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The COP30 summit kicks off in Brazil, where business leaders are pushing for clean energy
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The COP30 summit kicks off in Brazil, where business leaders are pushing for clean energy

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Brazil is hosting three weeks of events linked to the COP30 climate summit, hoping to showcase a world still committed to tackling global warming.
That could be difficult in a year marked by economic turmoil and canceled commitments from the United States.
Business leaders meeting in Sao Paulo are calling for stronger policies to finance the energy transition. On Monday, they “urgently” asked governments in an open letter to provide incentives to adopt renewable energy instead of fossil fuels.
“It is a recognition by business groups of the importance of multilateralism and the importance of increasing ambition,” said CEO Maria Mendiluce of the We Mean Business Coalition, which coordinated the letter from 35 groups representing 100,000 companies.

Mayors, governors and other subnational leaders will attend a Local Leaders Summit in Rio de Janeiro on Monday, which risks being overshadowed by protests against the city’s bloody crackdown a week earlier.

Protesters hold a banner reading ‘COP30: Climate can’t wait, it’s time to act’ outside a pre-COP30 meeting in Brasilia, Brazil, on October 14. Source: AP / Eraldo Perez

Prince William will chair a ceremony in Rio to mark his annual Earthshot Prize, recognizing his contributions to environmental awareness over the past year.

Less optimism at this year’s event

However, it may be difficult for countries and companies to express the same optimism that has characterized climate diplomacy in recent years.
Today, global cooperation is stagnating amid geopolitical tensions and multiple wars.
An erratic series of U.S. tariffs has disrupted economic stability worldwide, while U.S. reversals on clean energy policy and climate science have roiled investors.

And as renewable energy costs have fallen below fossil fuel levels, many countries are juggling competing goals such as food security or AI development.

Business leaders still hope to make clean energy policies a priority.
“It makes good business sense and ensures energy security and competitiveness,” said Gonzalo Sáenz de Miera, chairman of Spain’s Green Growth Group.
Brazil’s turn as host this year marks 33 years since the Rio Earth Summit, where countries first signed the UN treaty committing to tackle climate change.
The summit has since developed into a major multilateral forum, bringing together rich and poor countries with scientists and civil society to tackle the climate threat.

But so far the country has failed to halt the rise in carbon emissions, even though the pace has slowed. About 40 percent of industrial-era emissions have been released into the atmosphere since the treaty was signed.

By attending the annual summit, leaders typically aim to reaffirm their country’s commitment and hold each other accountable.
But COP30 is likely to see the lowest attendance of world leaders since 2019, when around fifty heads of state went to Madrid for COP25.

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