Activists call on UN, Brazil to cut Edelman from COP30 over client conflicts

More than 60 climate influencers and activists have signed an open letter (see below) calling on the UN and the Brazilian government to remove comms major Edelman from its COP30 communications contract, citing alleged conflicts of interest tied to the agency’s fossil fuel clients.

The letter, organised by advocacy group Clean Creatives, argues that Edelman’s ongoing work with oil and gas companies such as Shell, Chevron and ConocoPhillips is incompatible with its role promoting the UN climate summit, taking place this week in the Amazonian city of Belém. The signatories collectively reach more than 24 million followers on social media. Prominent among them are climate campaigners Clover Hogan, Joycelyn Longdon, Mikaela Loach, and Tori Tsui.

In the open letter, Clean Creatives alleges that Edelman “has the biggest conflicts of interest of any PR agency on earth,” pointing to its recently published F-List 2025 and Fossil Fuel Income Risk Exposure (FFIRE) index, which it says ranks Edelman as the global PR firm with the highest revenue exposure to fossil fuel clients.

The group further claims that an Edelman executive in Brazil is overseeing communications for both COP30 and Shell, describing the overlap as "absurd and dangerous."

"Edelman working for both COP30 and Shell is greenwashing at its worst," said climate activist Lauren Bash, one of the letter’s signatories. "You can’t claim to unite the world to fight climate change while representing the corporations fueling it. It’s dishonest and it breeds confusion at a time when we need clarity, courage, and real action."

Clean Creatives’ executive director, Duncan Meisel, said that the arrangement undermines public trust in the UN’s climate process. “It is absurd and dangerous to have the same person, literally, writing talking points for Shell and the UN climate talks at the same time,” he said. 

Clean Creatives F-List 2025 data shows Edelman’s active and recent contracts with fossil fuel clients

The open letter follows reporting by Climate Home News in July that Edelman had secured the COP30 contract. Clean Creatives’ data lists the agency as holding or recently holding accounts with multiple fossil fuel clients.

Edelman did not respond to Campaign Asia-Pacific's queries at the time of publication.

COP30, hosted by Brazil, has been described by organisers as “the COP of implementation.” The summit has drawn nearly 200 national delegations to Belém to discuss progress on climate finance, adaptation, and global emissions reduction targets.

Contents of the open letter