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Measures Against Fossil Fuel Advertising Advance in Cities Across Europe and Oceania as Part of New Climate Policies.
Various cities around the world have begun to prohibit ads linked to fossil fuels in public spaces such as billboards, bus stops, and digital screens.
The initiative involves municipal administrations in Europe, Oceania, and other regions, which are adopting new climate policies to reduce the encouragement of consuming highly polluting products.
The measures began to gain momentum between 2024 and 2026 in cities like The Hague and Amsterdam in the Netherlands, as well as Stockholm, Florence, and Edinburgh.
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The goal is to combat the climate crisis by limiting climate advertising that promotes fossil fuels, long-distance flights, and highly carbon-emitting vehicles.
The decision has been driven by local governments, environmental organizations, and public health experts.
They argue that fossil fuel-related environmental advertising helps normalize polluting activities and hinders the advancement of global sustainability strategies.
Cities Begin to Restrict Fossil Fuel Advertising
The city of The Hague, Netherlands, was one of the pioneers in approving, in 2024, a municipal law that prohibits ads for products with high climate impact.
Seven months after the decision, those walking around the city were already noticing the difference.
Billboards and advertising panels stopped displaying ads for diesel or gasoline-powered cars, as well as ads for cruises and flights to distant destinations.
The measure has positioned The Hague at the forefront of a trend that is now spreading to other municipalities.
Among the examples are:
Saint-Gilles, Belgium;
Stockholm, Sweden;
Florence, Italy.
Additionally, in January 2026, Amsterdam became the first capital in the world to legally prohibit advertising linked to fossil fuels.
According to The Hague’s deputy mayor, Robert Barker, the decision reflects a political commitment to the climate.
“As an International City of Peace and Justice and an important center of the United Nations, we find it important to show that we are serious about addressing the climate crisis.”
He also highlighted a contradiction that motivated the new policy.
“So, it is really somewhat strange if, in a public space, we have many ads for fossil fuels and at the same time tell people that we ‘need to reduce them’.”
Climate Advertising Enters the Center of the Global Debate
The role of advertising in encouraging the consumption of fossil fuels has been discussed more intensely in recent years.
A report from the Grantham Institute for Climate Change Research indicates that advertising campaigns can normalize polluting activities and minimize their environmental and health impacts.
The topic gained even more visibility in 2024 when the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, criticized the advertising sector in a speech in New York.
According to him, climate misinformation has been amplified by campaigns promoted by the energy industry.
Guterres even called for governments around the world to prohibit fossil fuel advertising.
The comparison has also been reinforced by public health experts.
Maria Neira, director of public health and climate at the World Health Organization, described fossil fuels as “the new tobacco”.
Study Points to Impact of Environmental Advertising on Consumption
Academic research also reinforces concerns about the influence of advertising.
A scientific study from 2023, prepared for Dutch lawmakers, concluded that ads linked to fossil fuels:
encourage unsustainable behaviors;
reinforce polluting consumption patterns;
complicate the implementation of climate policies.
The director of the international network of cities C40, Cassie Sutherland, states that the influence of advertising is significant.
“We know that advertising really is a major promoter of unsustainable consumption.”
She adds:
“Advertisers wouldn’t spend billions and billions of dollars every year if they weren’t influencing people’s behavior.”
New Climate Policies Spread to Other Cities
The movement to restrict climate advertising is advancing rapidly in various countries.
In the United Kingdom, several cities have already adopted similar measures.
Among them:
Edinburgh, which banned ads from airlines, SUVs, and fossil fuel companies;
Sheffield, which restricted advertising that encourages an increase in flights;
Portsmouth, which approved a similar policy in 2026.
Meanwhile, in Australia, 19 jurisdictions have already voted or implemented restrictions on fossil fuel-related environmental advertising, including the city of Sydney.
In New Zealand, the regional council of Wellington suspended such ads on public transport.
Belinda Noble, founder of the organization Comms Declare, advocates for the role of cities in driving change.
According to her, local governments have significant influence over what citizens see daily.
“They respond more to community needs and are generally less subject to the interests of the industry or large gas and coal donors.”
Prohibitions Face Legal and Political Challenges
Despite the initiative’s progress, not all cities have managed to implement restrictions.
In Toronto, Canada, a similar proposal was rejected in 2025.
Local authorities argued that it would be difficult to determine if certain ads could be considered misleading or harmful.
In the United States, the challenge is even greater.
Thus, law professor Ellen Goodman at Rutgers Law School explains that the First Amendment of the American Constitution protects advertising, making any restriction subject to strict judicial review.
Therefore, climate activists in the country have focused efforts on legal actions against fossil fuel companies.
Does Prohibiting Fossil Fuel Advertising Really Work?
Although the measures are still recent, experts analyze similar experiences in other areas.
In London, for example, the public transport operator Transport for London (TfL) banned ads for unhealthy foods in 2019.
The result was significant.
Families began to purchase about 1,000 fewer calories per week, leading to reduced consumption of sweets and chocolates.
Other examples also indicate positive results:
In Chile, restrictions on fast food advertising led to a 24% reduction in the purchase of sugary beverages.
The ban on cigarette advertising contributed to a global decline in tobacco consumption.
According to Sutherland, this data indicates that limiting ads can change consumption behaviors.
“There is clear evidence that advertising bans do indeed have an impact.”
She emphasizes, however:
“We still don’t have data on the fossil fuel advertising bans… but we hope to see something similar.”
Critics Warn of Greenwashing Risks
Thus, despite the potential benefits, experts also point out challenges.
One of them is the so-called greenwashing, when companies promote more sustainable products to improve their image without actually reducing their polluting activities.
Moreover, ads prohibited in one space may migrate to other media, especially online.
Another challenge is to define clear limits for the rules.
The deputy mayor of The Hague raises an example.
“If you have an ad for a certain country that can only be visited by plane, is it allowed?”
Combating the Climate Crisis Requires More Than Advertising Restrictions
So specialists emphasize that the prohibition of fossil fuel advertising does not solve the problem on its own.
Cities that adopt the measure often combine the restriction with other initiatives.
In The Hague, for instance, the municipal government is investing in expanding charging points for electric cars and offering interest-free loans for the installation of more efficient heating systems.
According to Barker, public communication has also been crucial.
“We focus on explaining why it is important to tackle the climate crisis and that ads in public spaces encourage the opposite.”
Therefore, for many specialists, the primary objective of the restrictions is to question the normalized presence of fossil fuels in everyday life.
“I think the comparison to cigarettes is very accurate,” says Barker.
“Smoking destroys our lungs and fossil fuels destroy the planet’s lungs.”
And he concludes:
“Why encourage something that has devastating effects on the Earth?”
See more at: New Tobacco? The Cities Banning Advertising Linked to Fossil Fuels – BBC News Brasil
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