COP30 Belém Climate Change Conference

UN Climate Change Conference –
UNFCC COP 30
Belém, 10-21 November 2025

11-12 November
Removing CO2 from atmosphere vital to avoid catastrophic tipping points, leading scientist says
10bn tonnes must be captured from the air every year to limit global heating to 1.7C, says Johan Rockström
Johan Rockström was among several leading climate experts at Cop30 who warned the world would overshoot the 1.5C target of the Paris agreement
Johan Rockström of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, who is one of the chief scientific advisers to the UN and the Cop30 presidency, said 10bn tonnes of carbon dioxide needed to be removed from the air every year even to limit global heating to 1.7C (3.1F) above preindustrial levels.
To achieve this through technological means, such as direct air capture, would require the construction of the world’s second biggest industry, after oil and gas, and require expenditures of about a trillion dollars a year, scientists said. It would need to be done alongside much more drastic emissions cuts and could also have unintended consequences.
Rockström was among several leading climate experts who spoke at a first public event for the Science Council, which was set up as an advisory body by the Belém Cop30 presidency.

Tussles break out between protesters and security at Cop30 in Brazil
Dozens storm venue at climate conference that has encouraged NGOs and Indigenous groups to play unprecedented role in talks
(The Guardian) There were tussles between protesters and security guards at the Cop30 climate talks late on Tuesday night, when a group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous people stormed the conference centre in Belém.
Several dozen men and women, some in brightly coloured feather headdress, ran through the entrance, pushing at least one door off its hinges, before striding through the metal detectors and entering the Blue Zone.
UN security guards rushed to stop them, leading to grabbing, shoving and yelling. At least one non-Indigenous man in the area was carrying a banner that read “Our forests are not for sale”. Others wore T-shirts saying “Juntos” (Together). …
[Agustin Ocaña, from the Global Youth Coalition] said some Indigenous communities had been frustrated watching resources pour into building “a whole new city” in Belém when spending was needed on education, health and forest protection elsewhere. “They were not doing this because they were bad people. They’re desperate, trying to protect their land, the [Amazon] river,” he said.

A novel bond fund that bets rainforests are worth more alive than dead is launched at COP30 in Brazil
Eric Reguly
(Globe & Mail) Brazil’s President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, did not cover himself in green-tinged glory as his country on Monday launched the COP30 climate change conference in Bélem, in the rainforest country’s northeast. Just days before calling for the end of the dependence on fossil fuels, his government approved studies on oil exploration at the mouth of the Amazon. He also must decide within a week whether to veto a bill that extends coal production subsidies. It could go either way.
With his credibility as a climate leader in jeopardy, Mr. Lula must be praying that his Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) gains traction in Bélem. It might. It’s a novel initiative that essentially financializes nature – a bond-backed bet that rain forests are worth more alive than dead.
In the era of U.S. President Donald Trump, who called climate change a “con job” at the UN General Assembly in September, and who is not sending a high-level U.S. team to Bélem, expectations for a breakthrough at COP30 are exceedingly low.
… Tropical rain forests in particular act as the Earth’s thermostat by storing vast amounts of carbon. They protect and spawn huge numbers of plant and animal species, some of which have yet to be catalogued, and regulate rainfall. The fires used to clear the forests contribute to global warming.
The Global Forest Review, published by the World Resources Institute, says that the amount of forest lost in 2024 (trackable by satellite and drones) came to 6.7 million hectares, or 26,000 square miles. That’s the size of Ireland or Sri Lanka. For each of the previous six years, the loss was close to four million hectares.

10 November
Trump’s COP30 snub thrusts Europe into a role it’s not ready for
Without the US, the EU will bear the brunt of demands leveled at rich countries during the talks.
(Politico Eu) For decades, the European Union has relied on the United States to act as shock absorber and chief powerbroker at global climate talks. No longer.
At the COP30 conference starting in Brazil on Monday, the unprecedented absence of its longtime ally leaves the 27-country union bearing the brunt of demands and pressures leveled at rich countries — an awkward role for the EU to take on.
In theory, the EU is the obvious candidate to step into the leadership vacuum left by the U.S. following President Donald Trump’s decision to skip the summit. After all, its climate targets and concrete policies rank among the most ambitious in the world.

9 November
Climate disasters displaced 250 million people in past 10 years, UN report finds
Floods, storms and droughts have uprooted people across the globe as rising temperatures intensify conflict and hunger
Climate-related disasters forcibly displaced 250 million people globally over the past decade, the equivalent of 70,000 displacements every day, according to a report by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR). The figure includes people who have been displaced multiple times.
Floods, storms, drought and extreme heat are among the weather conditions driving conflict and displacement, alongside slow-onset disasters such as desertification, rising sea levels and ecosystem destruction, which are threatening food and water security.
By mid-2025, 117 million people were displaced by war, violence and persecution – a dire human rights crisis that the climate emergency is rapidly intensifying.
No Escape – On the front lines of climate change, conflict and forced displacement
Conclusion
The consequences of delayed action – both human and financial – are escalating.
Towards COP30 and beyond, there is a growing imperative for greater recognition, decisive action and strengthened collaboration to address both the challenges and opportunities of climate action in displacement settings. Climate change is not only amplifying existing vulnerabilities – it is also fuelling displacement trends, creating complex and compounding risks for refugees, other displaced people and their hosts, leaving many with no escape from its impacts.The way forward must be grounded in inclusive, practical solutions that reflect the realities on the ground. The significant funding setbacks facing humanitarian programmes in 2025 only increase the urgency for targeted, practical solutions that empower countries and communities on the frontlines of climate change. Delivering on these solutions will require a whole-of-society effort, with governments, humanitarian and development actors, civil society and the private sector each playing complementary roles.

