Brazil calls on local groups to “inspire” governments in boosting climate action
Brazil’s COP30 presidency wants to elevate grassroots solutions to the climate crisis to the global level in a bid to spur governments to bolster their national climate plans.
With six months until the climate summit gets underway in the Amazon city of Bélem, only 21 countries have put forward updated targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions through to 2035, despite a self-imposed end-of-February deadline, which has now been extended until September.
Yet, while encouraging governments to submit ambitious “nationally determined contributions” (NDCs), COP30 President André Aranha Corrêa do Lago said this week that “we cannot expect only governments to act”.
“We have to act as individuals, corporations, professors etc,” he added in a press briefing. “There is a huge space for a movement that truly shows to the governments that populations are concerned about climate change, they believe we have to make very significant changes and they want to contribute to that.”
Slow progress towards Paris goals
The COP30 president issued the plea as more than 40 climate ministers and other leading officials gathered in Copenhagen, Denmark, this week for key talks in preparation for the Bélem summit.
Simon Stiell, the UN’s climate chief, said “progress is being made” although more slowly than climate science dictates. He noted that, while the world is still on a trajectory to global warming of 3C above pre-industrial times, temperatures would have been set to rise by 5C without the international climate process guided by the Paris Agreement.
Stiell added that, after analysing all the updated NDCs, the world will see how close it is to limiting warming to 1.5C – the most ambitious goal of the Paris accord.
New figures published this week stoked fears over the ability to meet that target. The global average temperature over the 12-month period to the end of April 2025 was 1.58C above the pre-industrial level, according to the European earth observation programme Copernicus.
The increase does not automatically represent a breach of the Paris pact which tracks temperature increases over decades rather than months.
Call for ‘self-determined contributions’
In an open letter published on Thursday, Corrêa do Lago encouraged individuals and organisations to present ground-level climate actions that have already been delivered or are taking place now rather than “pledges to be fulfilled in the future”.
The COP30 president said these initiatives – which he called “self-determined contributions” – could include, for example, farmers embracing regenerative agriculture, tech companies working together to decarbonise data centres, or coastal towns restoring mangroves.
The COP30 presidency will launch a platform to gather climate contributions from civil society with the stated aim of inspiring global leaders in their preparation of NDCs. The initiative will be unveiled during the upcoming UN climate week due to start in Panama on May 19.
Corrêa do Lago told reporters that showcasing existing solutions can persuade some governments “less convinced than others” that the fight against climate change can make people’s lives better and benefit the economy.
‘Local action for global ambition’
In Copenhagen, the COP30 presidency and ministers also joined representatives from cities and regions across the world, in the first meeting of its kind with sub-national governments.
Chilando Chitangala, mayor of Lusaka, the capital city of Zambia, said cities are on the frontline of the climate crisis, but they cannot act alone. “We need to be part of the decisions that shape climate policy at every level. Without local climate action, global ambitions will remain out of reach,” she added.
The COP30 presidency has promised to involve city and regional leaders more closely in the climate process, especially after Donald Trump’s administration started the process for the US to leave the Paris Agreement.
Corrêa do Lago said that the US government is “just waiting for the year to pass” until it is officially out of the accord.
“Who is leaving Paris [agreement] is the government of the United States, not the US as a country,” he added. “The US is still very present in the fight against climate change through scientists, universities, businesses.”
