WPP, the ad agency holding company that owns AKQA, was recently the target of a complaint filed with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development for its work for oil and gas companies that activists allege are fueling the climate crisis, including BP, Saudi Aramco, and Shell.
“It’s hard for a sustainability agency to thrive in a holding company that is so committed to fossil fuels. Clients with serious sustainability agendas are not lining up to work with agencies with deep ties to polluters like BP and Aramco,” said Duncan Meisel, executive director of activist campaign Clean Creatives. “With this closure, WPP is picking polluters in dying sectors over clients in growing industries like regenerative agriculture and clean energy, which is an obvious mistake.”