6 November
World leaders gather in Belém today and tomorrow to tackle the climate crisis
The two-day World Leaders Climate Action Summit kicks off today bringing together heads of state and government, ministers, and leaders of international organizations to discuss pressing climate change challenges and commitments.
The Summit is part of the official activities of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP30), which runs from November 10 to 21. Convened by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the meeting represents a key milestone in the process of mobilization and international dialogue on the climate agenda. Both the Summit and COP30 provide a platform for world leaders to raise ambition, translate climate pledges into concrete, real-economy outcomes.
Throughout both days of the Leaders’ Summit, heads of delegation will take the floor in the Plenary Hall to deliver their formal speeches on climate. António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations will address the Leaders’ Summit today.

Brazil launches the Tropical Forest Forever Facility
Today in the heart of the Amazon, President Lula took a hugely important step, with the Tropical Forest Forever Facility – a new push to make standing forests more valuable than cleared land.
Writing on LinkedIn, UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell welcomed the new initiative, saying it “creates long-term, predictable support for the countries and communities who protect them.”
He added: “Forests are the lungs of our planet. They protect biodiversity, store carbon, regulate rainfall, sustain livelihoods, and help keep the 1.5 degree goal within reach. Every economy depends on them. That’s why the Tropical Forest Forever Facility is so important. Because it begins to match financial incentives with reality.”
(WRI) Today, at the COP30 Leaders’ Summit in Belém, the Brazilian COP30 presidency formally launched the Tropical Forests Forever Facility (TFFF), a mechanism to provide long-term, predictable financing to countries that protect and sustainably manage their tropical forests.
After initial contributions from Brazil, Indonesia, Norway and Portugal have announced funding pledges so far, though almost 50 countries expressed support for the initiative. Brazil has set a $125 billion target for the TFFF, and aims to raise $10 billion initially from governments and philanthropies, which would spur further investments from private, corporate and philanthropic investors.
Following is a statement from Mirela Sandrini, Interim Executive Director, WRI Brasil:
“From the Amazon to the Congo to Southeast Asia, the forests that sustain us all are facing a global red alert. If enough countries contribute, this new mechanism could offer a breakthrough, flipping the economics of deforestation by making standing forests more profitable than clearing them.

‘Trump is against humankind’: World leaders at climate summit take swipes at absent president
Some of Thursday’s speeches reflected anger and dismay at U.S. policies but could not hide the ambivalence that many countries feel about this year’s climate talks.
(Politico) Donald Trump isn’t at the global climate summit in Brazil. But he was on the minds of some of his fellow world leaders Thursday, who used their time on stage to try to isolate the U.S. president and his hard-line opposition to their agenda.
In speeches meant to highlight their support for efforts to halt rising temperatures, a few of the heads of state at the COP30 climate talks in the Amazonian port city of Belém could not resist the chance to admonish the U.S. president directly.

31 October
Brazil’s Belém Is Attempting a Billion-Dollar Transformation
The city aims to reinvent itself with new parks, museums and hotels to host the COP30 climate conference. But what happens when the spotlight fades?
(Bloomberg) The Brazilian government’s decision to host COP in Belém underscores the city’s historic role as the entry point to the Amazon — vital to the global fight against climate change — while also drawing attention to the challenges faced by the millions who call the region home. In many ways, Belém tells the story of urban Amazonia, a region rich in resources but short on opportunity.

23 September
Tropical Forests Forever Facility (TFFF) proposes innovative financing model for conservation
A Brazil-led proposal seeks to compensate countries for preserving tropical forests, with 20% of funds reserved for Indigenous peoples. The mechanism, set to launch at COP30, could become one of the world’s largest multilateral funds
Brazil is spearheading an initiative set to transform the world’s approach to environmental conservation. The Tropical Forests Forever Fund (TFFF) is set to launch during COP30 and will provide funding to countries that commit to preserving these forests. More than 70 developing countries with tropical forests will be eligible to receive funds from what could be one of the largest multilateral funds ever created.
The valuation of environmental preservation through the TFFF stems from the understanding that ecosystems such as the Atlantic Forest, the Amazon, and the Congo and Mekong basins are essential to sustaining life, as we know it today.

10 September
Brazil Invited the World to the Amazon. It’s Become a Big Headache.
(NYT) This year’s U.N. climate conference, on the edge of the rainforest, is fueling criticism of the host nation and the entire process of global diplomacy on climate change.
Brazil, self-described champion of developing nations, invited the world’s dignitaries into the Amazon rainforest to showcase solutions to the global crisis of climate change.

30 July
UN holds emergency talks over sky-high accommodation costs at Cop30 in Brazil
Concerns poorer countries could be priced out of negotiations in Belém as room rates soar amid shortage

12 March
Amazon forest felled to build road for climate summit
(BBC) A new four-lane highway cutting through tens of thousands of acres of protected Amazon rainforest is being built for the COP30 climate summit in the Brazilian city of Belém.
It aims to ease traffic to the city, which will host more than 50,000 people – including world leaders – at the conference in November.
The state government touts the highway’s “sustainable” credentials, but some locals and conservationists are outraged at the environmental impact.