Artists Are Protesting Corporate Sponsorship Of The UN Climate Talks With Fake Ads All Over Paris.

The United Nations Conference on Climate Change, COP21, kicked off on Monday. So far, it's mostly good news - you can read our wrap up of the first day here.

But there is something really interesting going on outside the conference room. Guerrilla art group Brandalism have installed more than 600 artworks across the city criticising the corporate sponsorship of the climate talks.

According to the collective's website: "The United Nations 21st 'Conference of Parties' meeting taking place this December is supposed to agree a global agreement to limit greenhouse gas emissions to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

Yet in 20 years of UN climate change talks, global emissions have risen by 63%. Increasingly, these talks are dominated by corporate interests. This year's talks in Paris are being held at an airport and sponsored by an airline. Other major polluters include energy companies, car manufacturers and banks. Brandalism aims to creatively expose this corporate greenwashing."

The group of artists have plastered the city with fake advertising calling out major corporations.

A press release by the group states: "The artworks were placed in advertising spaces owned by JC Decaux -one of the world's largest outdoor advertising firms and an officials ponsor to the COP21 climate talks.Other prominent corporate sponsors of the climate talks such as AirFrance, GDF Suez (Engie) and Dow Chemicals are parodied in the posters - whilst heads of state such as Francois Hollande, David Cameron, BarackObama, Angela Merkel and Shinzo Abi also feature.

The artworks were created by over 80 renowned artists from 19 countries across the world including Neta Harari, Jimmy Cauty, Banksy-collaborator Paul Insect, Escif and Kennard Phillips - many of whom featured at Banksy's Dismaland exhibition in England this summer.

Joe Elan from Brandalism said, "By sponsoring the climate talks, major polluters such as Air France and GDF-Suez-Engie can promote themselves as part of the solution - when actually they are part of the problem."

"We are taking their spaces back because we want to challenge the role advertising plays in promoting unsustainable consumerism. Because the advertising industry force feeds our desires for products created from fossil fuels, they are intimately connected to causing climate change. As is the case with the Climate talks and their corporate sponsored events, outdoor advertising ensures that those with the most amount of money are able to ensure that their voices get heard above all else," says the group. The artworks were installed on 'BlackFriday' or 'Vendredi Noir'; the most hectic and competitive shopping day of the year.

Other posters called on people to take to the streets as part of the "Climate Games" - the world's largest disobedient adventure game - as well as protesting the "Solutions 21" conference - a large corporate exposition being held at the Grand Palais during the climate talks.

Bill Posters from Brandalism said, "Following the tragic events on 13th November in Paris, the government has chosen to ban the big civil society mobilisations - but big business events can continue. The multinationals responsible for climate change can keep greenwashing their destructive business models, but the communities directly impacted by them are silenced. It's now more important than ever to call out their lies and speak truth to power. We call on people to take to the streets during the COP21 to confront the fossil fuel industry. We cannot leave the climate talks in the hands of politicians and corporate lobbyists who created this mess in the first place."

Check out the full gallery here.

While the images provide a great opportunity to start a conversation, it's important to remember that change happens on so many levels. It happens when we make choices in our everyday life, it happens when we rally our politicians and community members, and it happens when world leaders sit down together and make a commitment for a cleaner future.

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