Climate Geoengeneering Technologies: Corruption & Integrity (Transparency International)

Transparency International, April 2022. Technologies for manipulating the environment, such as carbon capture and storage (CCS) and solar radiation management, also known as geoengineering, are increasingly being touted as the solution for halting and solving the climate crisis. Updating now its landmark 2011 report on corruption and climate change, when attention was brought to climate-related corruption risks such as misappropriation of funds, bribery in the awarding of contracts, nepotism, the distortion of scientific facts, the breach of principles of fair representation and false claims about the green credentials of consumer products (i.e. greenwashing), Transparency International now explores these geoengineering technologies from the same risk perspective, and adds:

• The concentration of knowledge / power in a few individuals or corporations with respect to geoengineering technologies, creating potential conditions for corruptive lobbying or influence buying practices.

• Patent and technology concentration in only a few individuals or corporate actors could make it easier to rig public procurement for such technologies to de facto favour such actors.

Click to download this most recent policy paper and read the recommendations on how to combat and mitigate such risks and ensure high standards of governance and public accountability.