UNESCO-Backed Global Initiative Warns Misinformation is Sabotaging Climate Action, Urges Governments to Protect Truth and Expose Denialism

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has issued a stern warning that a global tide of climate misinformation and disinformation is posing a direct threat to public understanding and hindering the implementation of effective measures to tackle the climate crisis. The warning was underscored during the COP30 climate summit in Belém, Brazil, where the issue of informational integrity was placed centrally on the global negotiation agenda for the first time.

UNESCO, in partnership with the United Nations and the Government of Brazil, officially launched the Declaration on Information Integrity on Climate Change. The Declaration, which has secured the commitment of several key nations, acknowledges that the integrity of information is now a non-negotiable pillar of climate action. According to the Director-General of UNESCO, the sheer volume and aggressive nature of false content are contributing directly to a gap between public knowledge of the climate crisis and the political will to take decisive action.

To counter this systemic challenge, the UN-backed Global Initiative for Information Integrity on Climate Change has been established. This initiative focuses on financing research, strengthening investigative journalism, and improving media literacy, with a specific emphasis on countries in the Global South where the impacts of both climate change and disinformation are acutely felt.

The Declaration mandates concrete actions, including a call on Governments to create policies that respect, protect, and promote the human rights of environmental journalists and scientists, ensuring their safety against harassment. It also urges the Private Sector to commit to transparent and ethical advertising practices that do not fuel climate denialism or greenwashing. Experts at the summit emphasized that well-funded, organized campaigns have shifted from outright denial to more subtle narratives that seek to delay or dilute the urgency of the crisis, making the fight for factual, scientific consensus as critical as the push for emissions cuts.