COP30 cannot afford to become another forum for lofty speeches and vague declarations. The summit must set legally-binding emission targets and secure enforceable climate finance
The 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP30, opens today in Brazil under the shadow of mounting scientific alarm and political fatigue. A decade after the Paris Agreement sought to limit global warming to 1.5° Celsius, the latest United Nations Emissions Gap Report warns that if countries continue on their current trajectories and fail to make deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, the world could in fact heat up by up to 2.8°C above pre-industrial levels. Global GHG emissions, the report found, have climbed to a record 57.7 billion tonnes in 2024, an increase of 2.3% over 2023. India’s record is particularly poor. The country registered the highest absolute increase in GHG emissions in 2024, rising by 3.6% over 2023. While India’s per capita emissions remain below the world average, its total output now places it among the top three emitters globally. A missed deadline for an updated national climate plan has only deepened concerns about India’s preparedness to meet its own targets. More alarmingly, the planet has begun crossing irreversible thresholds. According to a study by the University of Exeter, the world has likely breached its first climate tipping point — the collapse of warm-water coral reefs. Tipping points mark radical shifts in the Earth’s natural balance, setting off chain reactions that disrupt global weather systems, agriculture and biodiversity.
The global political landscape compounds the crisis. Climate scepticism has returned to power in the United States of America: President Donald Trump has withdrawn the US from the Paris Agreement and rolled back key clean-energy policies in one of the world’s largest emitting nations. As if on cue, influential figures such as Bill Gates are now arguing that although the climate crisis is grave, it will not lead to humanity’s extinction. The European Union, once a flagbearer of environmental multilateralism, appears increasingly divided and inward-looking. This vacuum in leadership in the battle against global warming threatens to stall collective action. But the scientific evidence and consensus are unequivocal: delay will make mitigation harder, costlier and more uncertain. COP30 cannot afford to become another forum for lofty speeches and vague declarations. The summit must set legally-binding emission targets, create clear accountability mechanisms, and secure enforceable climate finance. Without binding targets and a credible structure for climate finance, COP30 will join the long list of missed opportunities. And the world will be one step closer to the point of no return.
Source: The Telegraph, 10/11/25
