23 Nov 2025
A weak COP
Like a punch-drunk boxer who won’t fall down the United Nations organization trying to stop climate change stumbled through yet another match. It did not win but it is still standing. Powerful fossil fuel producing countries along with some dependent on burning these polluting substances blocked any attempt to call for a phase-out of coal, oil and gas. This was the sad but not unexpected result of two weeks of negotiations at the latest Conference of the Parties [COP30] meeting in Belém, Brazil. The United Nations process to stop climate change from destroying us has been struggling for decades. It pits those who get rich from producing fossil fuels against less powerful nations suffering from the effects of climate change, such as drought, wildfires and flash floods. The result is that fossil fuel consumption and greenhouse gas pollution continue to rise, driving up global temperatures and creating ever more unstable and dangerous weather patterns. Protection of forests is also key to slowing climate change but the meeting was unable to produce a detailed plan to stop deforestation despite being held at the doorstep to the Amazon.
Were there any gains after two weeks of negotiations involving 194 countries? There was agreement on a just transition mechanism, a plan to ensure that the move to a green global economy is fair and protects the people’s rights. Also, wealthier countries agreed to work toward tripling money in an adaptation fund to help climate-vulnerable countries adapt to the damage of global warming but this has been pushed off to 2035.