COP30 president proposes global action agenda for the conference
The Brazilian president of the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30), Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago, released a new letter on Friday (Jun. 20) proposing the definition of a global action agenda to be adopted by the signatory countries of the Climate Convention (UNFCCC).
The proposal includes 30 actions divided into six axes as a strategy for the implementation of the Global Stocktaking (GST) of the Paris Agreement—the document that evaluates the goals of the multilateral treaty.
The document suggests that the GST should become a kind of Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) on a global scale, and describes the agenda as “a reservoir of concrete initiatives that connect climate ambition with development opportunities in investments, innovation, finance, technology, and capacity-building.”
The innovation, he notes, lies in the reversal of the process adopted in previous COPs, when the construction of the agenda was part of the negotiation process. This year, the idea is to start the debates from the topics approved in the GST, moving on to implementation through consensus.
The axes are:
- Transitioning energy, industry, and transport;
- Stewarding forests, oceans, and biodiversity;
- Transforming agriculture and food systems;
- Building resilience for cities, infrastructure, and water;
- Fostering human and social development; and
- Unleashing enablers and accelerators, including on finance, technology, and capacity building.
The initiative adds to all the other structures designed for COP30. The meeting will be held in Belém in November. “First the mobilization, the meeting of heads of state, the negotiation itself, and the action agenda where we’re identifying a strong opportunity for us to speed up implementation,” Corrêa do Lago pointed out.
The document also highlights that the Synthesis Report of the Sixth Assessment Report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)—an initiative that brings together scientists to monitor climate change—points out that the participation of all global sectors, in addition to the governments that are signatories to climate agreements, increases the benefits achieved in a cascading, transversal way, avoiding isolated and fragmented measures with limited impact.
In this connection, Corrêa do Lago said that the agenda becomes a chance for actors who are not directly at the negotiating table—such as sub-national governments, the private sector, academia and society—to take the lead on initiatives. “It’s often the private sector, for example, that gets ahead of the government in implementing agreements,” he noted.
The text also states that these measures must be designed with flexibility and adaptability to different geographical, economic, and social contexts.
“The multifaceted nature of the climate challenge requires innovative solutions to be adapted according to regional, national, and local circumstances to benefit more communities and countries,” Corrêa do Lago’s letter says.
According to the letter, there will be an “inclusive consultation” with the participation of all sectors, which will be led by the two High-Level Champions of COP29 and COP30—Nigar Arpadarai and Dan Ioschpe—with the aim of defining a vision and a plan for the next five years of the action agenda. Working groups will also be set up in each thematic area while building on the results of COP30.
“The main complaints about the negotiation process are that we sign documents and nothing happens, so the architecture that has been designed to enable the implementation of the GST, approved by 198 countries, still includes 420 meetings for COP30,” the COP30 president-designate added.
Here are the 30 actions proposed by the COP30 presidency to implement the Global Balance Sheet, divided into axes:
Axis 1
1. Tripling renewables and doubling energy efficiency;
2. Accelerating zero- and low-emission technologies in hard-to-abate sectors;
3. Ensuring universal access to energy; and
4. Transitioning away from fossil fuels, in a just, orderly, and equitable manner.
Axis 2
5. Investments to halt and reverse deforestation and forest degradation;
6. Efforts to conserve, protect, and restore nature and ecosystems with solutions for climate, biodiversity, and desertification; and
7. Efforts to preserve and restore oceans and coastal ecosystems.
Axis 3
8. Land restoration and sustainable agriculture;
9. More resilient, adaptive, and sustainable food systems; and
10. Equitable access to adequate food and nutrition for all.
Axis 4
11. Multilevel governance;
12. Sustainable and resilient constructions and buildings;
13. Resilient urban development, mobility, and infrastructure;
14. Water management; and
15; Solid waste management.
Axis 5
16. Promoting resilient health systems;
17. Reducing the effects of climate change on eradicating hunger and poverty;
18. Education, capacity-building, and job creation to address climate change; and
19. Culture, cultural heritage, and climate action.
Axis 6
20. Climate and sustainable finance, mainstreaming climate in investments, and insurance;
21. Climate-integrated public procurement;
22. Harmonization of carbon markets and carbon accounting standards;
23. Climate and trade;
24. Reduction of non-CO2 gases;
25. Development and access to climate technologies;
26. Governance, state capacities, and institutional strengthening for climate action, planning, and preparedness;
27. Artificial intelligence, digital public infrastructure, and digital technologies;
28. Innovation, climate entrepreneurship, and small and micro businesses;
29. Bioeconomy and biotechnology; and
30. Information integrity in climate change matters.
