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DW
17-07-2025
- Politics
- DW
Keeping climate relevant in a noisy world – DW – 07/17/2025
Charged with presiding over this year's international climate summit, Andre Correa do Lago says action to prevent the planet heating even further is critical. Even when the world is distracted by war and politics. Appointing someone to head the UN's annual climate talks can spark outrage among climate campaigners. But that seemed to be less of an issue this year when Brazilian veteran diplomat Andre Correa do Lago was handed the role. With more than two decades of experience working in sustainability, he is widely seen as a logical pick for the November talks to be held in the Amazon. But regardless of his expertise at the negotiating table, he says conflict, trade wars and a political shift to the right are all making climate diplomacy more challenging. "It is a complex context," he explained, speaking exclusively to DW on the sidelines of the recent interim climate conference in Bonn. "But all presidents of COPs say that their COP is happening at a very special and difficult moment." An important issue for him is making sure the issue of climate change remains relevant. Particularly given that there are so many other things going on "that affect people's lives more directly, that affect politicians more directly, and that affect the economy more directly." Indeed, Russia's war in Ukraine, conflict in the Middle East, and US-imposed trade tariffs have increasingly dominated headlines and political agendas. But that does not mean temperature rise is slowing. "Unfortunately, we are having wars, we're having very serious things happening, but in spite of that, climate change is progressing, and climate change is a bigger and bigger threat," he said. That threat has many different faces. Already this year heatwaves, intensified by climate change, have led to more than a thousand deaths in Europe, fueled wildfires in the US, Canada, Turkey and South Korea and worsened flooding in Argentina, parts of Africa, and most recently in Texas. There is pressure is on the Brazilian presidency under Correa do Lago to drive significant progress in this year's summit — which comes a decade after the inception of the Paris Agreement. Seen at the time as a big step towards tackling the climate crisis, the accord obliges governments to take action on reducing the greenhouse gas emissions that are causing the planet to heat up. But with months to go until the summit kicks off in the Brazilian city of Belem, the country itself has come under scrutiny. It is selling off oil exploration rights — including at 19 sites around the mouth of the Amazon River. Critics say this raises questions around Brazil's own commitment to transitioning away from fossil fuels. But Correa do Lago is pragmatic on the issue, saying that it is up to each country to determine its path away from coal, oil and gas. "Brazil is quite convinced that we can use some of the wealth that the oil brings to us to accelerate the transition," he said. "We don't have the perfect answer, but we have a very fair debate in the country about what we do with the oil that we may have." That thinking, however, is not in line with a roadmap published by the autonomous intergovernmental International Energy Agency. Back in 2021, the IEA said that there could be no new commitments for oil and gas fields if the world was stay below the 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) warming threshold agreed at the 2015 Paris talks. But June 2024 was the twelfth consecutive month measuring global surface temperatures of at least 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial conditions. That does not mean the target has been breached, but many scientists predict it will happen in the next few years. This would lead to more extreme heat, devastating droughts and more intense storms. Still, Correa do Lago says the 1.5 limit remains a possibility, even if it means first overshooting the goal and using technology to bring the temperature back down. But, he said, it will need "everybody on board doing the right thing". Something that currently seems unlikely. While the US is among the 195 signatories to the Paris Agreement, when President Donald Trump took office in January, he announced his plans to withdraw his country from the accord. Correa do Lago sees the departure of the world's second biggest emitter as a setback for the climate agenda. "The US quitting is something that really complicates many things from a political point of view." But he welcomed the fact that some US states, cities and businesses remain committed to the international accord. "When we think that the US has left the Paris Accord, it's the US central government," Correa do Lago added. "There are some evaluations that believe that more than 35 states in the US will continue to follow the Paris Accord and will continue to have their state laws [...] this would correspond to almost 70% of the US economy." Correa do Lago sees widespread resistance to necessary economic changes in countries across the world, but believes it is shortsighted to decouple the economy from climate action. Describing himself as "an optimist," he said there is already evidence that taking action against runaway temperature rise "can bring economic growth, can bring more jobs." Nonetheless, it is "not yet very well incorporated into full policies of governments." He would like to see climate integrated into economics, finance and other sectors, adding that taking a step towards a less siloed approach would be a focus for the next climate summit. "This is one of our main objectives – to translate how this [COP] process has generated enough information, enough progress, to be able to think of a new economy in which you can mainstream climate change."
