Misleading Information On Climate Science Delaying Action Report

Misinformation about climate change — spread by fossil fuel interests, politicians, and state actors — is delaying action and worsening environmental risks, a new analysis finds. Damian Carrington reports for The Guardian. “If we don’t have the right information available, how are we going to vote for the right causes and politicians, and how are politicians going to translate the clear evidence into the necessary action?” — Klaus Jensen, University of Copenhagen communications professor and co-lead of the International Panel on the Information Environment review Climate misinformation slows down the public support and political will needed to cut emissions and protect human and environmental health. Misleading narratives have falsely blamed renewables for blackouts, promoted fossil gas as a “clean” fuel, and fed conspiracy theories that stretch into absurdity.

These tactics stall urgent decisions while the planet warms and weather extremes worsen. Targeted disinformation campaigns by industries and some governments aren’t limited to social media; they reach policymakers directly, shaping laws and public investment. As greenhouse gases rise, this war over truth is becoming its own driver of the crisis, turning delay into danger for air quality, food systems, and global stability. Climate Misinformation: A Catastrophic Roadblock to Climate Action The world faces a climate crisis, but a shadow of misinformation is deepening the challenge, threatening to turn a crisis into a catastrophe. A new report from the International Panel on the Information Environment (Ipie) reveals how deliberate falsehoods and misleading narratives are obstructing and delaying crucial climate action.

Based on a systematic review of 300 studies, the report paints a concerning picture of the organized and pervasive nature of climate misinformation. The tactics of climate denialism have evolved. No longer simply denying the existence of climate change, campaigns now focus on discrediting climate solutions. False claims, such as blaming renewable energy for power outages, are strategically disseminated to erode public trust in viable alternatives. These narratives are amplified through online bots and trolls, creating a distorted information landscape where lies gain traction and truth struggles to be heard. The report identifies key players in the misinformation ecosystem.

Fossil fuel companies, right-wing politicians, and even some nation-states are implicated in spreading misinformation to protect their interests and delay climate action. This coordinated effort has grown to include targeting political leaders, civil servants, and regulatory agencies, aiming to influence policy decisions and obstruct progress towards a sustainable future. The Ipie report highlights the seriousness of this issue, warning that climate misinformation undermines public trust in climate science and institutions. This erosion of trust makes it harder to implement effective climate policies and fosters a sense of apathy towards climate action. The report emphasizes the urgency of addressing this "crisis of information integrity" as it directly exacerbates the climate crisis itself. Efforts to tackle the climate crisis are being obstructed and delayed by the widespread dissemination of misleading information about climate change and its potential solutions, according to a major new report.

The report, Information Integrity about Climate Science: A Systematic Review, was released by the International Panel on the Information Environment (IPIE), a global consortium of over 250 experts. It synthesised a decade’s worth of academic research on the crisis of information integrity surrounding climate science. Information integrity, as defined by the ISO 27000 standard for Information Security Management Systems (ISMS), refers to the accuracy and completeness of information. Drawing on a systematic review of 300 studies conducted between 2015 and 2025, the report examined how both accurate and misleading narratives around climate change are produced and disseminated. It also includes a gap analysis highlighting missing evidence and perspectives in existing literature. The authors warned that climate misinformation is increasingly undermining global efforts to limit emissions and adapt to environmental change.

Fossil fuel companies, political actors and some state institutions are identified as primary sources of misinformation, which now targets not only climate science itself but also proposed mitigation and adaptation measures. The report detailed how companies such as TotalEnergies, ExxonMobil, Chevron, BP, Shell and ConocoPhillips, along with coal producers including Peabody and Core Natural Resources (formed through the merger of CONSOL and Arch Coal), have... These corporations have sought to downplay their environmental impact and erode public trust in science by promoting misleading narratives about their carbon emissions, it alleged. Information Integrity about Climate Science: A Systematic Review A high-level précis of this Synthesis Report can be found in the Summary for Policymakers report, Facts, Fakes, and Climate Science. The human response to the climate crisis is being obstructed and delayed by the production and circulation of misleading information about the nature of climate change and the available solutions.

The findings of this study indicate that powerful actors—including corporations, governments, and political parties—intentionally spread inaccurate or misleading narratives about anthropogenic climate change. These narratives circulate across digital, broadcast, and interpersonal communication channels. The result is a decline in public trust, diminished policy coordination, and a feedback loop between scientific denialism and political inaction. URL: https://www.ipie.info/research/sr2025-1 Climate misinformation refers to false or inaccurate information about climate change and climate action that is generally spread without malicious intent. It usually arises from misunderstandings, misinterpretations of data or simply outdated knowledge.

For example, some people might misinterpret short-term weather patterns, like an extended winter season, as evidence against global warming. Despite the absence of intent to deceive, misinformation still contributes to confusion and scepticism about climate science, making it harder for people to access accurate information. Climate disinformation, on the other hand, is deliberately false and fabricated to deceive people about climate change and climate action for political, financial or ideological reasons. It is spread by individuals or organizations with vested interests in denying or downplaying the reality of climate change and its impacts. For instance, fossil fuel companies have been known to fund campaigns that cast doubt on climate science to protect their profits. Disinformation tactics can include cherry-picking data, promoting pseudoscience, or amplifying conspiracy theories.

Unlike misinformation, which can often be corrected through education and better communication, disinformation is more difficult to address and requires targeted efforts to expose and counter the deliberate falsehoods being spread. Both climate misinformation and disinformation undermine public trust in climate science, delay policy responses and polarize public discourse. According to the Global Risk Report 2024, misinformation and disinformation, together with the impacts of the climate and nature crises, are the biggest short-term and long-term risks to human society. Climate misinformation and disinformation come in various forms, each serving different purposes but ultimately hindering climate action. While some outright deny climate change, others seek to delay solutions, mislead the public or promote conspiracy theories that undermine trust in science and institutions. Today’s ESG Updates EU Lawmakers Agree to Delay Deforestation Rules: The EU has delayed and simplified its Deforestation Regulation until...

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It shows the complexity of an environment where professionalised lobbyists with billions of dollars at their disposal sit alongside keyboard contrarians chasing the limelight and state actors playing games of geopolitical chess. The potential responses are diverse and well within our grasp, but require us to remove the incentive structures for spreading false, misleading and divisive content. In the curated environments of social media, freedom of speech must be distinct from freedom of reach, and companies should optimise their products for safety over mere engagement. For that to happen, we must first recognise the threat of mis- and disinformation for what it is: a barrier to cohesion, to action, and to a liveable future for all. While only a fraction of the bigger picture, the report reveals a range of vulnerabilities in our information environment which must be addressed if we hope to progress with climate action and have vital,...

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