The 2024 F-List, published by Clean Creatives, has unveiled a total of 1,010 fossil fuel contracts involving 590 advertising and public relations agencies for the years 2023-2024. As the advertising industry evolves, it is expected that the era of fossil fuel campaigns will soon end, with clean agencies that reject fossil fuel clients leading the way into the future.
The F-List serves as a crucial resource documenting the relationships between fossil fuel clients and advertising firms, significantly impacting the creative industry over its four years of publication. Since its inception in 2021, the F-List has promoted transparency and encouraged positive change within the sector.
On the same day the 2023 F-List was released, Havas Media secured a competitive pitch for Shell’s media business. In response, Clean Creatives and their agency partners filed a complaint with B Labs regarding Havas’ B Corp certification. In July 2024, B Corp revoked certification for four Havas agencies, declaring that “other entities in the Havas group are also ineligible to certify.” This decision sets a significant precedent for agencies facing consequences for their work with fossil fuel companies.
Several notable agencies, such as VaynerMedia and Huge, appeared on earlier F-Lists but are no longer featured. According to Campaign’s 2024 school report data, 73.9% of agencies do not work with fossil fuel clients, while 15.2% are actively reducing their engagements with such clients.
The urgency for change is underscored by the awareness of younger talent regarding the climate crisis. A report from Stagwell indicates that “60% of Gen Z believe that oil and gas companies knowingly misled the public about the climate impact of fossil fuels and should be held accountable.” Agencies have already experienced a loss of creative talent due to their continued partnerships with fossil fuel clients, with Deloitte research showing that 20% of Gen Z and 19% of millennials have changed jobs or industries for environmental reasons, and another 26% of Gen Z and 23% of millennials plan to do so in the future.
The F-List provides valuable insights for prospective employees and clients to assess where agencies stand on critical environmental issues. This year’s report emphasised accurately capturing the number of contracts held by both holding companies and independent agencies, thereby illustrating where power and business interests lie. Over 30 new sources were incorporated into the research process to uncover as many contracts as possible, ensuring a comprehensive overview of the industry. All research is based solely on public records.
The research commenced with an analysis of the top eight holding companies—Dentsu, DJE Holdings, Havas, IPG, Omnicom, Publicis, Stagwell, and WPP—to identify as many contracts as possible from their agencies and subsidiaries, reflecting recent mergers. A directory of over 400 oil and gas companies generating more than 50% of their revenue from fossil fuels was also created for comparison. This method has revealed which agencies and holding companies maintain the most fossil fuel contracts and which have secured the most new business since last year.
