lawyer at ClientEarth, an environmental law organization, explained.
The shareholders’ “voting power alone could bring about a major shift in corporate behavior if it was consistently being used to support proper climate risk management and action, rather than push against it,” Benson added. However, a recent study shows that international oil companies are successfully using obstructionist communication strategies to tamp down internal drives on climate action.
Read more in the full article on our website and stay tuned for more investigations coming this year!
Have a story tip or feedback? Get in touch: [email protected]. Want to know what our UK team is up to? Sign up for our UK newsletter.
Thanks,
Brendan DeMelle
Executive Director
P.S. Investigative journalism like this is made possible by readers like you. Can you donate $10 or $20 right now to support more of this essential work?
Image credit: Roo Reynolds/Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
2023 Has Been A Big Year for Climate Accountability in the Courts
— By Dana Drugmand (11 min. read) —
Climate litigation had a momentous year in 2023. Courts worldwide heard evidence and arguments at pivotal trials and hearings. Landmark rulings marked progress in holding governments to account for climate inaction or denial, and new climate cases continued to be filed.
With climate lawsuits now totaling nearly 2,500 worldwide, it is clear that courts have become a critical venue for seeking climate justice and accountability.
Shareholder Activism Faces Big Oil Obstruction Playbook When Pushing for Climate Action
— By Stella Levantesi (7 min. read) —
A proposal to limit HSBC bank climate risk exposure by ending coal financing, a resolution to cut Chevron’s supply chain emissions, a move in support of a climate risk lawsuit against Polish energy company Enea SA. From repeated calls for a fossil fuel “phase out” to campaigns to regulate the oil and gas industry, pressure against Big Oil is stronger than ever and isn’t only coming from outside. Inside companies, shareholders are taking action and putting forward proposals to steer management toward addressing climate risk and minimizing harm.
In May 2021, Chevron shareholders voted 61 percent in favor of a resolution by Follow This, a green shareholder group, calling for cuts in the company’s “Scope 3” emissions, to disclose and reduce emissions from the company’s supply chains and the products they sell.
Revealed: Three-quarters of Prestigious Green Advertising Awards Go To Agencies Working for Fossil Fuel Industry
— By TJ Jordan (8 min. read) —
Three-quarters of prizes at the UK’s top sustainable advertising awards went to agencies who work for the fossil fuel industry, a DeSmog analysis has revealed.
The second annual Ad Net Zero awards were held in partnership with industry magazine Campaign in London in November to recognise internal agency sustainability practices and green campaigns on behalf of clients including Heineken, Vodafone, and Sky.
A Texas Community Is Being Bombarded by Cancer-Causing Benzene. State Officials Have Known for Nearly Two Decades
— David Leffler, Savanna Strott, Salina Arredondo and Jana Cholakovska (33 min. read) —
For nearly 20 years, Texas environmental regulators have kept a disturbing secret. People living in a small, unincorporated community east of Houston are routinely breathing dangerous levels of benzene, a chemical linked to leukemia and other blood cancers. Emerging research also connects it to diabetes and reproductive problems.
Our Best of 2023 Has Your Holiday Reading Covered
— By DeSmog (7 min. read) —
We published hundreds of articles in 2023, from breaking news to live reporting, from COP28 to monthslong investigations. As the year comes to a close, we wanted to reflect on and celebrate that work. So get comfortable and join us for this highlight reel.
From the Climate Disinformation Database: WPP
WPP, based in London, is the world’s largest advertising holding company by revenue. Through its numerous subsidiaries, including VML and Ogilvy, WPP has worked for fossil fuel clients including Saudi Aramco, Shell, BP, and TotalEnergies. WPP reported revenue of £11.8 billion ($14.38 billion) with pass through costs removed for 2022; with pass through costs included, its revenue was £14.4 billion ($17.5 billion). WPP pledged to reach net-zero emissions from its direct operations by 2025, and across its supply chain by 2030. WPP had 55 contracts with fossil fuel clients across 2022 and 2023, more than any of the other five major holding companies in the advertising industry, according to a report by Clean Creatives.
Read the full profile and browse other individuals and organizations in our Climate Disinformation Database and Koch Network Database.
