World leaders have convened in the Brazilian Amazon on Thursday, aiming to reaffirm climate change as a top global priority despite broken promises and the United States’ surprising absence. Approximately 50 heads of state and government will gather in the rainforest city of Belem for the two-day summit, which precedes the UN Conference of Parties (COP30) climate negotiations opening next week.
However, Washington is sending nobody, since President Donald Trump has previously branded climate science a “con job,” creating an awkward diplomatic void. While UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron plan to attend, other major economies like China and India are only dispatching deputies or climate ministers.
Logistics and Local Challenge
Choosing Belem, a city where 700,000 residents live in working-class favelas, sparked controversy because its limited infrastructure and sky-high hotel fees complicated participation for smaller delegations and NGOs. Authorities certainly invested in new construction and major renovations. Nevertheless, media teams arriving at the COP venue Wednesday found building works still underway with less than 24 hours before the leaders’ summit opened.
The host nation also faced an urgent need to secure affordable rooms for cash-strapped countries, consequently, the COP30 presidency secured outside funding this week. This funding specifically provides three free cabins aboard cruise ships for delegations arriving from low-income countries. Brazil readily acknowledges the uphill battle they face rallying unified climate action amidst wars, tight budgets, tariff disputes, and a populist backlash against green policies worldwide.
Accountability and Finance Focus
Brazil currently seeks to send a clear signal that nations still back the climate fight during this uncertain time, not necessarily to land a major new deal at COP30. The US absence certainly lingers awkwardly during the summit, as does Brazil’s own recent approval of oil drilling near the Amazon River’s mouth.
Furthermore, the unanswered call for ambitious new climate pledges ahead of COP30 underscores the challenge, especially after UN chief Antonio Guterres acknowledged the 1.5 degrees Celsius warming limit will be missed.
Carolina Pasquali, Greenpeace Brazil executive director, stated emphatically that leaders gathered in Belem “need to deliver a clear mandate to the COP to be ambitious and to close the gap and to address the issues that are burning.” Rather than focusing on generating new commitments, Brazil frames the gathering as a crucial opportunity for accountability, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva asserting this week: “Enough talking, now we have to implement what we’ve already discussed.”
