Conference of the Parties (COP): Global Climate Governance and the Road to COP30

Les Conference of the Parties (COP) is the main decision-making body of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the world’s only multilateral decision-making forum dedicated entirely to climate change [1][2]. Every year, almost all countries on Earth gather at COP to agree on how to address the climate crisis, from limiting temperature rise to 1.5°C, to supporting vulnerable communities, to moving towards net-zero emissions around mid-century [1][2]. COP30, held in Belém, Brazil from 10–21 November 2025, represents a pivotal next step in this process [1][7].

What is a COP?

COPs are formal meetings of the Parties to the UNFCCC, a multilateral treaty agreed at the 1992 UN Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, where governments first committed to limit greenhouse gases and protect the climate while supporting sustainable development [3]. There are now 198 Parties to the Convention, making it one of the largest multilateral frameworks in the UN system [3][4].

Under this regime, responsibility is guided by the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities”, which recognises that all countries must act on climate change, but those with greater historical responsibility and capacity should do more and provide support in finance, technology and capacity building [3][4].

The UNFCCC regime is built on five core pillars, mitigation, adaptation, finance, technology and capacity building with other themes such as Loss and Damage, just transition, gender, Indigenous peoples and oceans gaining prominence in recent years [3]. Within this framework, the UNFCCC also oversees two landmark treaties:

Les Kyoto Protocol (1997), which set quantitative emission reduction targets for developed countries and introduced market mechanisms such as the Clean Development Mechanism.
Les Accord de Paris (2015), under which all Parties committed to keep global temperature rise well below 2°C and pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5°C, strengthen resilience and align financial flows with climate goals [3][4].

How COPs Work – and Why They Matter

COPs are convened annually under the UNFCCC. They serve as the forum where Parties:

Assess global efforts to advance the core Paris Agreement goal of limiting warming to as close as possible to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels [2][3].
Take decisions on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, adapting to climate impacts, and addressing Loss and Damage funding and support for countries suffering severe climate-related harm [2].
Agree measures to help countries green their economies and build resilience, including arrangements for climate finance, technology and capacity-building [2][3].

Decisions are made by consensus, which means nearly every country in the world must agree. This ensures broad support and helps protect the interests of developing and climate-vulnerable nations, even if it makes negotiations complex and time-consuming [3].

Over three decades, COPs have delivered major milestones: from the Kyoto Protocol’s first legally binding targets for industrialised countries to the Paris Agreement’s universal temperature goal and five-yearly Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which every country must submit and update to guide its domestic climate policies [3]. These NDCs send critical long-term signals to businesses and investors about the direction of the low-carbon transition [3].

COPs have also grown dramatically in scale. Awareness of climate risks has led to an exponential increase in demand for participation. Today, COPs are the largest annual meetings convened by the United Nations, bringing together heads of state, ministers, tens of thousands of government delegates and representatives from civil society, intergovernmental organisations, business and the media [2]. Alongside formal negotiations, leaders, experts and activists gather for hundreds of side events, panel discussions, cultural activities and exhibitions [2][8].

The Architecture of COP30

COP30 is not a single meeting but a cluster of interlinked sessions. In November 2025 in Belém, the following bodies meet in parallel [1][2][5]:

Body	Full Name	Core Role at COP30
COP 30	30th Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC	Oversees implementation of the Convention and guides overall climate action.
CMP 20	20th Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol	Supervises the Kyoto mechanisms and remaining obligations.
CMA 7	7th Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement	Takes decisions related to the Paris Agreement, including NDCs and transparency.
SBSTA 63	Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice	Provides scientific and technical input to negotiations.
SBI 63	Subsidiary Body for Implementation	Addresses implementation, reporting and support arrangements.

