Biggest Delegation at Climate Summit May Be a Surprise

It may not be a big surprise to learn that Brazil, home of the Amazon rainforest, has more delegates at the ongoing climate summit in Scotland than any other country. Its total of 479 easily tops No. 2 Turkey's 376 at the COP26 talks in Glasgow, per the BBC. However, one entity has even more than Brazil—none other than the fossil fuel industry, according to an analysis by the environmental group Global Witness. By its count, the industry has 503 delegates present, most of the them who belong to groups that represent the interests of oil and gas companies such as Shell and BP. The assessment is based on this list of attendees.

Not surprisingly, the advocacy group asserts that this makes little sense at a summit devoted to nations' attempts to reduce their carbon footprints, and it wants them banned from future talks. "The presence of hundreds of those being paid to push the toxic interests of polluting fossil fuel companies, will only increase the skepticism of climate activists who see these talks as more evidence of global leaders' dithering and delaying," says Murray Worthy of Global Witness, per CNN. The BBC has sought a response from the UN group that accredits delegates but hasn't received one yet. Former President Obama pressured Russia and China at the summit on Monday. (More UN climate summit stories.)