The Belém Climate Summit began on Thursday, November 6, bringing together leaders from 128 delegations worldwide. In his opening remarks, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva emphasized the urgency of protecting forests and accelerating the global energy transition. “Accelerating the energy transition and protecting nature are the two most effective ways to contain global warming. Despite our difficulties and contradictions, we need roadmaps that allow us to fairly and carefully reverse deforestation, overcome dependence on fossil fuels, and mobilize the resources necessary to achieve these goals,” Lula stated.
Lula opened his address by highlighting the symbolism of hosting the conference in the heart of the Amazon, the world’s largest tropical rainforest. “For the first time in history, a Climate COP will take place in the heart of the Amazon. In the global imagination, there is no greater symbol of the environmental cause than the Amazon rainforest. Here flow the thousands of rivers and streams that form the largest hydrographic basin on the planet. Here live the countless species of plants and animals that make up the most diverse biome on Earth,” he said.
The president warned that this immense natural heritage is also under threat from climate change. “The year 2024 was the first in which the Earth’s average temperature exceeded one and a half degrees above pre-industrial levels. Science already indicates that this rise will persist for some time, perhaps decades, but we cannot abandon the goal set by the Paris Agreement,” Lula said, referring to the global target of limiting warming to 1.5°C.
Lula recalled that humanity has been aware of the impacts of climate change for more than three decades. “Humanity has known about the impact of climate change for over 35 years, since the first IPCC report. But it took 28 conferences for the world to finally acknowledge, in Dubai, the need to move away from fossil fuels and to halt and reverse deforestation. And it took another year, in Baku, to accept the goal of expanding climate finance to US$1.3 trillion,” he stated.
He then set the tone for the Belém Climate Conference: “COP30 will be the COP of truth. It is time to take the warnings of science seriously. It is time to face reality and decide whether we have the courage and determination needed to change it.”
Lula reaffirmed that, because of its global and interdependent nature, the climate crisis can only be effectively addressed through international cooperation and the strengthening of multilateralism.
The Brazilian president also pointed out that addressing the climate crisis requires closing the gap between the technical language of negotiations and the daily experiences of ordinary people. “People may not understand what emissions or metric tons of carbon mean, but they feel pollution. They may not know what carbon sinks or climate regulators are, but they recognize the value of forests and oceans,” he said.
He called for climate change to be placed at the center of decisions by governments, companies, and citizens, emphasizing the spirit of collective action guiding Belém and the engagement of civil society, Indigenous peoples, traditional communities, and local governments.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres also addressed the summit, underscoring the importance of forests and energy transition as essential pillars to contain global warming and strengthen the multilateral system. “This COP must mark the beginning of a decade of acceleration and results. First, countries must agree on an ambitious and credible response plan to truly limit temperature rise to 1.5°C. Responsibilities must be shared and differences respected, but that cannot be an excuse for inaction,” Guterres said.
He added: “This means working hard on renewable energy, electrification, and energy efficiency; building modern grids and large-scale storage; and also halting and reversing deforestation by 2030”.
Guterres stressed that the moment calls for action, not more declarations.
“This is no longer the time for negotiations. It is time for implementation, implementation, and implementation,” he emphasized.
A Brazilian-led summit of convergence
During his speech, President Lula explained that the Belém Summit, which precedes COP30, is a Brazilian initiative aimed at uniting political forces and promoting concrete actions to tackle the climate crisis. “This Summit is an innovation we bring to the COP universe. The convergences are already known, our goal is to face the divergences. We, as leaders, can and must discuss everything, beyond the walls of the Convention. The words spoken here will serve as the compass guiding our delegations’ journey over the next two weeks,” Lula concluded.
