Brazil works to expand social participation in COP30 discussions
Negotiations between countries at the United Nations Climate Change Conferences (COP) will be expanded to include public participation through the Ethical Global Stocktake.
This new tool aims to go beyond multilateral meeting spaces and bring government leaders’ decisions to the people directly affected by global warming.
“This will take place in different regions worldwide, with the Ethical Stocktake coordinated by the UN and supported by Brazil—particularly in areas of no return and other regions already experiencing devastating climate-change effects,” Brazil’s Environment and Climate Change Minister Marina Silva said Tuesday (Mar. 18).
The idea, she said, is to promote local meetings in which the people can give their opinion on the goals presented by their country in the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), which should bring together the efforts and targets of each nation aimed at complying with the Paris Agreement on climate change, which set global warming at a maximum of 1.5ºC by 2035.
“[We need] to find out the opinions of artists, religious leaders, activists, young people, women, scientists, local peoples, and communities—what they’re proposing and what their assessment is of what’s been done and what needs to be done, so that the climate commitment can be signed in line with what the world needs at COP30,” she argued.
The initiative will take place before COP30 in November, in Belém, state capital of Pará, as countries present their aspirations, since the deadline has been extended to September 10.
“From society’s perspective, it’s more than accountability—it’s a reckoning. Because the NDCs will certainly not yet be aligned with the commitment to keep the planet’s temperature rising at 1.5ºC. Neither will the means of implementation, both in terms of technology transfer and financial resources be aligned,” she added.
In the minister’s view, Brazil is in a position to lead by example, as it did by being one of the first countries to deliver its third generation of NDCs, with a commitment to slash greenhouse gas emissions from 59 to 67 percent by 2035.
“We have a track record of reducing deforestation Under President Lula, and reducing CO2 emissions as a result. This is a great example as it is, because, in the case of Brazil, deforestation accounts for nearly half of our emissions,” she declared.
In addition, Minister Silva said that the cross-cutting nature of Brazil’s environmental policy allows the government to act on many fronts, ensuring that the country has well-defined strategies to transform unsustainable development models that have accelerated climate change. The minister mentioned the ecological transformation plan—“a bold program for restoring degraded areas.”
