Complaint letter to B Labs regarding B Corp status of agencies working for fossil fuel polluters:
Submitted October 19, 2023
Complaint: Havas, as a parent company of a network that includes B Corp agencies, has agreed to become the main media agency for Shell. This contract will require work from certain B Corp subsidiaries in their network. Additionally, both the agency MSQ has been providing marketing services to Shell since 2022, and the agency Tam-Tam\TBWA represented PetroCanada from 2016-2022, while also maintaining B Corp status.
We believe that by allowing advertising and PR agencies with B Corp status to work with fossil fuel polluters undermines all of the listed core values of the Declaration of Interdependence.
B Lab has clear criteria for fossil fuel and energy companies that they “are eligible for B Corp certification if they are not engaged in specific prohibited practices regarding extraction, lobbying, and financial incentives; have successfully transitioned their energy portfolio to be at least 50% carbon free; and have committed to make progress towards transitioning to a fully carbon-free portfolio within specified timeframes.”
We are asking B Lab to:
Declare and apply the same criteria to B Corp advertising and PR agencies with fossil fuel and high polluter clients as are applied to fossil fuel and high polluting companies themselves.
Declare and apply the same criteria to parent companies of B Corps
Action this immediately
Havas taking on Shell’s media account means that a select number of their B Corp subsidiaries will play a vital role in the business of one of the world’s worst polluters. MSQ already provides these services, as does Tam-Tam/TBWA for PetroCanada. We believe certifying these agencies that directly support fossil fuel polluters devalues the principles and public image of B Corp agencies worldwide.
In 2023, Shell announced that it will be increasing fossil fuel production(1) despite its 2020 net zero pledge, and the warnings of the IPCC and UN Secretary General António Guterres, who insisted that we must “hold fossil fuel companies and their enablers to account.”
Since the mid-1970s, Shell has known about the extreme harms of their products’ contribution to climate change, even going so far as to forecast that “civilisation could prove a fragile thing” should carbon pollution continue to increase.(2) Despite this warning, Shell continues to produce more and more of the fossil fuel products that they know threaten all life on our planet.
Marketing and PR agencies have played a vital role in Shell’s dangerous business plan, and working in this capacity is inappropriate for any B Corp certified agency. Providing these services would harm the planet, the communities affected by climate change, and be an act of irresponsibility towards each other and future generations.
Shell’s advertising and marketing campaigns have consistently misled the public.(3)
Shell agencies have developed marketing campaigns that gaslight the public, from their #PoweringProgress campaign which was banned for greenwashing(4) by the Advertising Standards Authority to their recent influencer collaborations(5)(6) which represent them as a leader in clean energy. It is likely the case that actual spending on renewables is 1.5% a year, much lower than they represent in ads and elsewhere.(7) A recently recovered document from a US Congressional investigation included the statement “Shell has no immediate plans to move to a net-zero emissions portfolio over our investment horizon of 10-20 years.”(8) This behavior is a longstanding historical pattern that shows no sign of ending.(9)
Any B Corp agency which works for Shell or other fossil fuel companies has a significant conflict of interest, and is not in compliance with the Declaration of Interdependence. We ask you to reevaluate their status in light of this information.
Respectfully,
17 Communications
A Little Better Co
Actif Studio
Alchemy One
Benedictus Media
Climbing Trees
Compass Studio
Compose[d]
Conspiracy of Love
Creative Chi
done!
Empower Agency
Enviral
Fernweh Studio
GOOD Agency
Good Stuff Partners
Greenhouse Communications
Grounded World
Grosomono
GrowBetter agency
Growth Animals
GRRR
Hooton
Manifest
Marlin Communications
ORCA
Profile
RALLY
Republic of Everyone
Silver Lining
ThinkShift Communications
Unity Web Agency
Sources:
https://www.npr.org/2023/06/14/1182102392/shell-plans-to-increase-fossil-fuel-production-despite-its-net-zero-pledge
https://www.desmog.com/2023/03/31/lost-decade-how-shell-downplayed-early-warnings-over-climate-change/
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/feb/16/oil-firms-climate-claims-are-greenwashing-study-concludes
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/jun/07/shells-green-ad-campaign-banned-in-uk-for-being-likely-to-mislead
https://www.desmog.com/2023/07/27/fossil-fuel-oil-gas-giants-shell-bp-using-british-influencers-to-go-viral/
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/oct/06/shell-fortnite-game-youth-marketing-campaign-fossil-fuels
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/feb/01/shell-renwable-energy-spending-sec-global-witness
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/3643691-internal-documents-cast-doubt-on-big-oil-climate-promises/
https://www.clientearth.org/projects/the-greenwashing-files/shell/