Les COP Presidency, held by Brazil for COP30, is responsible for steering negotiations, setting priorities and working with Parties to achieve consensus on key issues [2][5]. In preparatory briefings, the COP30 President-designate has highlighted priorities including defending multilateralism, respecting science and translating commitments into transformative action on the ground, as well as aligning efforts with the Paris Agreement’s long-term goals on temperature, resilience and finance [5].

What Makes COP30 in Belém Distinctive?

COP30 takes place in Belém, Pará, at the edge of the Amazon rainforest, a location chosen in part to emphasise the region’s global importance for climate stability [1][3]. The European Commission notes that discussions in Brazil are expected to place special focus on forest protection, climate finance and support for climate-vulnerable regions, alongside efforts to cut emissions and strengthen resilience [3].

The conference comes 33 years after Rio 1992 et ten years after the Paris Agreement, making it a key juncture for assessing whether current efforts match long-term climate goals [3]. Several core themes define the COP30 agenda:

NDCs 3.0: Under the Paris Agreement, the next round of NDCs is due this year. Parties in Belém will assess the gap between existing commitments and what is required to keep 1.5°C within reach, and consider what it will take to close this gap [3][5][6].
Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA): A key expectation for COP30 is agreement on indicators to measure progress towards the GGA, building on the 2023 GGA Framework. Negotiations are focused on narrowing down a set of around 100 indicators aligned with 11 targets, with particularly intense debate around indicators related to means of implementation [5][6].
Finance and the Baku–Belém Roadmap: At COP29, countries including the EU agreed to triple climate finance for developing countries from USD 100 billion to USD 300 billion per year, as part of a new collective quantified goal on climate finance [3]. Brazil is now working with the previous presidency on the Baku to Belém Roadmap, aimed at mobilising USD 1.3 trillion per year by 2035 in public and private climate finance [3][5][6].
Interlinked Crises: The COP30 Presidency has stressed the need to address, in a comprehensive and synergistic way, the interconnected crises of climate change and biodiversity loss within the broader context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) [5].

Les UN Environment Programme (UNEP) expects key negotiations in Belém to cover NDCs 3.0, the mitigation work programme, the Baku–Belém finance roadmap, technology negotiations and the GGA indicator framework [6]. UNEP will also support the Presidency’s action agenda, including initiatives on cooling, methane, food waste and urban resilience [6].

Fairness, Finance and Europe’s Role

Equity is central to the COP process. The founding treaties embed the principle that all countries must act, but those with greater capacity and responsibility must do more, including providing support to developing economies [3][4].

Finance is therefore a recurring focal point. The tripling of support to USD 300 billion per year and the objective to mobilise USD 1.3 trillion annually by 2035 are intended to ensure that countries most exposed to climate impacts can invest in mitigation, adaptation and resilience [3][5][6]. The EU and its Member States, together with the European Investment Bank, are collectively the largest provider of public climate finance to developing countries, contributing €31.7 billion in public climate finance and mobilising a further €11 billion in private finance in 2024 [3].

The EU presents itself at COP30 as one of the world’s most committed climate actors. It reports cutting greenhouse gas emissions by over 37% since 1990, while its economy has grown by 71%, and has agreed to a 90% emissions reduction target by 2040 compared to 1990 levels [3]. Its Emissions Trading System (ETS), the world’s largest carbon market – has reduced emissions from covered sectors by around 48% compared to 2005, while funding low-carbon technologies and projects [3]. At COP30, the EU aims to use this experience to promote stronger global carbon pricing and raise ambition internationally [3].

Beyond Negotiations: Pavilions, Protests and Participation

COP30 also highlights how climate diplomacy plays out beyond formal negotiating rooms. The COP30 Singapore Pavilion describes COP as the largest global climate change event and emphasises that COP30 seeks to strengthen multilateralism and foster consensus on global targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions [7]. Singapore’s “Interwoven Purpose. Regenerating Tomorrow.” concept underscores the importance of collaboration and regenerative systems, framing climate action as both a transition and a restoration effort [7].

