News and Insights
A COP31 PR guide (part 1): gaining visibility at climate summits
October 22, 2026
In this blog, you will learn:
- How to build media relationships and make connections that count on the ground at COP
- How to amplify your message digitally, from hashtags and live updates to multimedia storytelling
- How to cut through media saturation.
Each UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP) is a whirlwind of activity, with thousands of delegates and media jostling for attention. At COP30 in Belém, Brazil, almost 4,000 press professionals registered, with around 2,400 covering the talks on the ground from some 1,090 outlets — part of a gathering of more than 56,000 participants overall, the second-largest COP on record. With such high stakes and saturation, how can PR and marketing professionals ensure their organization’s voice is heard during and after the summit?
This is part one of a two-part guide to being heard at COP31 — in the venue and online, where most of your audience actually sits. This blog covers working the room and the feed. Check back for part two, which will explore the follow-up that keeps you visible once the venue empties.
The examples here come from COP30, but the playbook applies just as readily to COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye (9–20 November 2026) and to the climate summits that follow — a road that has already run through the concluded Bonn talks (SB64, 8–18 June 2026), the first negotiations since Belém and the staging ground for Antalya.
On the ground at COP: make connections that count
Showing up in person opens doors like nothing else. Relationships are key: face-to-face beats a press release every time. Work out which journalists, influencers and delegates matter to you, then put yourself where they are — be that at a side event, in a pavilion, or even the coffee queue.
Immerse yourself in the event, not just the sessions you came for. Being present beyond your own days, and wandering the wider venue, is how you build a network and stumble on things you didn’t plan for. A hallway chat or an introduction at a reception can turn into an interview weeks later.
Break through the formalities with informal engagement
Reporters on-site are drowning in official briefings and announcements. Most will welcome a human voice or an exclusive angle. Rather than relying solely on formal press conferences, offer informal interviews or provide quick commentary when news breaks.
Keep your experts on hand for an impromptu Q&A. One sharp line in a corridor can put a spokesperson on a reporter’s radar, but remember, relationship-building is a long game. At COP, you can build rapport that outlasts the event. A coffee, or a tip that helps a reporter find a source, earns goodwill that can pay off in coverage later.
One tool gets badly underused at COP: WhatsApp (and similar messaging apps)
Reporters and press officers have been known to coordinate in messaging groups, where they can swap tips and fix meetings on the fly. Ask whether the conference has media broadcast lists or group chats.
At COP28, the climate think tank E3G ran a WhatsApp broadcast to keep its journalists updated. Joining these channels (or creating your own) can provide you with real-time insight into what reporters are looking for and enable you to push your news, or answer queries quickly.
It’s informal and conversational, which cuts through when every inbox is flooded. Mind the etiquette, though – add value, don’t self-broadcast, and reply quickly if a reporter pings you.
Respect and prepare for language differences on the ground
COPs are always global, and though the working language might be English, not everybody is at ease in a second language. If you lack fluency in the conference language, make sure you get interpreters.
Tailor your press materials to the host, too. It pays off as the host country’s press pack is usually the biggest in the building. Portuguese was essential for Brazilian media at COP30, Turkish will matter at COP31 in Antalya, and the Pacific pre-COP adds another layer, all alongside English.
Language barriers have real consequences. Delegates whose first language is not English have reported feeling that mistakes in English can lead to, “misperceptions and even a loss of credibility.” Don’t let language be the reason your story gets lost. Meet journalists and audiences where they’re most at ease. Being prepared, linguistically and culturally, is part of being a good host at your own pavilion.
Digital engagement amplifies your COP presence online
Your on-site work needs a digital half which, done well, will amplify your voice far beyond the conference halls. Use social channels and online content to get into the global conversation on climate change and the COP.
Use official and trending hashtags, such as #COP31 and thematic tags like #ClimateFinance or #Forests, and tag relevant organizations and influencers to boost your visibility. This targeted tagging and hashtag use ensure your posts surface in the feeds COP-watchers, journalists included, are scanning. It’s a small effort, but with real payoff.
Plan and pace your content throughout the event. In the days leading up to COP, have a content calendar ready, line up posts on your goals, your plans and your experts’ take on talking points, then be ready to post live as news breaks.
Visuals garner more attention in a crowded feed. Share clips, strong images and quotes from spokespeople on the ground. If your CEO speaks on a panel, post a 30-second clip of the best quote on X or LinkedIn quickly to catch attention while the topic is still fresh.
Schedule compelling visuals and videos in advance, but also remain agile enough to adapt to emerging trends during the conference. A team member back in the office, watching the conversation is a good idea. They can jump on opportunities, such as a journalist’s post, to respond with useful insights of your own.
You can also host virtual content for those not in Belém. Consider streaming your COP side event or hosting a webinar briefing live from the venue to reach a wider audience. It widens your reach and banks footage you can reuse later (more on that shortly). You can also team up with partner organizations to co-promote — cross-posting, or a joint Instagram Live — which taps both audiences and signals a united front. That matters at an event built on collective action.
Navigating COP’s key challenges of media saturation, access and language
Even with the networking and the digital game running well, COPs pose distinct challenges for communicators. Three in particular stand out: (1) over saturation of stories, (2) difficulty accessing top-tier media, and (3) language and cultural barriers. Tackle them head-on, and your odds of being heard go up.
- Cutting through story overload: the volume of news that comes out of a COP is staggering. Governments, NGOs, businesses and activists all fight for the same column inches and airtime.
“It is an incredibly saturated space,” one communications expert noted. Reporters on the ground are overwhelmed. In 2024, over 3,500 journalists covered COP29 while in COP30, over 4,000 accredited press personnel were in Belém. For editors to give you coverage, you need to convince them of its significance. Put your news in context with the overall COP agenda. If you’re launching a green energy initiative, tie it to the summit’s goals by including, for instance, how it moves the renewables tripling target or supports developing nations.