Time of India
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
COP30 can be a turning point in climate fight, says Brazil's UN COP30 president
AP File Photo PARIS: Brazil's UN COP30 president on Thursday said he wanted this year's conference to mark a new era of global progress on climate change and was hopeful that countries would deliver more ambitious carbon-cutting plans . The COP30 climate conference in the Amazonian city of Belem marks a decade since the signing of the Paris Agreement but follows the second US withdrawal from the landmark pact and global efforts to address climate change and other shared threats. Andre Correa do Lago, a veteran climate diplomat tapped to lead the November COP30 conference, acknowledged that the world faces "immense" challenges, with geopolitical tensions and data showing global temperatures at historic highs. In his second letter to the nearly 200 nations set to take part in COP30, Correa do Lago called on the international community to "mobilize in the face of climate urgency". And he insisted that the meeting can serve "as an inflection point in our historic transition that closed the gaps and charted the course toward a new era of sustainable and inclusive prosperity". World climate commitments Several major economies are still working to finalise their climate plans, known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs), which were originally due earlier this year but are now expected to be submitted to the UN before the COP30 conference. These commitments must be revised every five years, but few countries have submitted their 2035 plans on time, with major greenhouse gas emitters such as China and the European Union among the latecomers. "Everybody seems very committed to advance in developing their NDCs and I believe that by September we're going to have a very significant number of countries presenting it," Correa do Lago told reporters. Speaking on the sidelines of a ministerial meeting in Copenhagen to prepare for the November 10 to 21 COP30 talks, Correa do Lago said the atmosphere was "positive". Ana Toni, CEO of the COP, said that the quality of countries' climate commitments had changed "tremendously", with more parts of economies included. With the US withdrawal from climate cooperation under President Donald Trump, attention has turned to other major carbon polluters. Last month, President Xi Jinping said China would not slow its climate efforts and pledged to announce its 2035 commitments before COP30. He said that they would for the first time cover the entire economy and all greenhouse gases, not just carbon dioxide. The European Commission has proposed cutting emissions by 90 percent by 2040 compared to 1990 levels but some member states argue the figure is too high, delaying its approval. In the letter, Correa do Lago said there was a risk of confronting "new crises with outdated strategies", overlooking shifts in science, technology and societies. He added that he wanted COP30 to help widen climate action beyond the negotiations and "shift the trajectory of humanity's relationship with the planet".
Zawya
26-03-2025
- Business
- Zawya
COP30 president vows to defend global climate fight
Berlin: Brazil's UN COP30 president on Tuesday said that this year's summit would aim to defend climate action by governments against "serious" geopolitical challenges, while also pushing the private sector to contribute more to the fight. Andre Correa do Lago, a veteran climate diplomat tapped to lead the November conference, also vowed to campaign for greater climate funding for poorer nations in a closely-watched speech that did not mention fossil fuels. COP30 in the Amazonian city of Belem marks a decade since the signing of the Paris Agreement, but follows the second US withdrawal from the landmark pact and other global efforts to address climate change. There are concerns that climate change is being crowded out of the global agenda by national security and economic pressures. A finance deal for developing nations brokered at the last COP in Azerbaijan was slammed as inadequate, while other global conservation efforts have stalled, including negotiations towards a plastic treaty. Corporations, too, are rolling back pledges to cut their carbon footprints. Correa do Lago said that November's COP30 would be an opportunity to advance and defend the climate agreements forged through years of cooperation and negotiation to tackle this "shared global crisis". "In a time of serious geopolitical, social, economic and environmental challenges... we must reinforce multilateralism," he told the Petersberg Climate Dialogue, the first major COP30-related meeting of the year. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, without naming any countries, told attendees that the Paris accord was "coming under pressure once again". "Anyone who dismisses climate action in these turbulent times as being expensive, onerous or superfluous, cannot count," she said. 'Join forces' Correa do Lago said governments "must do their part in this global effort" by unveiling stronger 2030 targets for cutting domestic greenhouse gas emissions. Most countries -- including major emitters China, Europe, and India -- missed the deadline in February to submit these national climate plans. But businesses also have "a crucial role to play" and must "contribute significantly" in shifting the global economy to a low-carbon future, he said. The private sector would be essential to raise the $1.3 trillion a year in external finance that developing nations will need by 2035 to meet their climate needs, Correa do Lago added. He also urged nations to "join forces" to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, the safer limit of the Paris accord. But the COP30 president made no mention of fossil fuels, the key driver of global warming, despite nations agreeing in 2023 to transition away from oil, coal and gas. Critics say this pledge has not been honoured, and emissions of heat-trapping gases from burning fossil fuels hit fresh highs in 2024. © Dar Al Sharq Press, Printing and Distribution. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. ( The Peninsula Newspaper
