One of the country’s leading experts on climate science, Paulo Artaxo, president of IPAM’s Board of Directors, points to advances in the COP30 agenda, but emphasizes that the urgent debate on fossil fuels is crucial. The scientist spoke to the newsletter Um Grau e Meio:
– What is the main legacy of COP30?
There were several. First of all, at COP30, Brazil showed a vigor of civil society that has not been seen at any other COP to date. It showed that social movements in Brazil are extremely active, engaged in finding solutions to the issue of global climate change. On the other hand, other legacies were mainly the issue that the oil-producing countries are not going to give up the issue of continuing to emit as much greenhouse gas as possible into the atmosphere, exacerbating the global greenhouse effect. What we have seen is that oil companies are focused on making as much profit as possible in as little time as possible, regardless of the consequences for the 7.7 billion human beings on our planet.
– What is your assessment of the final texts?
The final texts of the COP address some essential issues, such as adaptation, financing and fossil fuels. Adaptation and financing were very general statements and not concrete commitments. The countries pledged to increase, to triple the funding from rich countries for poor countries to make the energy transition and adapt to the new climate, without putting values, without putting mechanisms, without putting anything at all, just a generic quote. On the issue of the GGA (Global Adaptation Strategy), it was important to include in the final COP document that countries have to make an effort to adapt to the new climate and reduce the negative impacts of climate change on their populations, on the socio-economic system and so on. And the big difference was the lack of any mention of the issue of fossil fuels. In other words, you eliminate the main aspect of climate change from the final document, which is the burning of fossil fuels, because of the oil industry lobby.
– In your opinion, what were the positive and negative highlights?
The main positive highlight of this COP was the joint work of the countries, basically recovering multilateralism. We saw 195 countries present at the COP, which is significant. The negative point is certainly the fact that the oil industry lobby is defeating all attempts to effectively have a stable climate in the future for our planet as a whole. So this is a very serious problem indeed, and we’re going to have to address it at the next COPs.
– Can you talk about the expectations for the parallel COP on fossil fuels that will take place in Colombia in April?
One of the positive points of this COP was also the support of 80 countries for Brazil’s proposal to build a roadmap on the end of fossil fuels, how to end the exploitation and use of fossil fuels throughout our planet. In this sense, Colombia proposed organizing a meeting in April next year specifically to deal with this critical issue, which is certainly the most important topic of all the COPs. So this pre-COP, so to speak, is going to be very important, because it’s basically going to concretize a proposal for a path, a roadmap for the extinction of the use of fossil fuels on our planet in the fairest and fastest way possible.
– Brazil has been a leader in the climate debate. How can this leadership continue?
The organization of the COP and the coordination of the work were carried out very competently by the president of the COP, by the CEO of the COP. This leadership role should continue throughout the year, as the COP president will continue to coordinate the work until the next COP in Turkey. So I think it’s important that we help André Correia do Lago, the COP president, to design strategies that are acceptable to the other countries, in other words, a matter of diplomatic negotiation, on the three important aspects of the COPs: financing, adaptation and the end of fossil fuels. So, in this sense, Brazil has the support of Colombia, England, Germany and so on, of important partners, and we’re going to work together so that we can get to the next COP with good prospects of approving some kind of route towards the end of fossil fuels, which is the most important thing we have to do today in relation to global climate change.
– What role should Brazilian civil society play in order to achieve concrete and faster results?
Brazilian civil society played a very important role at this COP, clearly putting forward proposals for solutions in practically all areas of society affected by global climate change. So it’s very interesting and it’s a novelty for the other countries, since the participation of civil society at the COP in Brazil was much more important than at the other COPs. We have to effectively strengthen the role of civil society in order to play an important role in the climate issue as a whole.
– Is it already possible to look at the priorities for the COP in Turkey? What should they be?
The priorities for the next COP in Turkey must certainly be, firstly, to build and negotiate a road map for the end of fossil fuels as soon as possible, intensifying the energy transition to renewable energies. The issue of adaptation will continue to be a priority for the COP in Turkey, as it is far from having resolved this issue, as well as the issue of climate finance, which also left a lot to be desired at the COP in Brazil. Therefore, we have important tasks to solve at COP30 and we practically have a year to prepare and give the COP president, André Correia do Lago, a foundation so that he can prepare properly for the negotiations and the documents that will have to support the decisions at COP31 in Turkey.