Every year, oil and gas companies spend hundreds of millions of dollars lobbying politicians for policies that support the extraction and burning of fossil fuels, and a wider fossil-energy system. Lobbying is a feature of many political systems, used by a wide range of entities, from charities to fossil fuel corporations. It might involve providing decision makers with information to convince them to support or oppose a particular policy, or donating money to help a politician get elected (this is a direct form of influence used extensively by the oil and gas industry).

Companies also use trade organizations to lobby on their behalf. The American Petroleum Institute (API) is the largest such group for fossil fuel companies. This gives companies distance from the questionable, in some cases allegedly illegal tactics to fight climate and environmental action.

Limiting the negative impacts of fossil fuel lobbying can involve putting limits on what kinds of lobbying are allowed, so as not to give rich fossil corporations such a big advantage, or rolling out measures to increase transparency, for example.

This card has an ongoing effect.

After this card is triggered in the Crisis stage, players may not remove Dirty Energy tokens.

To discard this card, players must tuck 2 Energy tags under it during the Local stage.

• Fossil Fuels Climate Lobbying (InfluenceMap)

• Oil & Gas political contributions data (Open Secrets)

• Oil Change International

• Write your elected officials asking them not to get money from fossil fuel lobbyists and share the facts of fossil fuels in driving climate change. 

• Join a local or national campaign for clean energy and elimination of fossil fuels. Find one near you with the Fossil Free database.