Message From the Editor

By now, you’ve probably heard that the UN climate talks ended in controversy on Friday. Instead of the $1.3 trillion needed to combat climate change in poorer countries, wealthy nations pledged only $300 billion. Representatives from developing nations blasted the finance deal, with some saying it was a “travesty of justice.”

I agree that we need to hold rich nations accountable for their part in the climate crisis, and COP29 didn’t come through on that front. But flying below the radar at the summit was another artificial attempt at climate fixes: A large number of major public relations agencies there also helped the oil lobby promote sketchy solutions to global warming.

Consultants from 10 PR firms, including Edelman, Dentsu, and Burson, which work with oil giants such as Saudi Aramco, ExxonMobil, and Shell, attended the two-week conference, underscoring wider concerns about the advertising industry’s role in helping to defend the business models of major polluters.

“Any agency with fossil fuel clients at a climate summit is a walking conflict of interest,” Duncan Meisel, director of Clean Creatives, told DeSmog.

At last year’s COP28, countries agreed to transition away from fossil fuels, but this commitment was not mentioned at the end of this year’s climate talks. In Baku, Saudi Arabia, which owns Saudi Aramco, the largest oil company in the world by revenue, may have finally succeeded in an attempt to block this agreement, which it tried to do last year.

New York-based Burson, which attended COP29 as part of Turkey’s delegation, has worked for Saudi Aramco at least as recently as 2023, according to research by Clean Creatives. Burson also has 10 other current or recent clients in the fossil fuel sector. TJ Jordan has the story.

Just as oil companies’ favorite PR firms were featured in Baku, back in Washington last week, President-elect Trump continued his oil-industry choices for his cabinet. His pick for energy secretary, Chris Wright, is a fracking executive who calls well-known climate denier Bjorn Lomborg a “friend.” This means Lomborg’s influence could extend into the highest levels of the U.S. government. Read Geoff Dembickie’s piece here.

These are extraordinary times for people concerned about the direction climate action and policy will be taking in the future. But there’s hope, as our Q&A with Tzeporah Berman, founder and chair of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative, shows us.

Berman wants you to consider: Could the world negotiate a wind-down of the fossil fuel industry — just as Cold War adversaries once agreed to limit their stockpiles of nuclear weapons? She says there’s a growing wave of support for the proposal — which could ultimately make new fossil fuel projects unacceptable, even in the United States, the world’s biggest oil and gas producer. With Trump’s moves to have oil executives  dominate climate policy around the world, it’s worth thinking about. Read the whole conversation.

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. Readers like you power our journalism dedicated to climate accountability. Can you donate $10 or $20 right now to support more of this essential work?

Image credit: Roo Reynolds / Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)

It’s Not Just Oil Giants Seeking to Sway the Climate Talks. Their Favourite PR Firms Are in Baku, Too.

— By TJ Jordan (6 min. read) —

Fossil-friendly communications companies are represented on some national delegations to the climate talks, DeSmog analysis finds.

Fossil Fuel Giants Paying Thousands to Sponsor COP29 Events

— By Sam Bright (4 min. read) —

Oil and gas majors are splashing the cash in order to have a presence at the flagship climate talks in Azerbaijan.

Trump Energy Secretary Pick Chris Wright Calls Climate Crisis Denier Bjorn Lomborg a ‘Friend’

— By Geoff Dembicki (4 min. read) —

With fracking CEO Wright tapped to serve in Trump’s cabinet, Lomborg’s influence could extend into the highest levels of the U.S. government.

Q&A: Cold War Foes Made Treaties to Limit the Spread of Nukes. Could a Similar Approach Wind Down Fossil Fuels?

— By Matthew Green (14 min) —

Canadian environmentalist Tzeporah Berman makes the case for a “bold idea” to end the era of coal, oil and gas.

Alberta Conservatives Are Making Up Their Own Climate Facts

— By Mitch Anderson (4 min. read) —

Carbon myths, UN conspiracies and more magical thinking on display at the party’s annual meeting.

From the Climate Disinformation Database: Dentsu

Dentsu is the fifth-largest advertising agency group in the world and the largest in Japan. The firm represents a range of fossil fuel companies, including Ampol, BP, ExxonMobil, Shell, and Chevron. Dentsu has also worked for clients in other polluting sectors, including contracts with Toyota, Audi, Tata Motors, and General Motors. Despite Dentsu’s massive support of global polluters, DeSmog reported in June that its UK arm worked with Global Action Plan, an environmental NGO, on a campaign called “This Campaign Sucks.” As part of the campaign, Dentsu created a mural in central London for Clean Air Day 2024 to highlight the high levels of air pollution in London.

Read the full profile and browse other individuals and organizations in our Climate Disinformation Database, Ad & PR Database, and Koch Network Database.