This week marks a year since COP26 – the flagship international climate conference that brought world leaders together to progress the goals outlined by the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

As an agency with a strong background in sustainability, we were lucky enough to work with several of our clients around COP26 - delivering extensive PR and media relations campaigns which generated coverage across national and trade media.

As we look to this year’s COP27 summit, we’re taking a closer look at why these yearly events are so significant and discussing how organisations can showcase their green credentials and generate positive coverage through the right PR and marketing strategies. 

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The Importance of COP26

Although the UN (United Nations) has been bringing countries from across the globe together for nearly three decades, last year’s event was particularly important as it was held in the UK and considered by many to be the world’s best and last chance to address climate change. 

The significance of last year's event is linked to The Paris Agreement – an international treaty signed by almost all countries at COP21, which took place five years earlier. The treaty outlined specific aims, which included limiting global temperature increase to well below 2 degrees (ideally 1.5 degrees). A key focus of COP26 was therefore to secure an agreement between the signatories on how they would reduce their emissions to achieve this goal. 

The Paris Agreement was a historic milestone in climate change action, as it marked the first time that a binding agreement united all nations under a common cause to act against climate change and acknowledge its effects.

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November 2022 – COP27

The 2022 UN Climate Change Conference – also known as COP27 – is set to take place on November (7 – 18^th) in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. 

The themes and topics expected to be discussed reflect the summit’s location and will explore climate impacts and adaption in Africa. It will explore the impacts of climate change, as well as the food, fuel and fertiliser shocks triggered by conflict in Eastern Europe and the coronavirus pandemic.

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Celebrating Sustainability

Climate change has never been a more pertinent issue – and there’s an increased expectation on organisations from all industries to act. 

Whilst for some this means examining supply chains and changing operations, other businesses use events like COP27 as a platform to inspire change by highlighting their sustainability journeys and goals. 

Whether that involves creating dedicated products and campaigns in celebration of the summit or using it as a touching point to highlight green credentials – COP27 is a significant event. If approached correctly by businesses, it can be an effective way of embracing the sustainability movement. 

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COP26 Case Study - Soapworks

This was the case for our client, Soapworks - the UK’s leading manufacturer of soaps and cleansing bars. 

Soapworks are passionate about ethical, sustainable business – the company was founded by Body Shop Entrepreneur, Dame Anita Roddick, on the principles of ethical social enterprise and sustainability. They are now part of the DAABON group – a global leader in sustainable agriculture. 

With COP26 being held in their hometown of Glasgow, Soapworks wanted to showcase their commitment to sustainability in the beauty industry. 

They did this by creating a sustainable, signature body bar to celebrate COP26 – using the product to promote the goals of the summit by sharing it with local stakeholders and influencers - showcasing it to beauty brands and retailers across the UK. 

We worked alongside Soapworks to help raise awareness of the product amongst beauty industry brands and the public, and to promote the wider benefits of bar-format toiletries in driving sustainable change across the industry. 

Our campaign generated coverage across national and trade media – helping the campaign reach a potential global audience of millions of consumers and hundreds of thousands of industry professionals.

Read the full case study here.

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Get in Touch

Established in 2019 by a team with decades of experience delivering for clients in every industry - we work worldwide, supporting clients in every sector, and delivering on projects of all sizes.

From creating and delivering sustainability-led campaigns through to highlighting your existing organisation’s environmental credentials and achievements – we can help.

To talk through a project or to find out how we can support your business, please get in touch with our team at 01138 444 111 or email us at contact@oneninenine.agency

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