Greenwashing at finest? COP28 president's Wikipedia entries being edited

Ahead of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) summit scheduled to be held later this year in Dubai, its President Sultan Al Jaber has found himself in the middle of a controversy. A Guardian report has claimed that members of Jaber's team edited Wikipedia pages to 'control the narrative'amid criticism of an oil boss leading the main summit aimed at tackling climate crisis.

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The government of UAE, on whose soil the climate summit will take place, controls six per cent of the world's oil reserves. The country with heavy reliance on fossil fuel is needed to take a non-controversial line when hosting the summit. However, it appointed Al Jaber - a fossil fuel boss - as the head of COP28.

One of the edited Wikipedia entries includes adding an editorial that said Al Jaber was “precisely the kind of ally the climate movement needs”.

The editors also removed reference to a multibillion-dollar oil pipeline deal.

Greenwashing in full effect

Notably, in 2019, Al Jaber signed a $4 billion deal with US investment giants BlackRock and KKR to develop the oil pipeline infrastructure. According to the Guardian, the particular page had too much detail about Al Jaber's involvement and thus it was edited to say he had simply attracted “international investment” in Adnoc.

When quizzed about editing Wikipedia entries, an Adnos spokesperson said: “We are very proud of Dr Sultan’s achievements as a global energy leader and regularly review content to ensure accuracy. Update requests were submitted to Wikipedia in the spring and summer of 2022, which were fully transparent and compliant as per Wikipedia’s guidelines.”

Al Jaber's appointment as the chief of COP28 raised eyebrows, especially when his company Adnoc is contemplating a major expansion of UAE's fuel output. Despite the International Energy Agency's objection to the proposal, there hasbeen no indication that the project will be stopped.

Apart from Al Jaber's team, a member of the COP28 team has also been editing Wikipedia articles, despite being "strongly discouraged" from doing so by website administrators, the publication noted.

COP28 issues rejoinder

After the report was published, COP28 reached out to WION and stated Al Jaber's page was absolutely accurate and that information about the posts he had handled were in the public domain.

"Every business and public figure revisits Wikipedia pages and reviews the content to ensure that it is up to date and accurate. That is how this platform is built. Dr Al Jaber’s Wikipedia page represents his over 30-year career. Everything in his Wikipedia page is absolutely accurate," read the statement.

"COP process should not be politicised and turned into an impotent echo chamber that does not address the real needs of people affected by climate change," it added.

US, EU demand Al Jabar's resignation

Last week, over 130 US and European Union (EU) lawmakers wrote a letter, calling for Al Jabar's resignation as the COP28 chief.

"Ahead of the annual climate negotiations, enacting policies that expose the influence of corporate polluters in UNFCCC meetings will help ensure that climate science takes precedence over climate delay and greenwashing. To that end, we urge you (i) to engage in diplomatic efforts to secure the withdrawal of the President-designate of COP28," read the letter.

WATCH |The seven sins of Greenwashing

What is Greenwashing?

The process of fabricating or exaggerating a product, service, brand, or even an entire company's green credentials is known as "greenwashing."

Big brands use it to market themselves despite causing tremendous damage to the environment. Their deceptive ploy not only hurts the climate but also the ethical businesses that are attempting to better the world by changing their habits.

ALSO READ | Big brands like Coca Cola found guilty of 'greenwashing', what is this and why is it problematic?

Quizzed about the president's work on climate issues over the last decade, a COP28 spokesperson toed a safe line.

“We will continue to ensure that all publicly available sources of information about the presidency and its leadership remain factually accurate and up to date.”

(UPDATE: A statement from COP28 in response to the article has been added)

(With inputs from agencies)

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