COP30 Belém News Roundup – Part I

What is at Stake at COP30?

Because the conference takes place in Brazil’s Amazon region, it takes on added significance: nature-based solutions and forest protection take center stage. The world is also seeing widening gaps between what has been pledged and what’s needed to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, so the summit is under heightened scrutiny to deliver actionable outcomes rather than just high-level rhetoric. Further central topics include financing, climate adaptation, indigenous stewardship, multi-stakeholder action, and food system transformation.

Nature Takes Center Stage

Nature plays a critical role in climate discussions, particularly as some forests now begin to emit more carbon than they absorb. The Baku-to-Belém Roadmap calls for US $1.3 trillion in annual climate finance by 2035, yet less than 10% currently supports nature-based or adaptation projects. Brazil positioned forests, oceans, and biodiversity as pillars of its agenda, while the Amazon’s decline underscores the urgency of action. India and other Global South nations pressed for fair access to concessional finance and for nature to be valued as essential infrastructure and a key mechanism for climate adaptation.

NDC Synthesis Report Exhibits Positive Trend, But More Action Needed

At the opening of COP30 in Belém, it was announced that updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) show global greenhouse gas emissions are now projected to fall 12% by 2035 compared to 2019 levels, based on submissions from 113 Parties. Executive Secretary Simon Stiell said that the emissions curve was bending downward, but stressed that far greater acceleration was necessary to stay on track for the 1.5 °C goal of the Paris Agreement. The latest findings provide an update to the October NDC Synthesis Report, which had covered only 64 national plans.

Loss and Damage Fund Becomes Operational

The Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD), initiated at COP27 in Egypt, has officially become operational, launching its first call for project proposals with an initial US $250 million available to support climate-affected communities. The fund will accept requests to address impacts such as infrastructure damage, community displacement, and cultural heritage loss. While hailed as a long-awaited step toward climate justice, the fund’s resources fall far short of what is needed: developing countries could require US $200–400 billion annually by 2030, yet only US $788 million has been pledged so far.

Brazil Launches Tropical Forest Forever Facility

At the COP30 Leaders’ Summit, which took place a few days before the start of the official conference, Brazil and other nations launched the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF), a groundbreaking pay-for-canopy system that rewards countries for keeping forests intact. With initial pledges of US $5.5 billion, including $3 billion from Norway and $1 billion each from Brazil and Indonesia, the TFFF aims for a medium-term capitalization of US $125 billion – blending public, private, and philanthropic funds. At least 20 % of resources will go directly to indigenous and local communities. Payments will be triggered by annual satellite imagery analysis that tracks forest canopy cover. Led by Brazil and supported by the World Bank, the facility seeks to make forest conservation financially viable, aligning climate action with economic stability and equity.

Initiative to Protect Forests of the Congo Basin

At the COP30 Leaders’ Summit, France and Gabon launched the “Belém Call for the Forests of the Congo Basin”, a US $2.5 billion initiative backed by Germany, Norway, Belgium, Britain, and the European Commission, with support from the World Bank and African Development Bank. The plan aims to protect the Congo Basin – the world’s second-largest rainforest – by ending deforestation by 2030 through funding, technology, and capacity building. The initiative complements Brazil’s Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF) and reinforces efforts to channel more resources to tropical forest nations for climate and biodiversity protection.

Intergovernmental Land Tenure Commitment (ILTC) Announced

At the COP30 Leaders’ Summit, over 50 governments launched the Intergovernmental Land Tenure Commitment (ILTC), the first global agreement to strengthen land rights for indigenous peoples and local communities. The initiative pledges to secure and legally recognize 160 million hectares of land by 2030, primarily in tropical forest countries, linking tenure recognition directly to climate and biodiversity goals. Backed by a renewed US $1.8 billion Forest and Land Tenure Pledge (2026–2030), the ILTC aims to channel more finance directly to communities, support legal reforms, and reduce deforestation by protecting the lands proven most effective at conserving forests and storing carbon.

GHG Protocol and ISO to Drive Forward Harmonized Carbon Accounting

The Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) laid out a detailed COP30 Action Plan to accelerate solutions for harmonized global carbon accounting standards, supporting the COP30 Presidency’s goal of turning climate commitments into concrete action. The plan aims to align global carbon accounting frameworks to overcome fragmented methodologies that hinder decarbonization. Building on their long-standing influence in emissions reporting, the GHG Protocol and ISO will establish a standards infrastructure by 2028 enabling interoperable, transparent, and credible carbon accounting across corporate, product, and project levels.

Stay tuned for more updates from Belém over the next two weeks. Until then, explore how our carbon solutions help you measure supplier emissions at scale, drive decarbonization across the supply chain, and mitigate climate-related risks.