Harsh Criticism of COP27's PR Company

Independent international media platform OpenDemocracy announced that the US public relations company Hill+Knowlton Strategies, which helped Egypt organize COP27, is working for major oil companies. Working for ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, and Saudi Aramco, the company is leading the communications process for Egypt's presidency of the UN climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh. Among Hill+Knowlton's clients is Coca-Cola, which arguably sponsored the conference despite being declared the world's worst corporate plastic pollutant for four consecutive years. Kathy Mulvey, director of accountability campaigns for the Concerned Scientists Association, a nonprofit advocacy group, told OpenDemocracy in an interview that Hill+Knowlton has a "shameful record of spreading disinformation" on behalf of oil companies. "The COP presidency should work with a PR company committed to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement," Mulvey said. "All actors involved in the climate deception must be held accountable, including the public relations industry."