The latest round of pledges for 2035 were due in February to give the UN time before COP30 to assess the quality of these commitments.
Most nations missed that deadline, but by early October, about 60 had turned in their revised plans. Few have impressed, and China’s target in particular fell well below expectations.
The European Union, riven by infighting, cannot agree on its target, while India is another major emitter yet to finalise its pledge.
A reckoning could be coming in Belem. Brazil – which described the latest round of pledges as “the vision of our shared future” – is facing pressure to marshal a response.
MONEY
Money – specifically, how much rich countries give poorer ones to adapt to climate change and shift to a low-carbon future – is a likely point of conflict in Belem, as in past COPs.
Last year, after a fortnight of acrimonious haggling, COP29 ended unhappily with developed nations agreeing to provide US$300 billion a year in climate finance to developing ones by 2035, well below what is needed.
They also set a much less specific target of helping raise US$1.3 trillion annually by 2035 from public and private sources. Developing nations will be demanding some actual details about this at COP30.
Adaptation finance – for example, to build coastal defences to protect against rising seas – is on the formal agenda, with a new fundraising target possibly up for negotiation as an old commitment expires.