Reporting from Belém shows how national and thematic pavilions compete for attention, using cultural performances, interactive displays and even practical giveaways such as handheld fans, to draw delegates into discussions on climate solutions [8]. Countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia highlight traditional arts and crafts, while others emphasise technology, innovation or regional cooperation [8].

Civil society and youth movements also make their presence felt. Demonstrations in and around the “blue zone” focus on issues such as carbon markets, land rights and the health impacts of climate change, with Indigenous groups calling for stronger recognition of their rights and knowledge in climate decisions [8]. The inaugural ASEAN pavilion showcases regional climate action and challenges, signalling growing collective engagement from South-east Asia [8].

Symbols, too, play a role: at COP30, a prominent “doomsday clock” installation counting down the estimated time left to keep 1.5°C within reach serves as a stark reminder of the urgency discussed inside the negotiation halls [8].

Implications for ESG and Corporate Strategy

For businesses and investors, COP outcomes are not abstract diplomatic texts; they translate into regulations, market signals and stakeholder expectations.

New and more ambitious NDCs influence national climate policies, carbon pricing regimes and sector-specific transition pathways [3][5].
Decisions on climate finance and just transition affect the availability and direction of capital flows, with implications for climate-aligned investment, risk management and disclosure frameworks.
Progress on the GGA and adaptation indicators shapes expectations around physical risk assessment, resilience planning and nature-related reporting.

Coupled with the growth of digital sustainability reporting – for example through XBRL-based taxonomies under the EU’s ESRS, COP decisions increasingly link global climate governance with corporate accountability and transparency.

Réflexions finales

Over thirty years, the Conference of the Parties has evolved into the centrepiece of international climate diplomacy. From Rio to Kyoto and Paris, COPs have created the legal and political architecture for global climate action, even as implementation has often lagged behind scientific warnings [3][4].

COP30 in Belém comes at a decisive moment. Climate impacts are intensifying, but clean energy deployment and climate ambition have also accelerated, helping reduce projected warming from well above 4°C to around 2.3–2.5°C based on current policies and commitments [3]. This is clear progress but still not enough to meet the Paris temperature goals [3].

For governments, businesses and investors, COP30 is therefore both a test and an opportunity: a test of whether multilateralism can deliver the finance, implementation and fairness needed to close the gap to 1.5°C, and an opportunity to align strategies with a just, net-zero and climate-resilient future. What is decided in Belém will help shape climate policy trajectories, capital allocation and ESG expectations for the decade ahead.

Sources :

[1] UNFCCC. About COP 30 (2025). Disponible sur : https://unfccc.int/cop30/about-cop30
[2] UNFCCC. How COPs Are Organized – Questions and Answers (2025). Disponible sur : https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/conferences/the-big-picture/what-are-united-nations-climate-change-conferences/how-cops-are-organized-questions-and-answers
[3] European Commission. 5 Things You Should Know About the COP30 UN Climate Conference (2025). Disponible sur : https://climate.ec.europa.eu/news-other-reads/news/5-things-you-should-know-about-cop30-un-climate-conference-2025-11-07_en
[4] COP30 Brazil. What Is the COP? (2025). Disponible sur : https://cop30.br/en/about-cop30/what-is-the-cop
[5] IISD / SDG Knowledge Hub. 2025 UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP 30) (2025). Disponible sur : https://sdg.iisd.org/events/2025-un-climate-change-conference-unfccc-cop-30/
[6] UNEP. UNEP at the Climate COP30 (2025). Disponible sur : https://www.unep.org/unep-climate-cop30
[7] Singapore Government. COP30 Belém – Singapore Pavilion (2025). Disponible sur : https://www.cop-pavilion.gov.sg/about
[8] The Straits Times. Rewards, Rivalry, Rebellion: Inside the COP30 Battle for Attention (2025). https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/environment/rewards-rivalry-rebellion-inside-the-cop30-battle-for-attention