Climate change misinformation by officials

🌍 Ten Years After Paris: is the Climate Crisis a Disinformation Crisis? In 2015, the world made a historic promise: to keep global warming well below 2°C, and ideally below 1.5°C. We committed to major emission cuts by 2030, and net-zero by 2050. The Paris Agreement marked a new era of global climate cooperation. But ten years on, we're still struggling with cooperation while the World Meteorological Organization tells us that the Earth’s average temperature exceeded 1.5°C over a 12-month period (Feb 2023–Jan 2024) for the first time. Why? 🔍 A groundbreaking new study, led by 14 researchers for the International Panel on the Information Environment, reviewed 300 studies from 2015–2025. The findings are alarming: powerful interests – fossil fuel companies, populist parties, even some governments – are systematically spreading misleading narratives to delay climate action. 🧠 Misinformation isn't just about denying climate change. It’s now about strategic skepticism – minimizing the threat, casting doubt on science-based solutions, and greenwashing unsustainable practices. 📺 This disinformation flows through social media, news outlets, corporate reports, and even policy briefings. It targets all of us – but especially policymakers, where it can shape laws and delay critical decisions. 💡 So what can we do? 1️⃣ Legislate for transparency and integrity in climate communication. 2️⃣ Hold greenwashers accountable through legal action. 3️⃣ Build global coalitions of civil society, science, and public institutions. 4️⃣ Invest in climate and media literacy for both citizens and leaders. 5️⃣ Amplify voices from underrepresented regions – like Africa – where more research is urgently needed. We must protect not only the planet’s climate, but the integrity of climate information. 🔗 Read more on how disinformation is undermining climate progress – and what we can do about it: https://lnkd.in/eDN9hKAJ 🕰️ The window is small. But with truth, science, and collective action, we can still turn the tide.

This past Saturday, a group of 85 scientists published a meticulous 459-page rebuttal (https://lnkd.in/edGFJ-iU) to a recent Department of Energy (DOE) report claiming that greenhouse gas emissions have had a negligible impact on Earth’s climate (https://lnkd.in/e8QfZuZC). The rebuttal provides a line-by-line response to specific claims in the DOE report based on the peer-reviewed scientific record, going so far as to identify specific references that were misleadingly cited to support a pre-conceived narrative. As far as peer review goes, this is the gold standard. For example, on the topic of extreme precipitation and climate risk, the rebuttal notes that the DOE report cherry picks references to the authors’ own papers, relying on spatially and temporally limited precipitation records that overlook clearly discernable recent trends in extreme rainfall. The rebuttal was prepared as an official public comment on the DOE report, and DOE officials have stated their intent to meaningfully engage with responses to their report. Whether they in fact follow through on this promise will help to reveal their true motives. (The views expressed here are mine alone and do not reflect an official position.)

📣 Major new U.S. climate litigation: The Justice Department of Puerto Rico is targeting 8 fossil fuel companies in a 1 billion dollar lawsuit. The Justice Department is drawing on civil, environmental and antitrust frameworks. Puerto Rico joins a growing list of cities, counties, and states in the U.S. that are suing big oil over its climate misinformation and climate impact. 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐚 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐞: ▶ It’s another case where it is alleged that fossil fuel companies have continued to cause pollution despite their decades-long knowledge of the devastating consequences of their operations. ▶ Even more so, the companies carried out disinformation campaigns to discredit the scientific consensus on climate change and create doubt in the minds of the general public. ▶ The lawsuit also refers to the greenwashing the companies allegedly engage in. Specifically highlighting (1) exaggerations of investments in certain low-carbon energy resources, without disclosing that these are negligible compared to their continued involvement in fossil fuels; and (2) marketing fossil fuel products as environmentally friendly despite being major contributors to climate change. ▶ The misinformation helped sustain the fossil fuel market which has caused devastating climate change impacts in Puerto Rico. ▶ The Justice Department wants the fossil fuel companies to compensate for the costs of damages caused by climate change, rather than the taxpayer having to carry the burden. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞: ▶ Fossil fuel companies love resorting to energy security and energy affordability arguments in climate litigation. This Puerto Rican lawsuit pre-empts these arguments by stating that it’s the companies’ own misinformation that has caused our dependence on fossil fuels. ▶ At least one of the defendants is a subsidiary that is mostly involved with the selling and marketing of fossil fuel products. This fits neatly within the trend of accountability for ‘advertised emissions’. *Everything here is alleged. #ClimateLitigation #BigOil #PuertoRico