Corporations, Their Associations and Climate Action

Abstract

How do capitalist formations affect the climate crisis; are there inconsistencies between corporations and industry associations in the extent to which they engage with climate change issues; and if so, what purposes do industry associations and related think tanks serve? We outline the nature of the climate crisis and the problems arising from lack of adequate action and develop a model of capitalism and the carbon economy that distinguishes between corporations engaged in ‘blue’ and ‘brown’ capitalist accumulation, and locate divisions within capital within this framework. We show that industry associations and think tanks, while sometimes representing the interests of corporations as a whole, will, on average, also take positions that are more supportive of climate denial than many corporations themselves. This discrepancy between the positioning of corporations and industry associations appears to be greatest in North America and least in Asia. Finally, we conclude with an elaboration of how these concepts relate. One possible explanation for the discrepancy between industry associations and individual corporations is that the latter’s behaviour become responsive to and dominated by the target corporations with the most to lose from responding to the climate crisis. A second possibility is that industry associations are reflecting the true interests of their members, providing ‘distancing’ of controversial ideas from the corporations that constitute them, enabling corporations to pretend to support climate change action but fund activities against it. In all likelihood, they are a combination of both. In doing so, industry associations also become independent actors themselves, influencing the practices and ideologies of corporations, the state and the public.