COP30 President Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago’s Speech (Transcription)

Good morning to everyone, and a very warm welcome to our wonderful Belém.

Mr. President of the Republic, Mrs. Janja Lula da Silva, special envoy for women to COP30.

Mr. President of the Senate, in whose name I greet all the parliamentarians who are so kind for being here today.

I would like to greet the Minister of Justice and, in his name, the ministers present here.

And, naturally, my dear Babayev, who had so many kind words regarding me, and my dear friend Simon, Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC.

I would also like to acknowledge a few more people, starting with the governor of Pará, Hélder Barbalho. It is wonderful to see your pride in being the governor of Pará, it is profoundly contagious.

I would also like to greet the governors present, as well as the mayors here with us, in the name of the mayor of Belém, who is also here with us.

The presence of governors and mayors is extremely important, because subnational entities have an absolutely essential role in implementing the decisions of the COPs.

The presence of all parliamentarians, together with the governors and the courts, demonstrates that Brazil is united around the agenda that COP30 will address.

I think it is very important that the world sees that there is, in Brazil, this unity of all institutions for an agenda that — as we know — will be exceptional for growth, for job creation, and for improving people’s lives.

I also want to thank all those who have worked tirelessly to make COP30 happen, from the planning — already two years and a bit ago — to all those who will remain here for hours in these meeting places until the very last moment.

I note that the preparation and all the coordination of COP30 have been in the hands of the Civil House, and Minister Rui Costa is here. I thank him and his entire team for the extraordinary commitment, of which I was a witness.

I also want to greet Brazil’s high-level champion, Dan Ioschpe; the youth champion, Marcela Oliveira; and mention the presidency circles of the COP, among which is Minister Sônia Guajajara, who chairs one of them.

I also greet the Brazilian and foreign special envoys who have accompanied me this year, and the members of the presidency councils of the COP.

Finally, dear friends, delegates who are present here:

I cannot begin without speaking of Brazil’s Minister of the Environment, Marina Silva — head of the Brazilian delegation, an inspiration to so many people in this world — and you may be sure: you are an immense inspiration for the Brazilian presidency of the COP.

It is a tremendous honor to assume the presidency of COP30.

I have 43 years of diplomatic experience, so I believe that I can understand the responsibility I have ahead, which is not small. Not only during the 12 days of the Conference, but throughout the 12 months ahead of me, as per the mandate as the President of COP.

In 1992, I was a young diplomat working in the organization of Rio 92 — the Conference on Environment and Development — where the Climate Convention was born, in Rio de Janeiro.

I was fascinated, at that time, by the subject, by its implications for Brazil, and by the possibilities it opened for Brazilian diplomacy.

I was also impressed by the talent of my negotiating colleagues, and their example, decades later, continues to accompany me.

I am the heir — very conscious of my limitations — of this tradition of serving Brazil.

I cannot express the pride I feel in serving my country.

I would like to pay tribute, at this moment, to all those colleagues who, before me, taught me to do the things that I will try to do here at this COP, under this presidency.

We are gathered here to try to change things.

I deeply believe that the human being is essentially good, but we also know that he is capable of terrible things, such as war, which, unfortunately, has again come close to so many people.

But human beings have done and continue to do extraordinary things, and the thought that we can improve people’s lives is what inspires us.

Despite recent setbacks, the living conditions of populations around the world can — and must — continue to improve.

Science, education, and culture are the path that we must follow.

And, for combating climate change, multilateralism is definitely the way.

As much as I may be suspected of speaking well of multilateral diplomacy, I will do so.

Let us remember that the Montreal Protocol, in two and a half decades, managed to eliminate 95% of the gases that caused the hole in the ozone layer — which is now being reconstituted.

Let us also remember that the Paris Agreement, ten years ago, arose at a time when it was expected that we would surpass 4°C of temperature increase.

Today we know that we have reduced it considerably — but we also know that we need to work much more to reduce it even further.

This is, therefore, a moment of several celebrations, but we must receive them with humility and realism, because there are still many things missing.

We are almost there, but we have much to do.

What has immensely changed my perception of this process was the issue of urgency.

I was trained in a tradition of defending the interests of a country — as everyone here — but the issue of urgency is the additional element, now so present, and which we are reminded of with great sadness, as, for example, this week, in Brazil, in Paraná, or in the Philippines, or a few weeks ago, in Jamaica.

We have an immense responsibility.

President Lula, I owe entirely to you being in this place now.

I still do not know very well why I was chosen — but perhaps it is because I could bring together an incredible team.

And with this team we will do, President, what you expect us to do, always counting on your help — but I believe that you can count on us.

During the period of mobilization, in the year of preparation for the COP, we managed to make a word of Indigenous Brazilian origin — mutirão — become known in all dictionaries.

And it is through the mutirão itself that we will be able to implement the decisions of this COP and of the previous ones.

We want — and we have already said it so many times, but it is necessary to repeat — that this be a COP that presents solutions.

The action agenda that we have structured for this COP, in which so many Brazilian ministers of state and other authorities will participate, will take place across multiple events of absolutely essential importance for the next steps.

The action agenda will show many paths.

This, therefore, is a COP of implementation.

I also hope that it will be remembered as a COP of adaptation, a COP that will advance the integration of climate with the economy, with activities, with job creation.

And, above all, a COP that will listen to — and believe in — science.

In this sense, President, thank you for having found the ideal formula to define this COP: the COP of Truth.

Thank you very much to everyone.

Distinguished delegates, I now declare open the thirtieth session of the Conference of the Parties, serving as its president.