Climate Conference ended this Saturday (22) in Belém; After the end of the negotiations, Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago and the Minister of the Environment, Marina Silva, detailed the results
The 30th United Nations Conference on Climate Change () ended this Saturday (22) with the Brazilian Presidency indicating advances in the adaptation agenda, new international climate implementation tools and the paths for the debate on ending dependence on fossil fuels.
In a press conference after the end of the negotiations, the ambassador, the executive secretary of the Ministry of the Environment, Ana Toni, the chief negotiator Liliam Chagas and the minister of the Environment, detailed the results.
Ambassador Corrêa do Lago recalled that the conference began with strong negotiating pressure and increased autonomy for the co-directors. He recalled that the adaptation package, one of the most complex at the COP, started with more than 100 indicators, but was completed with 59. “There was consensus for only 10% of these indicators. We reorganized the metrics and will continue the discussions in June, in Bonn (at the Climate Conference, which takes place in Germany)”, he stated.
In the energy debate, Corrêa do Lago said that there were “two ways to move forward” with the roadmap to eliminate fossil fuels, a sensitive topic since Dubai. “As a diplomat, I saw a more conservative version. But the president’s speech placed the issue at the center and opened space to make it a structuring agenda.”
According to him, even without consensus, the Brazilian presidency will continue debating the topic and gathering research and actions capable of indicating the path for countries to move away from fossil fuels.
Consensus
Executive secretary Ana Toni reinforced that COP30 achieved “consensus on such a difficult topic” and moved towards a concrete implementation agenda, without any country giving up on the agenda involving the Paris Agreement.
The economist highlighted the presentation of 120 acceleration plans in commercial fuels, carbon and green industry, in addition to the 29 approved documents. “Small and big steps were taken in difficult geopolitical times. We didn’t take all the steps we wanted, but we took steady steps.”
For Toni, one of the main legacies was to put adaptation “on another level, above any other COP”, including the effort to triple international funding by 2035.
She also highlighted the unprecedented inclusion of women and girls of African descent in the climate agenda and the strengthening of the ocean agenda.
Business
Chief negotiator Lilian Chagas believes that vulnerable countries managed to join forces. According to her, the approved set of indicators will serve as a compass to measure progress and guide policies. “This will guide how each country has progressed and how to move forward.”
The ambassador also announced the strengthening of the Global Climate Action Accelerator, which will function as a permanent space to promote concrete measures outside the formal negotiation track.
Another advance would have been the creation of an international forum to address the link between trade and climate. “It is a space to explore how trade can generate climate action, a topic of great interest to Brazil.”
Liliam Chagas also highlighted important political innovations, such as the recognition of Afro-descendant groups as vulnerable, the reinforcement of the role of indigenous lands as protectors of carbon sinks and the inclusion of representatives of local communities in the process, the result of articulations outside the official trail.
Fossil fuels
When commenting on the process, Minister Marina Silva highlighted that President Lula’s public stance gave strength to the mitigation agenda and allowed it to be integrated into adaptation. “We cannot infinitely adapt, but it is impossible to think only about mitigating without considering the needs of the vulnerable who need financial resources, technological resources and especially solidarity to be able to deal with the great problems and suffering that are already being suffered”.
The minister considers that rich countries already have their trajectories to exit fossil fuels, but poor, developing or oil-dependent countries do not. Therefore, he considered it crucial to create conditions for “these countries to build their bases after more than 30 years waiting for answers on how to get out of dependence on the use of fossil fuels”.
She also recalled that the work also involves the transition to ending deforestation: “Only Brazil has this goal, it has its road map, but we want everyone to have their bases to make these efforts.”
Marina also highlighted the TFF, a financial mechanism that replaces the donation logic and creates ways for public resources invested in protecting the forest and biodiversity to leverage private investments.
Legacy
Asked by journalists about the legacy of COP30, Marina stated that the conference expanded public understanding of climate change. She also cited contributions to the debate based on the knowledge and experience of Amazonian populations, who suffer from isolation, logistical difficulties and lack of access to food, water and medicine.
“The Amazon does not just receive a legacy, but offers a legacy”, highlighted the minister. “We offer the best and the best are our landscapes, our acoustic beauties, our visual beauties, our pictorial beauties. The Amazon is an explosion of life and beauty that it is even a distraction for us to look elsewhere.”
*With information from Agência Brasil
Published by Nícolas Robert
