This Tuesday, a group of students claiming to be from an “anti-greenwashing committee of HEC” disrupted the start of a “climate day”, organized by the famous Parisian campus, to which representatives of companies were invited. oil and gas companies Shell and TotalEnergies to denounce their “climaticide” activities, according to a video posted on YouTube.
To the cries of: “And one, and two, and three degrees, for Patrick Pouyanné”, the CEO of TotalEnergies, the group took over the platform of an amphitheater where a round table of this “Climate day” was held, organized on the Jouy-en-Josas campus (Yvelines), on the theme of energy transition.
“Climate-killing companies are no longer welcome at HEC Paris”
In a seven-minute video, the group in turn distributes the bad points to Shell, TotalEnergies, the Societe Generale bank – accused of contributing to the financing of fossil projects – and HEC Paris, in a parody of a film festival.
According to the program, around ten representatives of companies, experts and institutions such as the OFCE and the International Energy Agency were invited to this day of conferences. The management of HEC Paris confirmed to AFP that HEC students were “at the origin of this happening”.
“We, HEC students, demonstrated with joy and conviction our disagreement with their presence by organizing the first greenwashing festival in Jouy-en-Josas”, explained the “HEC anti-greenwashing committee” in its press release. , ensuring that “climaticide companies are no longer welcome at HEC Paris”.
A banner against a TotalEnergies project in Uganda
“Our country’s leading scientists have said it: any new fossil project would irreparably compromise our chances of staying below 1.5°C” of global warming, the students said in their press release.
The group notably unfurled a banner with the message “Stop Eacop”, named after the controversial mega oil project that TotalEnergies is developing in Uganda and Tanzania. “Thirty” of these students took part in the action, one of them, Augustin de la Brosse, told AFP.
“To explain to us how to save the planet by inviting Shell, TotalEnergies and Société Générale, it must be said that we had to dare”, notably launched the student in M2, in front of an audience of several dozen people.
TotalEnergies Annual General Meeting under pressure
The giants of the oil and gas sector are under increasing pressure from certain shareholders and environmental associations to stop any new hydrocarbon projects, which are polluting and harmful to the climate.
Like Shell on Tuesday, TotalEnergies is preparing to experience in turn an eventful annual general meeting on Friday, targeted by calls from several NGOs to block the event bringing together the shareholders of the French energy group.