Offer a unique value or data point. A good litmus test is to ask yourself: “Will this cut through? Is it credible and compelling enough?” If it isn’t, sharpen the angle or rethink it. One announcement that cuts through beats ten that don’t, so aim for quality over quantity.
- Reaching top-tier media: prominent international outlets (BBC, Reuters, The Guardian, ) cover COP extensively, but securing their attention is hard. They chase the big stories — national pledges, leaders’ speeches, the dramatic protest — and smaller organizations get crowded out.
To shorten the odds, prepare well in advance of COP. Research which journalists have historically covered your topics and engage with them before the COP. Give them something they can use, such as a briefing note, an exclusive or a sharp spokesperson.
Watch what the big reporters are posting, and be mindful of timing. Get your expert’s analysis on what’s coming up on Wednesday to reporters by Tuesday night, in time for the next day’s story.
A quote in The New York Times would be a significant win, but a specialist climate or energy outlet is likely to be more receptive to your messaging, and their coverage still shapes the conversation. The big titles often pick up stories that first broke in respected specialist publications. Build trade media relationships because sector reporters amplify your message.
- Overcoming language barriers: as noted earlier, language can quietly block you. It’s not just about speaking — it’s your written materials and your storytelling too. COP audiences run from policy experts to community leaders, from English speakers to people following in French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Russian and more. Where you can, provide translations of your press releases and social content. Even a summary in the host country’s language (Turkish for COP31) on your website or social feed can invite local press interest that an English-only approach would miss.
Additionally, strive for clarity and avoid jargon in all communications – climate negotiations are full of technical terms that can alienate or confuse even interested readers. If your story is complex, use analogies or human examples to make it relatable. Communicating in an “appropriate language and analogy, combining… narrative storytelling [with] visual imagery” is vital to engaging diverse audiences, as one COP28 communicator observed. That might mean a human story — a community your project actually helped — plus an infographic or photo that carries across any language. Be inclusive and lead with narrative, and you’ll land with a wider press pool and public.
Capture the moments during and after COP
At a COP, the tendency is always to focus on now. Good communicators use the conference as a source for material to come. Collect it while you’re there, and it sustains the narrative afterwards.
Record, film, snap and save everything. Give someone on your team one job: to be a storyteller on the ground, armed with a phone. Your delegates giving a statement, the buzz at your booth, an interview with a partner — capture it. Those clips are gold for post-COP content. As a storytelling guide notes, once the event is over, you can’t go back and gather material, so “be sure to take pictures, make recordings, and save them” while you can. Even if you don’t yet know how you’ll use a clip or a quote, save it — it might be the hook for a campaign months from now.
All clips earn their keep sooner or later. Your spokesperson on camera provides the answer to a journalist’s query the next day; your CEO and the minister, in an informal interview, give you follow-up on whatever the agreement was; snippets of side event recordings become quotations for journalists and content for your own outlets. The key is not the quality of the production but just being there at the right time. This is how two weeks of an event can translate into months of coverage.
Capture human interest stories from the field. The COPs are packed full of interesting characters—activists, indigenous chiefs, scientists, and young delegates. Gain permission and you can capture short testimonies or interviews with individuals connected to your issue.
Human interest stories make your post-COP work that much richer. Take, for example, an NGO dedicated to clean water. Two minutes of someone you met at COP talking about water will make a bigger impact than your news release regarding the COP’s outcomes on adaptation.
And don’t forget the organizers’ own material. The UNFCCC and the host country typically release official photos and videos daily for free use. Use them alongside your own footage. If you pair their high-quality visuals with your story, your post-COP recap will look sharper and travel further.
Looking ahead to COP31
The Bonn talks in June previewed the battlegrounds COP31 in Antalya must resolve, including stalled negotiations on the Global Goal on Adaptation and its 59 Belém indicators, friction over climate finance and the COP30 pledge to triple adaptation funding, steady progress on a just transition mechanism, and a COP31 Presidency Action Agenda built around electrification, efficiency and urban resilience.
Follow this guide, and COP31 will be an opportunity, rather than a daunting challenge to conquer. You’ll gain visibility across the two weeks and set up the engagement that follows. More on that in part two of this blog series. Check back for a guide to maintaining momentum after the event.
For more environmental perspectives, explore the FINN Partners Purpose & Social Impact hub.
Frequently asked questions
How can I get my organization noticed at COP31?
Show up in person and work the whole venue, not just your own sessions. Relationships with journalists, influencers and delegates count for more than a press release. Pair that with a digital plan built around #COP31, thematic hashtags and short clips posted while the news is fresh.
Why use WhatsApp at COP?
Reporters and press officers coordinate in messaging groups, swapping tips and fixing meetings on the fly. Joining them, or running your own broadcast, shows you what journalists need in real time. Add value, don’t self-broadcast, and reply quickly when a reporter pings you.
How do I cut through media saturation at COP?
Tie your news to the summit’s agenda and offer a data point or angle nobody else has. Ask yourself: “Will this cut through?” If the answer is no, sharpen it or drop it. One announcement that lands beats ten that don’t.
Do I need to translate my press materials for COP31?
Where you can, yes. The host country’s press pack is usually the biggest in the building, so even a Turkish-language summary on your website or social feed can open doors in Antalya. Avoid jargon in every language.
What should I capture at COP for use afterwards?
Everything: clips, photos, quotes and short testimonies, with permission. Give one team member the job of storyteller on the ground. You can’t go back for material once the event is over, and the official UNFCCC and host-country images are free to use alongside your own.
POSTED BY: Christopher Nial
