Greta Thunberg calls COP27 climate summit a 'scam'

Greta Thunberg has hit out at the upcoming Cop27 climate summit, calling the United Nations event in Egypt and those like it are a “scam”.

The summit has been in the news this week, after prime minister Rishi Sunak confirmed that he will be attending the summit after initially deciding against it in order to focus on “depressing domestic challenges”.

According to Thunberg, though, he shouldn’t bother.

Speaking in an interview with ABC's 7.30 program in Australia, Thunberg said politicians use words “to make it seem like they're doing something when they're not”.

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She added that climate summits “serve as an opportunity for big polluters to greenwash themselves… using PR tactics and communication strategies disguised as politics”.

Thunberg added: “All the current ideologies and party politics have failed to create the necessary changes.”

Thunberg has been critical of Cop27Hollie Adams/Getty Images

“And I always say that I'm a realist. It is definitely possible for us to avoid the worst consequences of this crisis, but not if we continue like now. There is certainly opportunities and chances for us to be able to save what we can possibly save.”

“But as long as we continue like we are now, there is not very much hope in sight.”

Thunberg was also previously critical of the summit during a talk for her latest book at London’s Southbank Centre [via the Guardian].

Accusing the summit as “greenwashing”, she said: “I’m not going to Cop27 for many reasons, but the space for civil society this year is extremely limited.

“The Cops are mainly used as an opportunity for leaders and people in power to get attention, using many different kinds of greenwashing… the Cops are not really working, unless of course we use them as an opportunity to mobilise.”

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