Stockholm (NordSIP) – The president-elect of COP30 has issued an urgent call for participating nations to produce their updated Nationally-Determined Contributions (NDCs). André Aranha Corrêa do Lago’s 19 August 2025 Sixth Letter from the Presidency warns that with only 100 days before the event is due to start in Belém, Brazil, roughly 80% of Paris Agreement signatories are yet to submit their 2035 NDCs.
The updated NDCs are considered an essential component in the preparations for COP30. Once aggregated, they will present delegates with a clearer picture of the global state of climate action and the likely subsequent temperature pathways. Corrêa do Lago writes: “Far from representing mere climate targets for 2035, our NDCs represent the vision of our shared future. They are vehicles of cooperation, enabling us to realise this vision together. If the image shown by our integrated NDCs turns out disappointing, it is our collective responsibility to convert it into a picture that will ensure a liveable planet, protect all economies, and improve living standards and life opportunities for all peoples, for all generations – a picture that will make our children proud, relieved, and hopeful for their own future.”
COP process under increasing pressure
The United Nations will require all NDCs by 25 September 2025 at the latest, on which date COP30 host nation Brazil has convened participants to an initial pre-meeting to discuss the picture presented by the combined NDCs. This high-level preparatory meeting is due to be followed by another on 15 October in a sign that Corrêa do Lago is seeking to avoid the bottlenecks and delays so often seen at COP events. Meanwhile, major greenhouse gas emitters like China and the European Union are yet to provide the requisite NDCs.
With growing scepticism regarding the effectiveness of the UN-sponsored COP process there will be pressure on Brazil to make a relative success of this year’s iteration. The Latin American nation is the latest in series of major fossil fuel producers to host the climate negotiations. It was also roundly criticised for approving the creation of a major highway to be built through protected Amazon rainforest with the aim of easing COP30 delegates’ access from the local airport. The choice of the relatively small northern city of Belém as venue is also being called into question, with the scarcity of hotel rooms resulting in major price hikes that could prove prohibitive for delegations from lower income nations.
Image courtesy of Gino Crescoli on Pixabay
Stockholm (NordSIP) – The president-elect of COP30 has issued an urgent call for participating nations to produce their updated Nationally-Determined Contributions (NDCs). André Aranha Corrêa do Lago’s 19 August 2025 Sixth Letter from the Presidency warns that with only 100 days before the event is due to start in Belém, Brazil, roughly 80% of Paris Agreement signatories are yet to submit their 2035 NDCs.
The updated NDCs are considered an essential component in the preparations for COP30. Once aggregated, they will present delegates with a clearer picture of the global state of climate action and the likely subsequent temperature pathways. Corrêa do Lago writes: “Far from representing mere climate targets for 2035, our NDCs represent the vision of our shared future. They are vehicles of cooperation, enabling us to realise this vision together. If the image shown by our integrated NDCs turns out disappointing, it is our collective responsibility to convert it into a picture that will ensure a liveable planet, protect all economies, and improve living standards and life opportunities for all peoples, for all generations – a picture that will make our children proud, relieved, and hopeful for their own future.”
COP process under increasing pressure
The United Nations will require all NDCs by 25 September 2025 at the latest, on which date COP30 host nation Brazil has convened participants to an initial pre-meeting to discuss the picture presented by the combined NDCs. This high-level preparatory meeting is due to be followed by another on 15 October in a sign that Corrêa do Lago is seeking to avoid the bottlenecks and delays so often seen at COP events. Meanwhile, major greenhouse gas emitters like China and the European Union are yet to provide the requisite NDCs.
With growing scepticism regarding the effectiveness of the UN-sponsored COP process there will be pressure on Brazil to make a relative success of this year’s iteration. The Latin American nation is the latest in series of major fossil fuel producers to host the climate negotiations. It was also roundly criticised for approving the creation of a major highway to be built through protected Amazon rainforest with the aim of easing COP30 delegates’ access from the local airport. The choice of the relatively small northern city of Belém as venue is also being called into question, with the scarcity of hotel rooms resulting in major price hikes that could prove prohibitive for delegations from lower income nations.
Image courtesy of Gino Crescoli on Pixabay
