QuotaClimat
https://www.quotaclimat.org
Combattre la désinformation climatique dans les médias, à travers une stratégie de plaidoyer à l'échelle nationale et européenne, et des leviers d'action ciblés et complémentaires.
ID: 781458792365-61
Lobbying Activity
Response to European climate resilience and risk management law
4 Sept 2025
As shown by the EEAS, EDMO recent data as well as Poland's recent counter- intelligence report released by the last Polish Presidency to the Council of the EU, climate disinformation is a sprawling and growing threat online and offline used by Russian foreign interference to lead a cognitive war and distort public perceptions on EU green transition efforts. A data-driven approach to policy- making stands as a pre-condition to ensure that existing regulations are evidence-based, relevant and future proof. This would add a layer of expertise to EU institutions to learn from emerging issues and avoid regulatory blind spots. Protecting EU citizens from disinformation relies on bridging the information gap, i.a accessing quality information on the given topic, and implementing rapid response mechanisms to identify and moderate the identified threat. Here the promotion of rapid response systems to detect and counter disinformation in the wake of extreme weather events is instrumental to bolster EU climate and resilience frameworks, and to make sure institutions are able to : 1) Protect emergency management operations and citizens from the dangerous effects of disinformation, especially during chaotic and vulnerable crisis situations such as extreme weather events 2) Ensure that reliable, transparent, science-based information prevails during extreme weather events 3) Reinforce long-term resilience by embedding information integrity as part of existing rapid alert systems, disaster risk management and resilience frameworks
Read full responseResponse to A Culture Compass for Europe
13 May 2025
In light of the "new disruptive threats" to democratic resilience, security and cultural cohesion in Europe, it is imperative that the future Cultural Compass prioritizes the integrity of information ecosystems, especially in relation to general interest issues such as climate change. Climate disinformation, in particular, poses a growing and under-addressed informational threat across the European Union, as highlighted by recent data from the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO). Tackling this issue directly serves the overarching objective set out in the consultation's Call for Evidence: to enable Member States and the Commission to react to existing and new challenges in a more coordinated and effective manner, while fully respecting subsidiarity and national and regional diversity. Disinformation related to the climate crisis is not only transnational by nature, amplified by online platforms and Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI) actors, but it also increasingly contaminates traditional media, as shown by recent findings from QuotaClimat's study on French audiovisual media, where 128 instances of climate disinformation were recorded. This underlines the urgent need for EU-level coordination through bodies such as the Media Board and key institutional actors, including the Commissioner for Values and Transparency. Failure to address this systemic threat compromises evidence-based policymaking, undermines public support for climate action, and risks derailing the EUs Green Deal, net-zero targets, and adaptation strategies, all of which are preconditions for preserving Europes environmental sustainability, cultural vitality, and economic sovereignty. Moreover, the EUvsDisinfo platform and a recent report by the Polish Presidency to the Council confirm that climate disinformation narratives are actively being seeded by FIMI actors. This strengthens the case for a common EU response - bolstering Member States ability to anticipate, understand, and respond to disinformation that undermines public interest journalism and democratic debate. As the EU rethinks the role of culture in policymaking, including in its external dimension, the Cultural Compass must recognize that ensuring information integrity, particularly on existential issues like the climate crisis, is foundational to democratic resilience, social cohesion, and shared European values. This is a new, disruptive challenge that must be met with bold, collective action.
Read full responseResponse to European Democracy Shield
3 Apr 2025
Considering pressing threats of information manipulation and foreign interference aiming to derail EU strategic priorities, the Democracy Shield should focus on categorizing the systemic risks that will represent grave risks of prejudice to public security in Europe. This should include "climate disinformation" / information manipulation on climate and energy issues / scientific disinformation on climate change ... as the risk of climate collapse represents a short- and long-term grave risk of prejudice to EU citizens. Climate information manipulation and disinformation is a growing threat, notably fueled by high-speed technological developments, deregulation, increased hostility to climate action, an ad-incentivized tech-industrial complex and foreign interference. According to EDMO, climate change is becoming one of the most disinformation-prone topics. In December 2024 in Europe, 13% of online disinformation consisted of climate disinformation. Climate disinformation is a strategic weapon and a threat multiplier delaying climate action, fueling geopolitical instability, and threatening Europes economic and security strategic interests. Persistent recent narratives show that climate disinformation increasingly intersects with other forms of harmful discourse such as public health misinformation (especially around COVID-19 and vaccines), hate speech, and electoral disinformation, building a wide and fertile network of distrust and manipulation. Extreme weather events constitute a major driver of climate disinformation, as seen during the floods in Valencia in October 2024. In addition, climate disinformation aims to obstruct EU and national legislative and regulatory efforts, destabilize European politics, delay decarbonization in key industrial sectors (e.g. transport, agriculture, building,...), and maintain public investment and subsidies in the fossil fuel industry. Climate disinformation is increasingly exploited as a tool of foreign interference and manipulation, as seen in the Romanian and German elections, where Russian influence played a suspectedly significant role. In addition to the adoption of an EU definition and recognition of the systemic risks posed by climate disinformation, the Democracy Shield should lead the creation of dedicated monitoring tools to gather granular data tracking the spread and reach of climate disinformation in all communication channels, so as to ensure the evolution of a fit-for-purpose media and security regulatory framework. A data-driven approach to policy-making stands as a pre-condition to ensure that new regulations are evidence-based, relevant and future proof. The development of a AI-detection tool to track environmental information and disinformation would add a layer of expertise to EU institutions to learn from "emerging issues" and avoid regulatory blind spots.
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