False: The World Economic Forum wants to impose climate lockdowns through carbon allowance programs.

By: Pallavi Sethi
January 10 2023

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Context

A video on Facebook with over 15K views and 200 comments shows rightwing influencer and conspiracy theorist Jack Posobiec making several unfounded claims. Posobiec wrongly states that through "personal carbon allowance programs," the World Economic Forum will "ensure that people comply with the new climate change restrictions." He further states that the international organization will implement such programs through surveillance policies and track people and their "behaviors."

In Fact

Posobiec refers to an opinion piece called "My Carbon: An approach for inclusive and sustainable cities," published on the WEF blog, but alludes to the work as being that of the WEF itself rather than the actual authors of the piece. Posobiec also grossly mispresents the authors' opinions. 

The article's authors, Kunal Kumar and Mridul Kaushik, discuss how community initiatives and new technology can help track and reduce carbon emissions, thereby tackling climate change. However, Posobiec misleads the public by selectively quoting from the article. He claims the WEF wants to take the COVID-19 "lockdown compliance and extend it to "climate change compliance." Aside from the fact that these views are not by the WEF, the claim remains untrue. Kumar and Kaushik do not mention or suggest lockdowns, let alone promote them.

The authors state that the "personal carbon allowance programs" have failed due to a "lack of social acceptance, political resistance, and a lack of awareness." They explain that recent developments, including citizen cooperation during the pandemic and technological advances, can help build a sustainable world. According to Kumar and Kaushik, societies following public health restrictions, including social distancing to halt the spread of COVID-19, "demonstrated the core of individual social responsibility." Contrary to Posobiec's claims, this is not the same as promoting or extending lockdowns. In addition, the authors believe that emerging technologies can help individuals better understand their carbon footprints. It is not surveillance by the state or a higher authority, as Posobiec frames it. 

No country to date has implemented a carbon allowance program, and there are no concrete plans to do so. 

Anyone can submit a pitch to the WEF blog, called "Agenda." The blog aims to "take some of the world's most important issues and make them accessible to everyone." Common contributors to the blog include Nobel laureates, leaders of international organizations, academics, and heads of state. 

The Verdict

There are no plans by the World Economic Forum to impose climate lockdowns. We have marked this claim as false.