While I have Jack idea how to translate the French ("Garder l'église au milieu du village") or German ("Die Kirche im Dorf lassen") saying...I trust you'll get its meaning by the end of those lines.
The last week(s) I’ve been observing people reacting to recent announcements made by major oil companies to either reduce research programs or shut down non-business critical divisions. Especially here on LinkedIn, those announcements (refreshingly free from any form of disavowal and shockingly yet simply “true”) have sparked a backlash from people - including climate activists but also (ex)employees – all yelling a feeling of betrayal, disappointment and blaming scandalous, greedy and irresponsible behavior.
WTF ??
I can’t help a satisfactory, sarcasm-loaded smile each time I indulge myself with the truckloads of comments and waves of popularity-likes 👍 by all those neo-economists, extremist client advocates, eco terrorists and freshly (auto) proclaimed climate change experts.
My two cents ?
I sometimes wonder how you guys get from A to B? Seriously.
Don’t’ get me wrong, I’m not into cheap provocation by softening the fact of oil companies ignoring the threat of climate change and prioritizing profits over the planet. However, what these critics often overlook is that oil companies are – first off – "just" companies. Not charities, but commercial entities that have to balance the interests of their shareholders, employees and customers. They have to ensure a reliable energy supply, pay salaries and dividends, maintain customer loyalty and ensure that people and goods keep moving.
And yes, despite rising awareness of climate change and the pressure from activists and governments to reduce emissions…it happens we are only in transition to alternative mobility. Electric vehicles still form a minority of all vehicles on our roads, people still need to get to work, leisure and back home; they do enjoy holiday travels to see their beloved ones over Christmas and everyone enjoys decent service at gas stations without having to plant a tree 🌳prior to continuing their journey.
That’s the reality of our everyday lives – the same everyday lives that are largely kept in motion by oil companies and their attempt to keep energy affordable - by sometimes cutting costs and focusing on the very core business: pumping more oil out of the ground and caring – among others - for proximity, convenience and mobility.
These are not trivial matters, but vital for the livelihoods of millions of people.
Despite their welcomed (sincerely meant 😇) efforts to engage into a long-term transformation towards becoming "mobility enablers" and "energy providers", these economical giants are (still) called "oil companies" and – after all - they are just doing their job, right? They are providing us with the energy we need to power our cars, heat our homes, and keep our industries in motion. They are creating jobs for millions of people around the world. They are satisfying their customers' demand for accessible and reliable fuel - while paving the way towards different energies, better service and higher convenience.
Of course, this does not mean that oil companies should ignore the environmental impact of their activities or the scientific evidence of climate change. For example, having known about the link between fossil fuels and global warming since the 1970s, but deliberately hiding or downplaying it from the public is unacceptable and unethical, Exxon (in this case) should be held accountable for its actions. It is unfair to expect oil companies to bear the sole responsibility for solving the climate crisis.
Oil companies are part of a larger system that includes governments, consumers, investors, regulators and civil society. All these actors have a role to play in creating a more sustainable and equitable future for everyone. But on the other hand, it also is the same Exxon that is relentlessly seeking ways to deliver a better experience to drivers by heavily investing in customer journey, convenience and attractivity of their forecourts ⛽️.
Convenience, access and service that - truth to be told - none of us would easily accept missing from one day to another, while our society is still transitioning a change that will be lasting for the next decades – despite Greta's desires or sometimes irrational expectations of entire generations.
At the end of the demonstration for climate change, and against the greediness of oil companies, chances are that a good number of those activists will need to get back home by car and would quite actually enjoy a hot chocolate at a well-lid service station after a day of protesting outside ... feeling “betrayed”.
In conclusion, I hope my reflection helped understanding some of the complexities and dilemmas that oil companies face in their operations. I do not intend to justify or defend their choices, but rather to provide a more balanced and nuanced perspective on their situation and why they sometimes choose to put the customer first - at the expense of research or less-sustainable activities.
I believe that oil companies can and should do more to reduce their environmental footprint and contribute to the fight against climate change. However, I also recognize that they have other obligations and interests that they cannot ignore or neglect. The challenge is to find a way to reconcile these different goals and values in a way that benefits everyone.
