Climate Change Conference in Belém to focus on implementation – more effective actions especially by large economies needed

The world countries will convene at the Climate Change Conference COP30 in Belém, Brazil on 10–21 November. The countries are required to update their Nationally Determined Contributions every five years, and the next round of submissions is due just ahead the conference.

The Leaders’ Summit will take place on 6–7 November. President of the Republic Alexander Stubb will represent Finland at the summit. At the Conference of the Parties to the UN Climate Change Agreement (COP30) Finland’s delegation will be led by Minister of Climate and the Environment Sari Multala. 

According to the Paris Climate Change Agreement, the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) must be updated every five years, which now means by the end of this year. In order to limit the rise in global average temperature to below 1.5 degrees, more effective emission reductions are needed especially by the large economies.

“The conference takes place in an extremely difficult geopolitical situation that challenges the very foundations of international cooperation. This means that we must close our ranks even more. What we need now is a strong and common will, instead of withdrawal or delays,” Minister of Climate and the Environment Sari Multala says.

The majority of the G20 countries that are large emitters have not yet submitted their new Nationally Determined Contributions. Finland will not submit an update of its own as our NDC by 2035 will be submitted as part of the EU, which aims to finalise its NDC at the meeting of the EU environment ministers on 4 November.

“The EU must maintain its key role as a leader of global climate work and clean solutions. We can show that determined climate policy and the related investments strengthen sustainable growth, competitiveness, security and resilience - this is an important message to the whole world.”

“We must bridge the gap between the target and actions”

The Paris Agreement celebrates its tenth anniversary in December. Its rules were finalised last year, and now more weight will be placed on implementation. The agreement has significantly boosted climate action but the pace of emission reductions is still too slow.

“In 2015 we were on a path that was leading towards a four degrees warmer planet. According to forecasts, we are now on a path where the average temperature will rise by 2.7 degrees. There is still a wide gap between the target and actions, and the new NDCs will not lead to any radical changes in this. This is why the inadequacy of emission reductions must be recognised in the decisions to be made in Belém and parties must specify the actions by which the gap can be bridged together,” Chief Negotiator Marjo Nummelin says. 

Indicators for monitoring climate change adaptation to be agreed in Belém

Besides emission reductions, climate change adaptation will be a key theme in the negotiations. Climate change adaptation means systematic and proactive preparation for the impacts of climate change.

In Belém, the aim is to agree on adaptation indicators to be used for monitoring the collective progress made in adaptation. The indicators will measure, for example, a reduction in vulnerability, improvement in adaptive capacity, amounts of climate-resilient investments or the resilience of ecosystems. For both the EU and Finland it is important to reach a decision on the global adaptation indicators so that the countries can start using them to monitor the implementation of their adaptation plans better and it is also possible to compare the actions taken by different countries.

“Besides adaptation, the conference will focus on the financing of adaptation measures. The climate finance target agreed last year will not be reopened. Instead, new means will be sought to channel especially private financing to support action - for both mitigation and adaptation - in developing countries,” says Outi Honkatukia, chief negotiator for the EU on climate finance.

At COP29 in Baku the countries agreed on the aim to mobilise USD 1,300 billion from all sources by 2035 to support climate work. The COP29 Presidency Azerbaijan and this year’s Presidency Brazil have together drawn up a roadmap to mobilise the funding that will be published in Belém.

The agenda of the negotiations includes work programs on a just transition and climate change mitigation and updating the work program concerning gender equality. The topics also include the first Biennial Transparency Reports (BTR), which the countries were required to submit by the end of last year. The reports will contribute to monitoring how the countries are progressing towards their climate targets. Finland was one of the first countries to submit its report, which will be discussed at an event to be organised in Belém.

Finland Pavilion for second time at climate conference

Besides the negotiations, COP30 will bring together cities, companies, investors, representatives of the scientific community and civil society to boost climate action. About 40,000–50,000 participants are expected to attend the different kinds of side events.

This is the second time when Finland will also have a country pavilion at the climate change conference to highlight topical perspectives on climate change mitigation and adaptation and showcase clean energy innovations and solutions developed in Finland. The Finland Pavilion will be opened by Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio, and Minister of Economic Affairs Sakari Puisto will also participate in various events to be organised at the pavilion. 

The conference in Belém, the Finnish delegation and the programme of the Finland Pavilion can be followed on social media using hashtags #ilmastoCOP30 and #COP30Finland. 

Inquiries:

Lyydia Ylönen
Special Adviser to Minister Multala
Ministry of the Environment
tel. +358 50 476 1341
[email protected]
(in Belém 15–22 November, please note the -5 hour time difference from Finnish time)

Marjo Nummelin
Chief Negotiator for Climate Change
tel. +358 295 250 227
[email protected]
(in Belém 5–22 November, please note the -5 hour time difference from Finnish time)

Kaarle Kupiainen
Ministerial Adviser
tel. +358 295 250 232
[email protected]
(in Belém 11–22 November, please note the -5 hour time difference from Finnish time)

Outi Honkatukia
Director of the Climate and Chemicals Unit
tel. +358 50 341 1758
[email protected]
(in Belém 6–22 November, please note the -5 hour time difference from Finnish time)

Riikka Lamminmäki
Head of Communications
Ministry of the Environment
tel. +358 50 576 2604
[email protected]
(requests for interviews with Minister Multala and negotiators during COP30, in Belém 15–22 November, please note the -5 hour time difference from Finnish time)