The UN Climate Change Conference (COP30), taking place in Belém, Brazil, arrives at a pivotal moment for people and the planet, one that demands bold, collective action.
2025 marks the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement, offering a chance to reflect on how far the world has come in tackling the climate crisis, and how far it still must go to meet the globally agreed goals. Thanks to international cooperation, projected global warming has fallen from nearly 5 °C before the adoption of the Paris Agreement to below 3 °C as outlined in the latest national climate plans. Ahead of COP30, countries are hard at work to submit a third round of updated plans, or Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), with more ambitious targets to getting the world on the safest possible path to reach the Paris Agreement’s 1.5 °C goal.
The Brazilian Presidency has designated COP30 as the “implementation COP,” with a focus on accelerating the solutions to deliver the NDCs. Some of the key negotiating issues for this year are indicators for the Global Goal on Adaptation, scaling up climate finance for developing countries, and advancing a just transition. There will also be a dialogue on implementing the outcomes of the Global Stocktake.
In parallel to the negotiation agenda, the Action Agenda will engage civil society, businesses, investors, cities, states, and countries to accelerate the implementation of climate solutions across critical sectors. Organized around six key “Axes,” the Action Agenda will bring coalitions together, share experiences, and scale up collective efforts.
At COP30, UNDP calls for the submission of bold and transformative NDCs, the empowerment of local leadership to deliver these NDCs, supporting Indigenous Peoples, women, youth, and frontline communities as vital agents of change and drivers of implementation, and the delivery of tangible development benefits through climate action, advancing poverty reduction, health, gender equality, and decent work.
With the right choices, climate action can become a powerful engine for advancing inclusive growth, saving lives, protecting homes, and safeguarding livelihoods. COP30 offers an opportunity to deliver outcomes that can shape the trajectory of sustainable development. Global cooperation through multilateralism can rebuild trust and confirm to the world that inclusive, collective action is the only way to drive transformative change that leaves no one behind.
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