A summary of the successes and failures of COP30
The 30th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties, also known as the UNFCCC COP30 climate summit, took place in Belém, Brazil, from Nov. 10-21, 2025. The focus of this summit was action-based, with primary emphasis on urgently pushing for climate adaptation, renewing Nationally Determined Contributions, and planning to unlock US$1.3 trillion of climate finance.
Global Witness highlights that politicians, diplomats, and national government representatives were invited, along with numerous others, including fossil fuel lobbyists, to influence the conference outcomes.
The International Institute for Sustainable Development reported COP30 President-designate, André Aranha Corrêa do Lago’s statement where he said the Conference would prioritize the “defence of multilateralism and respect for science.” Corrêa do Lago focused on the implementation of and alignment with “the Paris Agreement’s long-term goals on temperature, resilience, and financial floors.”
The COP30 summit also served as the twentieth meeting of the COP Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol, the seventh meeting of the COP Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 7), as well as the 63rd session of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice.
Three key agreements during the summit included plans to curb fossil fuels, a goal to triple adaptation finance, and new efforts to strengthen climate targets. Corrêa do Lago’s proposal package for CMA 7, titled Global Mutirão, meaning “collective efforts”, addressed the importance of “conserving, protecting and restoring nature and ecosystems.”
Corrêa do Lago recalled several paragraphs of the Paris Agreement throughout the package. He referred to the stance of the Paris Agreement on sustainable development, the eradication of poverty, equity in responsibility, and international cooperation. Moreover, Corrêa do Lago brought up additional issues like biodiversity loss, as well as land and ocean degradation.
The package also addressed Corrêa do Lago, “recalling with concern the pre-2020 gaps in both the mitigation ambition and implementation of developed country parties and that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has previously indicated that developed countries must reduce emissions by 20-40 per cent below the 1990 level by 2020, which was not achieved.”
A new decision has been the plan of “financing for developing country Parties for climate action,” stating a need for at least US$1,3 trillion per year by 2035. The package also highlights the goal of mobilizing at least US$300 billion for developing countries by the same year, asking developed countries to take the lead.
A critique of the summit has been the lack of reference to fossil fuels. The Guardian reports, “countries meeting in Brazil for two weeks could manage only a voluntary agreement to begin discussions on a roadmap to an even phase-out of fossil fuels.”
They refer to opposition from oil-producing countries, saying “the talks were hauled back from the brink of collapse in an all-night session into Saturday morning, after a bitter standoff between a coalition of more than 80 developed and developing countries, and a group led by Saudi Arabia and its allies plus Russia.”
The Guardian references Mohamed Adow, director of the Power Shift Africa think-tank, who referred to the progress made in COP30 as “baby steps,” adding, “despite calling themselves climate leaders, developed countries have betrayed vulnerable nations by failing to deliver science-aligned national emission reduction plans.”
However, Jennifer Morgan, former German climate envoy and COP veteran, was quoted as saying, “While far from what’s needed, the outcome in Belém is meaningful progress.” Underlining that the Paris Agreement is working. She adds, “multilateralism continues to support the interests of the whole world in tackling the climate crisis.”
Firstpost referenced the USA’s absence, as there was no formal US delegation at the summit. They refer to the EU climate chief, Wopke Hoekstra, who “admitted forging consensus was a major blow without the world’s largest historical emitter.” Environmental Defence also called out Canada as “on the sidelines,” reporting that “Canada has been failing to do its own climate action homework.” They reported the absence of Mark Carney at COP30 and referenced efforts to expand domestic polluting oil and gas projects.
UN News highlights the role of Indigenous communities in this year’s summit. Ana Toni, COP30 Executive Director, highlighted that COP30 had 900 Indigenous participants, whereas there were only 300 last year.
Indigenous protestors were also active in this years summit, blocking the entrance, reported to demand “an end to projects and extractive activities that threaten Indigenous territories.” Toni confirmed the government is listening, and during a meeting on November 20, many Indigenous leaders were reported to have described COP30 as “the most inclusive climate conference they had ever attended.