6 hours ago
2
Brazil has announced the top team for the next UN climate summit, which will be hosted in Belém this November, bypassing the country’s environment minister, Marina Silva, in favour of a veteran diplomat for the crucial role of president of the talks.
The experienced climate negotiator and secretary for climate, energy and environment, André Aranha Corrêa do Lago, will preside over the Cop30 summit, which is expected to draw scores of world leaders to Brazil – though not Donald Trump, who soon after his inauguration on Monday ordered the US’s withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement.
Ana Toni, a respected Brazilian economist and the government’s climate change secretary, will take on the role of executive director of the summit.
Cop30 is set to be one of the most consequential climate summits, as countries must agree fresh targets under the Paris agreement to cut their greenhouse gas emissions in line with the aim of limiting global temperature rises to 1.5C above preindustrial levels.
This will be difficult – not only is the US withdrawing from the Paris treaty, but many countries are falling behind on their carbon cutting targets, and even more have targets that are much too weak to limit emissions to what scientists say are safe.
Last year was the first in which temperatures were consistently above 1.5C. This does not mean the end of the Paris agreement, as that will be judged after years or decades, but shows that hopes of avoiding the worst ravages of climate breakdown are rapidly fading.
Civil society groups welcomed Brazil’s moves. The Observatório do Clima, a Brazilian green group, said in a statement: “Corrêa do Lago possesses both the skills and the respect of the international community – qualities he will need to tackle a challenging agenda at a time when global warming has exceeded the Paris agreement’s limits and geopolitics are increasingly hostile to climate action and international cooperation.”
Natalie Unterstell, president of the Instituto Talanoa, said: “Cop30 cannot be just another conference – it must be a turning point. Corrêa do Lago brings a rare blend of diplomatic expertise and vision to push the Paris agreement from paper to reality. His leadership will be critical to turning global ambition into actionable, measurable outcomes.”
Toya Manchineri, of the Coordination of Indigenous Organisations of the Brazilian Amazon (COIAB), said: “[The appointment of Corrêa do Lago] represents a positive effort but still does not guarantee what we truly expect: the centrality of Indigenous peoples in climate discussions.”
The success of climate Cops – annual “conference of the parties” to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the 1992 parent treaty to 2015’s Paris agreement – relies heavily on the expertise of the presidency.
Azerbaijan, which held the presidency for the previous Cop, which took place last November, was privately criticised by many developed and developing countries for its handling of Cop29, including a failure to push countries to reconfirm a commitment to “transition away from fossil fuels”. One observer said: “The Cop can only be as good as the host country’s presidency, as we all could see last year.”
There are still questions from some over how much personal interest Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, will take in the talks.
Cop30 is scheduled to take place in Belém, a city near the mouth of the Amazon river. But participants are increasingly concerned about the lack of facilities in the city, despite its emblematic situation in the rainforest state of Pará.
Silva will continue in her role as environment minister.
