Public Relations Strategy for Friends of the Earth at the Paris Climate Talks

Problem:

Friends of the Earth U.S., an environmental policy activist group, needed a strategy for how to generate press around the Paris Climate Agreement, which we anticipated would not set ambitious and binding goals for vulnerable populations.

Action:

1. In preparation for the Paris Climate talks, I flew to meetings with Friends of the Earth network stakeholders in Brussels, Belgium and Lima, Peru to build a cohesive communications team and understand their individual perspectives.

2. I spent months cultivating relationships with reporters who would attend the Conference of Parties (COP) or cover it remotely.

3. While at the COP, I worked with our international colleagues on joint press releases and arranged dozens of interviews about climate justice and binding targets for Friends of the Earth’s U.S. President.

Result:

At the end of the climate talks, Friends of the Earth U.S. had earned more than 70 unique stories, an unprecedented achievement for the organization, and a major boon to the network.

Thanks to a strategic and nimble press strategy, I injected the organization’s perspective into mainstream ongoing coverage of the climate agreement outcomes.

Read my Medium post about the Paris Climate Agreement outcomes.