RFF’s Associate Director for Oil and Gas featured in The Hill
Bakeyah Nelson Pens Opinion Piece in Response to Houston Chronicle
Climate|October 01, 2024
RFF Senior Advisor Bakeyah Nelson refuted criticism of “virtue signaling” by organizations that decline investments from fossil fuel companies, writing in the Houston Chronicle: “The oil and gas industry is certainly aware of its negative public image amid ongoing revelations about its disinformation and climate-denial campaigns throughout the past 40 years. In response, these companies have engaged in a variety of tactics to clean up their image while gaslighting communities about their commitment to address climate change. Recent investigations show that while fossil fuel companies publicly promote clean energy technologies, they invest very little of their own money to support commercial deployment. Internal company documents revealed, for example, that “Shell generated just 0.02% of energy from renewable sources in 2022, while 91% of Shell’s investments went toward fossil fuels,” according to a government investigation into major oil companies released in April. Just a month earlier, Shell touted its role as a “significant investor” in the energy transition. That is virtue signaling.”
