Alaska AG Stephen Cox joins multistate effort warning climate cartel against antitrust violations

By SUZANNE DOWNING

Jan. 23, 2026 – Alaska Attorney General Stephen Cox is one of six state attorneys general calling on the nonprofit climate organization Ceres, Inc. to halt what they describe as conduct violating antitrust and consumer protection laws.

The attorneys general sent a formal letter to Boston-based Ceres CEO Mindy Lubber, demanding that the organization refrain from efforts to “transform industries” and impose “systemic change” by pressuring corporations into environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investment strategies.

Ceres was founded in 1989 in the aftermath of the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska. It has since had great influence on companies doing business in the Arctic, which is perhaps why Cox has taken such an interest. This is an Alaska issue.

The Ceres organization describes its mission as working with companies to acknowledge environmental impacts and promote responsible corporate behavior to protect communities and economies. A central focus of its work is aligning corporate investment strategies with net-zero emissions initiatives. Lubber has at the helm of the organization since 2003 and has grown it into a powerful network with global  influence.

In their letter, the attorneys general accuse Ceres of coordinating pressure campaigns on financial institutions and corporations through what they describe as “stakeholder engagement,” shareholder resolutions, and investor campaigns aimed at replacing corporate board members. These tactics amount to market manipulation rather than lawful advocacy.

The coalition also points to Ceres’ role in operating an investor portal for Climate Action 100+, an international initiative that seeks to influence large corporations’ climate policies. According to the letter, Ceres refused to provide access to that portal when questioned by the US House Judiciary Committee.

The attorneys general claim that Ceres’ activities have contributed to reduced demand for oil and declining investment in new energy supplies, effects they argue distort markets rather than reflect natural consumer or investor behavior. They contend this conduct violates principles underlying the Sherman Antitrust Act, the foundational U.S. antitrust statute prohibiting restraints on trade and monopolistic behavior.

“Ceres’ efforts to artificially move entire markets and sectors , and in turn artificially change the output and quality of the goods and services produced by those sectors, toward Ceres’ own preferred policy goals bears all the trappings of the adverse, anticompetitive effects that antitrust laws seek to prevent,” the attorneys general wrote.

Ceres has been accused of orchestrating collusive pressure campaigns to suppress competition in energy markets and exerting undue influence on corporate governance and investment strategies, pushing political agendas under the guise of climate policy. They often exert such pressure through proxies on boards.

Alongside Cox and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, the letter was signed by North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley, Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr, South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley, and Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador.

The action is intended to be a defense of market competition and consumer protection, arguing that climate policy advocacy must not cross into coordinated efforts that restrict output, suppress investment, or manipulate entire sectors of the economy.

Earlier, Texas and a handful of other states sued investor heavyweight Blackrock for its ESG policies. BlackRock is the world’s largest asset manager, a global investment firm  providing investment, risk management, and advisory services to institutions and individuals, managing trillions in assets.

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