Plus, why democratic innovation can revitalize global climate action ... ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Plus, why democratic innovation can revitalize global climate action ...

From the Editor's Desk

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith at an event with Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry.

Trump’s performance at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week blew up all pretense of diplomacy. In a long, rambling speech at the conference, Trump heckled NATO, attacked allies, made false claims about wind energy and revived his bid to absorb Greenland into the United States — now framed as “strategic necessity.”

World leaders pushed back hard on the president’s comments. But not every politician joined the outrage.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has stayed silent as the president pursues Greenland and floats yet again the idea of taking over Canada. In her first piece for DeSmog, our new Canada editor, Mary Stuart, exposed how Smith has been working with Trump’s new envoy to Greenland, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry.

Mary revealed that Smith is a member of the Landry-led Governors Coalition for Energy Security (GCES), which aims to build energy infrastructure in the U.S. by limiting environmental regulations and speeding up permitting.

Smith has cultivated close ties to this MAGA effort while at home encouraging Alberta separatists who’ve reportedly held multiple meetings with the Trump administration. Read the full story here.

DeSmog was the first news outlet to reveal that a prominent Alberta separatist said he met officials in the Trump administration in the spring of 2025. There, he claimed to have discussed with the officials the U.S. potentially loaning the oil-rich province $500 million to become independent from Canada.

The prospect of the U.S. recognizing Alberta as the 51st state isn’t currently on the table. But, given Venezuela, Greenland, and Trump’s Davos appearance, it seems like a threat to take seriously. Read more here.

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 as always,
Geoff Dembicki
Global Managing Editor

P.S. This reporting exists because of readers like you. Can you pitch in whatever amount you can to help keep us going?

Image: Danielle Smith with Jeff Landry (right) and others at Donald Trump inauguration event in January 2025. Credit: Danielle Smith X account

Dennis Modry, the former CEO of the Alberta Prosperity Project,

Trump Officials Discussed $500M Alberta Independence Loan, Separatist Claims

— By David Falk (4 min. read) —

Private details from a Washington D.C., meeting about Alberta becoming the 51st state were revealed at a separatism event attended by DeSmog.

Danielle Smith with Jeff Landry (right) and others at Donald Trump inauguration event in January 2025.

Danielle Smith Working With Trump Official Who Wants to Annex Greenland

— By Mary Stuart (4 min. read) —

The Alberta premier belongs to a U.S. group called the Governors Coalition for Energy Security that’s led by Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, Trump’s envoy to Greenland.

Left to right: a man in black-tie suit, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, a woman in a pale blue gown, and Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry at Trump's 2025 inauguration, including

As the UN General Assembly Turns 80,
Can Ordinary Citizens Change
How the World Is Governed?

— By Rich Wilson (3 min. read) —

Democratic innovation as a pathway for revitalising global climate action.

Smith's meeting with the Heritage Foundation came at a time when tariffs strained Canada-U.S. relations.

Danielle Smith Met with Heritage Foundation After U.S. Election

— David Falk ( 3 min. read) —

The Alberta premier said she met with the right-wing think tank that spearheaded Project 2025 following Donald Trump’s second win.

MAPPED: 70 Percent of Trump’s Cabinet Tied to Project 2025 Groups

—By Joe Fassler (20 min. read) —

More than 50 high-level Trump administration officials have links to groups behind the Heritage Foundation-backed plan, a DeSmog analysis found.

The words 'climate denier spotlight' in wide appear against a transitional gray background with three smokestacks and two intersecting yellow spotlights highlight a bag of gold.

Jeff Landry was elected governor of Louisiana in 2023. He previously served two terms as the state’s attorney general, first in 2016 and then in 2019. During his earlier life, Landry started an oil and gas environmental service company with a friend. He later served as executive director of the St. Martin Parish Economic Development Authority. According to OpenSecrets.org, over Landry’s career, the oil and gas industry has been his largest contributor, totaling over $481,000. Project VoteSmart lists Koch Industries, Cox Oil, and Pfizer among top contributors to Landry’s campaigns using data from FollowTheMoney.org. Speaking at a press conference in Lafayette, Louisiana, about coastal wetlands problems, Landry called climate change a “hoax,” the Daily Advertiser reported. Landry also appears to confuse the concepts of long-term climate change and short-term or seasonal weather events: “New Orleans is a prime example of climate change. If you stay here long enough, it’s gonna change. Not by mankind. It’s gonna rain, it’s gonna get real hot, it’s gonna get real cold, it’s gonna freeze. That’s climate change, right?”

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