Countries gathered at the UN climate summit (COP30) in Belém on Saturday unanimously approved a final document that contains no explicit reference to fossil fuels while calling for increased ambition in actions to combat global warming. The president of COP30, Brazilian André Corrêa do Lago, during his speech at the closing plenary session acknowledged that some countries 'had greater ambitions' and committed to addressing their concerns throughout the coming year. The main text of the summit, presented by the Brazilian presidency, does not mention the need to move away from hydrocarbons, despite the insistence of the European Union and countries like Colombia that it be included. After intense negotiations that went into the early hours of the morning, the explicit reference was dropped from the text due to the outright refusal of Arab countries to discuss the issue, although it 'recognizes' the decisions made at other COPs. At one of them, COP28 in Dubai in 2023, the need for a 'transition' away from fossil fuels was established for the first time. To compensate for the lack of references, Corrêa do Lago announced today that under his presidency, a 'roadmap' for this transition and another for reversing deforestation will be created. On the financing front, the final text maintains the agreement reached at COP29 in Baku, which 'urges' rich countries to 'stay on course' towards the goal of providing $300 billion annually to emerging nations, and mentions the goal of 'tripling' resources for adaptation actions. Furthermore, the text recognizes that climate change 'is a common concern of humanity' and reaffirms the countries' commitment to the Paris Agreement and the goal of limiting the temperature rise to 1.5°C. The COP30 plenary also approved a document with a definitive list of 'indicators' to measure progress in climate change adaptation actions. In another of the voted texts, a 'mechanism' is established to carry out a 'just transition' that takes into account the needs of workers affected by changes in the energy model.
