The COP30 United Nations climate change summit

Aerial view of Belém, host city for COP30, with the Amazon River in the background. (Credit: Paralaxis/istock)

The 30th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, known as COP30 will be held in Belém, Brazil, from 10 to 21 November 2025.

Some of the key areas of discussion at COP30 are likely to include implementing updated national climate plans (NDCs), reviewing progress on the Global Stocktake, advancing climate finance, and ensuring a just transition away from fossil fuels.

In the lead up to, and during COP30, staff from the Grantham Research Institute, the Centre for Economic Transition Expertise (CETEx), the TPI Global Transition Centre and the Just Transition Finance Lab will be taking part in events and publishing reports and articles related to topics under discussion at the summit. This page will be regularly updated in the lead up to and during COP30.

News and commentaries

Turning promises into progress: why NDCs need clear implementation plans – June 2025

Pre-COP30 events

21 October 2025

From headwinds to pathways: navigating just transition finance ahead of COP30

This event marks the launch of the report Headwinds and Structural Constraints: Mapping forces challenging just transition finance.

27 October 2025

Unlocking climate action opportunities: progress amid geopolitical turbulence

This event will serve as a timely preview of the upcoming UN Climate Conference (COP), offering insights into where meaningful progress can be made on international climate action.

5 November 2025

The growth story of the 21st century: the economics and opportunity of climate action

This event marks the publication of a new book by Professor Lord Nicholas Stern in which he challenges the outdated idea that we must choose between climate action and development. During this lecture Nicholas Stern will call on leaders, businesses, and individuals alike, ahead of the COP30 climate change summit to take the future in their hands, and recognise that delay is the riskiest option of all.

Events at COP30

Accelerating climate implementation: scaling action through NDCs and technology development and transfer

Wednesday 12 November 2025
15:00-16:30 (local time/GMT-3)

Venue: Side Event Room 6, Hangar Convention and Exhibition Centre, Belém, Brazil

This session will focus on accelerating climate policy implementation through data and advanced tools (including a scalable digital tool for Brazil) and the improvement of the UNFCCC’s Technology Mechanism, featuring the role of climate technology development and transfer.

Speakers:

Dr Michal Nachmany (CEO and Founder, Climate Policy Radar)
Dr Joana Setzer (Associate Professor Grantham Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, London School of Economics)
Marcelo Poppe (Leader of projects, LaClima)
To be confirmed: Pedro Ivo (Coordinator, Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
Marcelo Poppe (Leader of projects, Center for Management and Strategic Studies)

Tracking corporate and national climate action for investors

Wednesday 12 November 2025
17:00-17:45 (local time/GMT-3)

Venue: Finnish Pavilion, Hangar Convention and Exhibition Centre, Belém, Brazil

This event will begin with a presentation of the TPI Global Climate Transition Centre’s climate assessment tools to evaluate the performance and 1.5C alignment of companies and countries. The presentation will include an overview of the key findings of our latest flagship reports: State of the Corporate Transition 2025and State of the Sovereign Transition 2025 (forthcoming). The public and private sectors must take coordinated action to reduce emissions to net zero and greater focus on the intersection and synergies between corporate and national transition planning will be key.

A panel including international perspectives will discuss the findings of these two reports and discuss how transition planning, including at the sectoral level, can be coordinated across stakeholders. This event will inform attendees about how governments and companies are planning to implement their climate goals, drawing on the TPI Centre’s data, while exploring the ways in which these complementary analyses can inform each other.

Speakers:

Anna Salminen, Chief Specialist, Finland Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
Rahul Ghosh, Global Head of Sustainable Finance, Moody’s
Kate Ryan, Strategic Partnerships Manager, International Transition Plan Network (ITPN)
Moderator: Antonina Scheer, Policy Fellow, TPI Centre at LSE

Investing in sovereign climate action: Outlook from COP30

Friday 14 November 2025
09:00-10:00 (local time/GMT-3)

Venue: Korean Pavilion, Hangar Convention and Exhibition Centre, Belém, Brazil

This session will spotlight the TPI Global Climate Transition Centre’s “State of the Sovereign Transition 2025” report alongside the release of the latest sovereign assessment data for 85 countries on the Assessing Sovereign Climate-related Opportunities and Risks (ASCOR) tool.

Following a presentation on the latest developments in sovereign climate action, with a focus on Korea and its regional peers, panellists will explore the policies and governance structures needed to make Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) investable and accelerate transition finance flows. They will also reflect on the ongoing COP30 negotiations and how they may shape the next decade of investment opportunities. Insights from academic research combined with practitioners’ perspectives will foster an open dialogue among decision makers driving the low-carbon transition.

Speakers:

Claudia Gollmeier, Head of Investment Management APAC & MEA, Managing Director, Singapore, Colchester Global Investors; Chair, the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) Sovereign Debt Advisory Committee; Co-Chair, ASCOR
Peter van der Werf, Head of Active Ownership, Robeco
Sang Hyun Kwak, Director, Future Vision and Strategy Division, Korea Ministry of Economy and Finance
Mathilde Mesnard, Deputy Director, Environment Directorate, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Moderator: Antonina Scheer, Policy Fellow, TPI Centre at LSE

Corporate net zero accountability: how do we get there?

Australian Pavilion, COP30, Belém, Brazil
Friday 14 November 2025, 3:00pm-3:50pm

How can governments combat greenwashing and enhance high-integrity corporate and financial climate efforts? What tools and mechanisms can help move beyond target-setting towards implementation? Accountability mechanisms are an emerging area of climate policy that seek to turn climate commitments into net zero delivery. Building on insights from the Taskforce on Net Zero Policy’s second report (formally launched at COP30 on 11 November 2025), this panel will discuss key policy developments and regulatory trends.

Panel members:

Jacqueline Peel (moderator) Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor and Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellow, University of Melbourne.
Helena Viñes Fiestas,  Commissioner of the Spanish Financial Markets Authority and Chair the EU Platform on Sustainable Finance, Spanish Financial Markets Authority and Co-chair of the Taskforce on Net Zero Policy.
Nathan Fabian,  Co-chair of the Taskforce on Net Zero Policy and Chief Responsible Investment Officer, Principles for Responsible Investment.
Ciyong Zou (TBA),  Deputy to the Director-General and Managing Director of the Directorate of Technical Cooperation and Sustainable Industrial Development, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
Joana Setzer,  Associate Professorial Research Fellow at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at LSE.
Kaya Axelsson, Head of Policy and Partnerships at Oxford Net Zero.