Voix du Paysan to educate and inform citizens, a commitment to social and climate justice.
For several years, TotalEnergies has multiplied communication campaigns with green overtones to polish its image, while relentlessly continuing extractive activities that are destructive to the planet. The company presents itself proudly as a partner of major sporting events, particularly in African football, sponsoring AFCON and other popular competitions, as part of a well-honed greenwashing strategy. By associating itself with sports that bring people together and generate mass enthusiasm, TotalEnergies seeks to make its environmental and climate responsibilities fade from view, especially on the African continent, where it is involved in controversial oil and gas projects.
A “green” image that masks very real ecological damage
Behind the stadium floodlights, the activities of TotalEnergies are far from harmless. In Uganda, Mozambique, Congo and elsewhere, its extractive projects have devastating impacts, forced displacement of populations, destruction of protected areas, pollution of soil and water, and massive greenhouse gas emissions.
While the multinational invests millions in communication campaigns linked to sport and so-called sustainable development, local communities pay a heavy price. This glaring contradiction between discourse and practice fuels the anger of environmental defenders, who denounce a cynical strategy designed to divert attention.
Citizen voices rise against the alliance between sport and climate destruction
In response to this media manipulation, local communities and environmental organisations are mobilising, calling on sporting bodies to demonstrate coherence and ethical responsibility. For them, it is unacceptable that sporting competitions should be financed by a fossil fuel company responsible for so much damage. They challenge organisers directly, should the passion for sport come before the preservation of the planet? Football, a symbol of unity and solidarity, cannot become an accomplice to a strategy of environmental destruction. The time has come to break with greenwashing and to demand sponsors who are genuinely aligned with climate realities.
The Editorial Team
