How @environment is killing the game on Instagram
A roundup of the climate conversation across social media this week
Welcome to Climate Monitor, a weekly, data-driven report on the digital strategies polluters and pro-Climate groups are using to shift public opinion and move legislation. Here’s what we found:
Toplines:
@environment has found a formula for posting climate-related content on Instagram that really, really works
Gas Leaks Action is running new Halloween-themed ads on Facebook and Instagram about the horrors of methane gas emissions
People online are panicking about a new American Institute of Biological Sciences article that claimed that “time is up” when it comes to stopping climate change
Kim Kardashian is looking to take climate action with profits from her new product
Digital Advertising Roundup
Facebook + Instagram 👍
For starters, here were the top 25 climate and energy-related advertisers on Facebook and Instagram last week:
Top spenders on digital ads in the climate and energy space last week were the American Petroleum Institute and the American Chemistry Council (AKA the plastics lobby). This is a longstanding dynamic.
One new and notable ad campaign this week came from Gas Leaks Action. They are running Halloween-themed ads that explain the horrors of methane emissions on Facebook and Instagram in TX, MD, OR, CO, IL, MA and DC.
Another notable campaign this week came from United Airlines. They put $35,000 behind video ads of Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street explaining what sustainable aviation fuel (or SAF) is. The ads are running on Instagram and Facebook nationwide and you can check them out here >>>
And finally, the National Audubon Society Action Fund is running a new video asking people to urge their Representatives to pass the Farm Bill, which funds important conservation work. The ad is running on Facebook and Instagram in NY, IA, SD, IN, and NE.
Google & YouTube 🎞️
There were several noteworthy climate or energy advertisers archived by Google last week – most of these organizations have been running ads for several weeks.. Maine Affordable Energy ($19,000) is continuing to run ads that tell Mainers to vote no on Question 3. The NextGen Climate Action Committee ($10,300), Virginia League of Conservation Voters ($14,900), and the League of Conservation Voters Education Fund ($8,900) are all running ads for pro-climate candidates in Virginia ahead of their 2023 elections. Clean Jobs for Michigan ($7,100) are running video ads calling for Siting reform and for more solar energy usage. And finally, the American Petroleum Institute ($9,300) is also running ads in Virginia: they are warning Virginians that if they elect progressive candidates, they will be hit with electric vehicle mandates.
Snapchat 🤳
There were no new ad climate or energy campaigns archived by Snapchat this week.
🔦 Spotlight: How @environment is killing the game on Instagram
Instagram has become a hub for climate-related news, and certain climate accounts have grown some pretty substantial followings. The most notable example is @environment, which is an offshoot of the Gen Z organization Impact that specifically covers “all things earth, climate news, and culture.”
Odds are that you’ve probably seen an @environment post on your Search page or in one of your follower’s stories before. That’s because they’ve built a platform of over 820,000 followers and have a TON of reach. On average, they receive 39,000 likes per post and they’ve grown pretty astronomically over the last year.
This week, we’re breaking down what the secret sauce behind their content – and their growth – is. Here are the top five posts (in terms of engagement) from @environment over the last year
What stands out about their content is that instead of using Instagram as a tool to amplify popular climate-related stories that are already circulating in the news, they are using Instagram to publish entirely new climate-related stories or opinion pieces. They are creating new media by pointing out stories or perspectives that mainstream media might have missed, rather than just using IG for amplification of existing narratives. It is also should be noted that they create *really good* graphics as well.
Another thing to notice: the @environment team seems to be thinking about climate-related news a bit more broadly. By connecting climate issues to fashion or even a debate about the Titan submersible, they are able to tap into key cultural moments or audiences that might not otherwise consume climate media.
Other key examples of this include the three posts that are currently pinned to the top of the @environment IG page. Again, this is content that haven’t seen a ton of traction in the mainstream media and that touches on climate-related issues in conjunction with other popular topics like TikTok and Shein (both of which speak directly to a Gen Z audience).
Here’s some great news: @environment’s excellent Instagram strategy should be pretty replicable. There is definitely no shortage of climate stories to tell – and @environment’s formula of great graphics and content that is new to people and connected to other things they care about could definitely enable other organizations to build up their presence on Instagram.
What’s Trending on Social Media
How are climate and energy issues being discussed by Americans on social media? Every week, we conduct a robust keyword search using CrowdTangle for general terms like “climate change,” “global warming,” “fossil fuels,” and over 40 more specific topics (like “electric vehicles,” “gas stoves” and “pipelines”). Here were the 10 top-performing public posts (by # of interactions) related to climate and energy on Facebook last week:
Last week, over 12,500 public Facebook posts mentioned climate or energy issues, and they earned a cumulative 692,700 interactions.
This was a big week for the Biden Administration on Facebook. Posts from The White House and Vice President Kamala Harris about the Biden administration’s climate action plans and successes received a good amount of engagement.
Over on the Right, Rep. Lauren Boebert also received a fair amount of engagement on her post about her Restoring American Energy Dominance Act, which would counter the Biden administration’s efforts to reduce drilling and protect natural ecosystems in the US.
And finally, Morgan Freeman promoted his new documentary, Life on Our Planet, and discussed how climate change is threatening Earth on The View.
Here were the top-performing feed posts (excluding Reels and Stories) related to climate and energy on Instagram last week:
Last week, over 10,300 public Instagram feed posts mentioned climate or energy issues, and they earned a cumulative 7.7 million interactions.
The top three climate-related posts on Instagram this past week (in order) came from @clips, @insidehistory, and @its_onsite, all about the Oxford Academic article entitled “The 2023 state of the climate report: Entering uncharted territory” that was published last week.
Weekly Reading
Want to go deeper? Here’s a quick roundup of news from the past week at the intersection of climate, digital strategy, and advocacy.
P.S. Are you signed up for Climate Nexus’ daily newsletter, Hot News? It’s a one-stop shop for everything you need to know in the climate and environmental policy space. Subscribe here>>
Climate change is having a serious impact on young people’s mental health in Nevada (The Nevadan, 10/26)
Jon Kung, a TikTok chef and influencer, is telling people to ditch their gas stoves for the planet (Bloomberg, 10/28)
A percentage of profits from Kim Kardashian’s provocative new product will be given to 1% for the Planet (The Cut, 10/27)
That’s it for this week! If you enjoyed reading this week’s issue, feel free to forward it to a friend or colleague.
Climate Monitor is a product of the Digital Climate Coalition + FWIW Media. Tips/comments/questions? Email lucy@fwiwmedia.com
Ahhh I’m a writer for @ environment and this made my day 💞