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
COP30 president vows to defend global climate fight
Brazil's UN COP30 president on Tuesday said that this year's summit would aim to defend climate action by governments against "serious" geopolitical challenges, while also pushing the private sector to contribute more to the fight. Andre Correa do Lago, a veteran climate diplomat tapped to lead the November conference, also vowed to campaign for greater climate funding for poorer nations in a closely-watched speech that did not mention fossil fuels. COP30 in the Amazonian city of Belem marks a decade since the signing of the Paris Agreement, but follows the second US withdrawal from the landmark pact and other global efforts to address climate change. There are concerns that climate change is being crowded out of the global agenda by national security and economic pressures. A finance deal for developing nations brokered at the last COP in Azerbaijan was slammed as inadequate, while other global conservation efforts have stalled, including negotiations towards a plastic treaty. Corporations, too, are rolling back pledges to cut their carbon footprints. Correa do Lago said that November's COP30 would be an opportunity to advance and defend the climate agreements forged through years of cooperation and negotiation to tackle this "shared global crisis". "In a time of serious geopolitical, social, economic and environmental challenges... we must reinforce multilateralism," he told the Petersberg Climate Dialogue, the first major COP30-related meeting of the year. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, without naming any countries, told attendees that the Paris accord was "coming under pressure once again". "Anyone who dismisses climate action in these turbulent times as being expensive, onerous or superfluous, cannot count," she said. - 'Join forces' - Correa do Lago said governments "must do their part in this global effort" by unveiling stronger 2030 targets for cutting domestic greenhouse gas emissions. Most countries -- including major emitters China, Europe, and India -- missed the deadline in February to submit these national climate plans. But businesses also have "a crucial role to play" and must "contribute significantly" in shifting the global economy to a low-carbon future, he said. The private sector would be essential to raise the $1.3 trillion a year in external finance that developing nations will need by 2035 to meet their climate needs, Correa do Lago added. He also urged nations to "join forces" to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, the safer limit of the Paris accord. But the COP30 president made no mention of fossil fuels, the key driver of global warming, despite nations agreeing in 2023 to transition away from oil, coal and gas. Critics say this pledge has not been honoured, and emissions of heat-trapping gases from burning fossil fuels hit fresh highs in 2024. burs-np/bc
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
COP30 president cites limits of global climate summits
By Manuela Andreoni and Lisandra Paraguassu (Reuters) - After decades of United Nations climate summits, the model of gathering world leaders to negotiate agreements under complex rules is starting to show its limits, said the president of the next such summit, Brazilian diplomat Andre Correa do Lago. "The Paris Agreement is working, but there is much more to do," he wrote in a letter released on Monday outlining his presidency's vision for the COP30 summit in the Amazon city of Belem in November. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. Climate negotiators, he said, should be self-critical and address the "outside perception of talks having lingered for over three decades with meagre results." "We need a new era beyond negotiating talks: we must help put into practice what we have agreed," he wrote. At a press conference, Correa do Lago said the summits held by the UNFCCC, the UN body monitoring compliance with the 2015 Paris Agreement, are the best existing venue for climate negotiations but there are limits to what they can achieve. He said despite its recommendations, the body has no authority over the entities meant to carry them out. Global setbacks have further hampered climate change action. U.S. President Donald Trump has withdrawn from the Paris Agreement and blocked funds to aid Ukraine in its war against Russia, forcing Europe to boost defense spending with resources that might otherwise have been invested in climate solutions. Correa do Lago said Brazil will encourage countries to use other gatherings of world leaders, such as the G20 and the International Monetary Fund meetings, to push for action on global warming. Brazil also aims to give more voice to other actors, such as civil society groups and Indigenous communities, he said. Correa do Lago told reporters he would call two international meetings with global leaders prior to COP30 to discuss countries' pledges to lower emissions of greenhouse gases. The deadline to file new pledges was in February, but only 13 countries presented their contributions.
