The 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will take place from 10-21 November 2025 in Belém, Brazil.
Framed as a COP for implementation, the Brazilian presidency will look to make progress across a broad spectrum of areas, from building renewable energy capacity to progressing the adaptation agenda and better integrating nature into the negotiations.
Belém – a city notable for its location in the biodiverse carbon sink of the Amazon rainforest – will play host to delegates including heads of state, climate experts and national negotiating teams who will gather to agree coordinated action to tackle climate change. COP30 will be the first climate COP to be held in South America since 2014’s COP20 in Lima, Peru (COP25 in 2019 was held in Madrid under the Chilean presidency).
Listen to CISL's Director for the Centre of Sustainable Finance, Dr Nina Seega, on how the conference presents an opportunity for the UK to 'lead on the world stage' on LBC. For media queries and interview requests during COP30 contact CISL’s Head of Media Zoe.Kalus@cisl.cam.ac.uk
As an official sponsor of the UK's Pavilion, our UK Corporate Leaders Group (CLG UK) will have a presence at this year's UN climate convention, leading high-level events, convening cross-sectoral experts and forging stronger business-government engagement.
Read our COP briefing: What to expect from COP30
For more information on the COP process, see our explainer
COP29 was held in Baku, Azerbaijan, in November 2024. Find out what happened
The Brazilian COP Presidency
Following several years of reduced focus on environmental issues under Brazil’s former President Bolsonaro, current centre-left President Lula has attempted to reconstruct environmental policies in South America’s largest, most populous country in the face of economic and political headwinds.
André Aranha Corrêa do Lago, the COP30 President, is a career diplomat who was involved in the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio that established the UNFCCC. He has written several books on sustainable development and climate change alongside holding senior ministerial roles.
Dan Ioschpe, the High-Level Champion, is an entrepreneur in the automotive industry who also sits on the board of several large companies (including plane-maker Embraer). He led the B-20 business forum during Brazil’s G20 presidency last year.
Commenting on Ioschpe’s appointment, Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, recognised that the new High-Level Champion’s experience in the business sector would be “instrumental” in keeping the 1.5°C warming limit within reach, suggesting an approach that recognises the key role of business in the net zero transition.
The COP30 Presidency has also launched four ‘leadership circles’ that will operate independently and in parallel with the negotiations. The aim is to accelerate implementation of the Paris Agreement and promote climate action beyond the two weeks of COP. Debates on climate finance, traditional and indigenous peoples and communities, climate governance, and global mobilisation will be led by Brazilian ministers and other senior individuals, and for the first time, will include a ‘Circle of Presidents’ bringing together all previous COP presidents since the Paris Agreement was signed.
What should we expect from COP30?
COP30 is being framed as the ‘delivery COP’ and there is much on the agenda. We expect the following to be areas of focus in Belém:
- Mitigation and renewable energy – a decision is due at COP30 on taking forward the pledge to transition away from fossil fuels following the Global Stocktake
- Adaptation – the UAE-Belem work programme is due to deliver indicators for measuring progress on the Global Goal on Adaptation, effectively operationalising the GGA
- Finance - “Baku to Belém roadmap to $1.3tn” report expected at COP30 setting out the process for ‘scaling up climate finance’ to get from $300bn to $1.3trn
- Nature – forging a greater connection between the UNCBD (biodiversity) and UNFCCC (climate) COPs, highlighting the importance of biodiversity, halting and reversing deforestation, regenerative agriculture and nature-based solutions. This follows CBD COP16 held in Colombia last year
- Indigenous peoples and local communities are likely to be centred more, as demonstrated by the leadership circles
- This is a key COP to ramp up ambition and action to cut emissions globally – countries’ Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) 2035 emissions reduction targets should have been set ahead of COP30 (as well as a review of whether/how 2030 targets were met).
- Other bilateral/multilateral agreements are anticipated, such as a potential new global treaty on tracing critical minerals supply chains being led by Brazil and Colombia.
CISL and CLG events at COP30
More information
CISL's COP29 hub: COP29 – Azerbaijan, 11-24 November 2024
UK Corporate Leaders Group impact wrap-up from COP29
Bev Cornaby, Director of CLG UK, reacts to COP29: The UK is back as a global climate leader: Can it get the rest of the world to follow?
