COP30 Belém: Activists lead as nations struggle to agree

Inside the negotiation rooms the picture was less inspiring. Delegates struggled to deliver a meaningful overarching decision as consensus on the toughest issues proved elusive.

Belém produced a handful of small wins, including progress on adaptation, loss and damage, and forest protection, along with one notable breakthrough: the establishment of a formal Just Transition mechanism.

Still, many governments shied away from concrete commitments.

Countries which have historically polluted the most avoided acknowledging their full responsibility to repair the damage endured by the communities most affected by climate breakdown, while fossil-fuel dependent economies resisted urgency in transitioning away from oil, gas and coal.

Yet progress did emerge, just not from where many expected. COP30 re-opened long-stalled discussions around the phase-out of fossil fuels, the need for proper plans on the transition to renewable energy, and the glaring lack of ambition in global emissions reductions.

New programmes and platforms were launched to keep these debates alive beyond Belém, offering at least a direction for future conversations on these vital topics.

In many ways, civil society carried COP30. While governments hesitated, communities, Indigenous peoples, youth groups, and social movements pushed the agenda forward. If Belém made one thing clear, it is that the road to climate justice will not be led by governments alone but by those on the frontlines demanding more.

Communities and activists made a powerful impact at COP30.

From alternative spaces such as the People’s Summit, where narratives about the crisis and its solutions were shaped and companies were held accountable in symbolic “people’s tribunals”, to the global “Day of Action” on 15 November with its massive climate-justice march in Belém, civil society brought energy and urgency back to COP spaces. This level of public coming out to demand action has not been seen since COP26 in 2021.

There were also direct acts of resistance. Indigenous communities entered the COP30 venue to reclaim their right to occupy their own land and to participate in decisions being made about their territories. Their message was clear: no climate policy is legitimate without Indigenous leadership.

A striking embodiment of this was “Agente Cobra”, a Portuguese wordplay meaning both “The Cobra Agent” and “We demand what is owed to us”. This 15-metre-long serpent wound through the streets of Belém, symbolising a collective call for real commitment, action and coherence from governments, corporations and society.

Alongside it came demands to protect land and forests, defend culture, use local knowledge to manage land and water sustainably, ensure communities have direct access to decision-making and funding, and prevent so-called green solutions from becoming a new wave of colonialism.

However, negotiations on phasing out fossil fuel ended in a disappointing stalemate. While many countries supported a proposal – known as a “roadmap” for transitioning away from fossil fuels, producer states blocked specific language on fossil fuels in the main outcome. Instead, this refers to only a voluntary roadmap process, not a mandatory phase-out.

Critics argue demonstrates a failure to address the root cause of the climate crisis. A just transition must include concrete steps away from fossil fuels, not just processes or talk.

Just Transition mechanism

For the first time, a COP decision formally anchored labour rights, human rights, and the inclusion of marginalised groups as part of a climate transition framework. This mechanism sets minimum principles to guide countries in implementing the Paris Agreement while aiming for a fair shift away from fossil-fuel-dependent economies.

This is a huge win for workers, communities and civil society across the globe which have been campaigning for this mechanism as a way to ensure fairness and rights are central to climate action.

Adaptation finance

Governments agreed in principle to triple adaptation funding by 2035 to help vulnerable countries cope with climate impacts. The agreement includes a plan for scaling up finance, but key details on how this is measured, and who should contribute remain unclear.

Global goal on adaptation

To track progress on how countries are adapting to the climate crisis, a set of voluntary ‘indicators’ were agreed as part of a process called the Global Goal on Adaptation.

These cover topics such as water, food, health, ecosystems, infrastructure and livelihoods, and mean that for the first time, countries will be able to measure not just emission reductions but also how they are adapting to climate impacts.

New institutional platforms

Initiatives like the ‘Global Implementation Accelerator’ and the ‘Belém Mission to 1.5°C’ were launched to help translate commitments into concrete action and to monitor progress toward the Paris Agreement targets.

• Originally meant to be 2030, the adaptation finance target is delayed to 2035, and, and there is no clear methodology or enforcement mechanism. This limits its immediate impact in ensuring money gets to communities on the frontline of the crisis.
• Although it was good to see that indicators to measure adaptation were agreed, these don't have a standardised methodology and are voluntary, so they may be less effective at tracking adaptation progress globally.
• On fossil fuels, despite repeated calls by developing countries and civil society, the final agreement contains no mandatory language on phasing out coal, oil, or gas.

Overall, COP30 delivered a “justice package” in principle, but without clear financing commitments or enforceable deadlines, its capacity to drive immediate, measurable change remains limited.

Still, civil society and some governments see opportunities for progress outside the COP process. Initiatives like the Fossil Fuel Treaty are gaining momentum, aiming to establish legally binding international agreements to phase out fossil fuels and ensure a just transition to a cleaner, greener future.

The first international conference on this treaty is set to bring together governments, activists, and legal experts to advance concrete commitments and accountability mechanisms beyond the limitations of COP negotiations

The inclusion of a Just Transition mechanism within COP30, while limited, provides a foundation for linking these global efforts to national and local climate policies. Continued pressure from and engagement with civil society and external initiatives like the Fossil Fuel Treaty could help turn voluntary commitments into enforceable action.

COP30 showed that people and communities are influencing climate conversations, but now comes the hard part: turning visibility and commitments into real, on-the-ground action:

As COP31 in Türkiye comes into view, the lesson from Belém is clear: climate action must centre people, rights, and local knowledge, or the most affected will again be left behind.