World Leaders open the COP30 conference early in Brazil with calls for urgent climate action

The COP30 Heads of State Summit began two days earlier than the main UN climate conference this week, bringing together world leaders in Belém, Brazil.  

Valter Correia, the special secretary of COP30 said the reason the summit was held early was to allow time for “more in-depth reflection, without the pressure from hotels or the city, and will help us better organize the event’s official opening."  

The summit focused on four central themes: forests and oceans, energy transition, nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and climate finance, and the ten year anniversary of the 2015 Paris Agreement. 

Over the two days of the summit, many leaders emphasised that the planet is running out of time to stay within the 1.5 °C global temperature rise and that climate action must be equitable, inclusive, and rooted in justice.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called the failure to keep global heating below 1.5 °C “moral failure and deadly negligence.” He accused fossil fuel interests of “making record profits from climate devastation” adding that political leaders must no longer be “captive to entrenched interests.”  

Many of the key figures in attendance emphasised the importance of the Amazon Rainforest due to the conference’s location at the mouth of the Amazon River.  

President of Brazil, and Host of COP30 Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said that we need, “a roadmap to plan a just way to undo deforestation, overcome fossil fuels and mobilise the resources needed for those aims.”

Many leaders from countries in the Global South called for climate justice, claiming that the developing world suffers worse impact from the climate crisis while historically having contributed the least. They pointed out the Global North has fallen short of their financial commitment to $1.3tn of annual climate finance that was agreed during COP29 last year.  The United Nations Secretary-General said developed countries must lay out a clear path to meet that goal.

This sentiment was reiterated by UK Prime Minister Kier Starmer who said, “there can be no solution to the climate crisis without addressing inequality within and between countries.”

Notably missing from the Heads of State summit and the COP30 conference is the United States. 

“Mr Trump is literally against humankind… We can see the collapse that will happen if the US does not decarbonise its economy. It is 100% wrong.” - Colombian President Gustavo Petro.

Ding Xuexiang, a vice premier of China emphasised the need for “true multilateralism” and made an indirect reference to President Trump’s tariffs, saying the transition into green energy depends on the free flow of green technology and the removal of trade barriers.  

The early summit set the tone for negotiations scheduled to continue through to the 21st November, with delegates expected to discuss measures on finance, deforestation, and fossil-fuel transition.  As COP30 continues, the challenge remains clear: translating political promises into concrete steps to protect the planet. 

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By Elsie Tierney.

Featured image by Photo: Antonio Scorza/COP30

World Leaders Open the COP30