Posted on October, 30 2025
As the world approaches a critical juncture in the fight against climate change, COP30 in Belém, Brazil, offers a pivotal opportunity to strengthen the UNFCCC Action Agenda. Originally launched to catalyse voluntary climate action by non-state actors and complement formal negotiations, the Action Agenda has become a vital platform for showcasing ambition, fostering collaboration, and accelerating implementation.
Yet, with the window to limit global warming to 1.5°C limit rapdily slipping away, there is a need to enhance the Action Agenda’s coherence, accountability, and impact has never been greater. COP30 could institutionalise and elevate this mechanism, making it a robust and enduring pillar of the international climate regime.
The Lima-Paris Action Agenda was conceived at COP20 in Lima in 2014 to bring businesses, subnational governments, academia and other non-state actors closer to the UN climate process. Its purpose was clear: harness the power of voluntary action to build momentum towards an ambitious Paris Agreement and support its implementation.
Since then, the Action Agenda has evolved. At COP26 in Glasgow, a five-year work plan was adopted to encourage more actors to set climate targets, organise sectors—including hard-to-abate ones—and make the process more resultsoriented. Now, COP30 marks the threshold of a third phase, with a new five-year plan designed to align global efforts with the Paris Agreement and amplify voices driving climate action worldwide.
This next phase must position the Action Agenda as a central driver of economic transformation. Climate action cannot remain peripheral; it must become the engine of economic progress. The Brazilian Presidency recognises this. In his Seventh Letter, COP30 President Designate André Aranha Correa do Lago emphasised the private sector’s indispensable role in implementing climate solutions.
The Global Stocktake (GST), approved at COP28, revealed the world is off track to limit warming to 1.5°C. COP30 will focus on implementing GST outcomes through six thematic axes, 30 objectives and 30 Activation Groups—collaborative bodies uniting diverse actors to accelerate progress. This approach is promising, but the question remains: how will these initiatives integrate into the Action Agenda’s next work plan?
To succeed, the Action Agenda must fulfil four roles: act as an economic broker, drive accountability, promote coherence across global efforts, and identify synergies with biodiversity goals. Strengthening links between the Action Agenda and COP processes is essential. Formal reporting to the COP Plenary would bring transparency and reinforce its role in steering the global economy towards net zero.
The ultimate goal? A manifesto that demonstrates how the economy is becoming climate-aligned—through regulations, market mechanisms, investor rules and consumer preferences. Addressing climate change is not just an environmental imperative; it is about competitiveness, development, jobs and poverty reduction. COP30 must deliver a disruptive outcome that firmly links climate action with economic progress.
COP30 is more than another climate summit—it is a turning point. By embedding the Action Agenda at the heart of economic transformation, we can move beyond pledges to real progress. The challenge is clear: make climate action synonymous with economic opportunity.
If we succeed, the Action Agenda will not just complement negotiations—it will redefine them, driving a future where prosperity and sustainability go hand in hand.
