Lula calls for a “mutirão”, a joint effort towards COP30 in Japan and Vietnam, stresses that decarbonization “is not a choice, but a necessity”

During his visits to Asian countries, President Lula emphasized the urgency of tackling the climate crisis: “The world is changing, and we human beings have a responsibility”.

From Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change

During his recent state visits to Japan and Vietnam, President Lula stressed the urgency of tackling the climate crisis and the need to decarbonize economies, calling for a “global COP30 effort to tackle climate change”.

On March 29, the president said: “In Brasil, we use the word 'mutirão' to refer to a great mobilization around a common goal. It is in this sense that we want to arrive in Belém. To achieve the Paris Agreement, all countries must adopt the most ambitious approach possible according to their development circumstances,” 

The Brazilian President and his delegation, made up of ministers, presidents of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies, and parliamentarians, were in the Vietnamese capital from March 27 to 29. From March 24 to 27, they visited Tokyo, Japan. The official trips were aimed at strengthening relations between Brasil and Asian countries in a range of areas.

In speeches over the past few days, Lula has emphasized environmental and climate agenda issues. The Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Marina Silva, was part of the delegation and stressed the President’s messages in her public speeches.

“If there are deniers who don't believe the world is in trouble, what we have seen in the last year is a demonstration that we are losing control of the world we live in, the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the place we live. This is a tangible reality that scientists do not need to talk about. We're seeing snow in the desert, water in the desert and drought in places where it used to rain,” the Brazilian leader said at a press conference at the end of his visit to Japan. “The world is changing, and we humans have a responsibility. And the countries that industrialized 250 years ago, 200 years ago, have more responsibility.”

According to the president, given the urgency of the climate crisis, COP30 must result in decisions that can be complied with and perceived by society as a sign that "the rulers of planet Earth are serious about committing themselves to ensuring that the planet does not warm more than 1.5ºC" compared to pre-industrial levels, the central goal of the Paris Agreement.

"We don't want a COP where it's a festival of people going back and forth, as if it's a shopping mall for climate products, environmental products, where everybody buys what they want, sells what they want, without any responsibility. What we want is a COP with a serious approach, with a long discussion and serenity," he said in an interview with journalists in Tokyo.

According to Lula, countries need to come up with "ambitious NDCs aimed at limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius." NDCs (Nationally Determined Contributions) are commitments made by nations under the Paris Agreement to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Countries must submit their NDCs with targets for 2035 before COP30 in Belém (PA) in November.

Leading by example, Brasil submitted its updated NDC to the UN in November 2024 during COP29 in Azerbaijan. In it, the country commits to reduce emissions of all greenhouse gases by 59%-67 % by 2035 compared to 2035 levels, covering all sectors of the economy.

For this reason, "decarbonization is not a choice, it is a necessity and a great opportunity," the president stressed in a speech at the end of the Brasil-Vietnam Economic Forum. "We have decades of experience in biofuels, which are low-cost alternatives for the automotive and aviation sectors, and even for electricity generation. There is potential for cooperation in wind and solar energy, as well as green hydrogen."  A few days earlier, at the Brasil-Japan Business Forum, he said, "Brasil will always be an ally in reducing the world's dependence on fossil fuels.

Bringing together Brazilian and Japanese leaders, Lula stressed at the end of the event that Brasil is "at the forefront of a global ethical balance to raise the climate ambition for Belém." The Global Ethical Balance, which he launched with the support of UN Secretary-General António Guterres, seeks to place the concepts of ethics, equity, and justice at the center of global climate action. In the run-up to COP30, the initiative will hold regional dialogues around the world, bringing together youth, scientists, religious and business leaders, artists, indigenous peoples, and traditional communities to mobilize global society around the 1.5°C goal.

Forests: zero deforestation by 2030 and financial mechanism for protection 

Lula also emphasized the agenda to fight deforestation. "We have already committed ourselves to zero deforestation in the Amazônia by 2030, we want to eliminate deforestation in the Cerrado, and in all Brazilian biomes, because it is the only chance we have to ensure that our people survive in the 21st century and enter the 22nd century drinking healthier water, with better basic sanitation and cleaner air to breathe," he declared.

With the resumption of environmental governance since the beginning of the government, there was a decrease of almost 46% in deforestation in the Amazônia from 2024 to 2022, according to the Prodes system of the National Space Research Institute (INPE). Last year, from August 2023 to July 2024, the decrease was 30.63% compared to the prior period. This is the largest percentage decrease in 15 years. In the Cerrado, the decrease from August 2023 to July 2024 was 25.7% compared to the period from August 2022 to July 2023, which is the first decrease in five years in the biome.

To further reduce deforestation, financial mechanisms are needed that value the conservation of standing forests. One of the key initiatives of the Brazilian government and the COP30 presidency in this regard is the Tropical Forests Forever Fund (TFFF). "Vietnam can benefit from the Tropical Forests Forever Fund, proposed by Brasil, and be rewarded for its efforts to protect the environment," the President said in Hanoi. "Its goal is to generate a permanent flow of financial support to tropical countries that, like Brasil and Vietnam, preserve their forests for the benefit of all humanity."

Developed by the Ministries of Environment and Climate Change (Ministério do Meio Ambiente e Mudança Climática/MMA), Finance (Ministério da Fazenda/MF), and Foreign Affairs (Ministério das Relações Exteriores/MRE), the TFFF will award countries that have a track record of protecting their tropical forests based on satellite monitoring. The federal government is working to raise USD 125 billion and launch the TFFF during COP30. At least 20% of the funds will be allocated to indigenous and traditional peoples and communities who are on the frontlines of forest conservation.

Brazilian Visit

Brasil's state visit to Japan resulted in the signing of ten agreements and 80 cooperation instruments between the two nations, following a series of agenda items by the President and his entourage in the Asian country. Minister Marina Silva and Japanese Environment Minister Keiichiro Asao signed a memorandum aimed at strengthening technical and financial cooperation to promote sustainable development in both countries.

The agreement covers several strategic areas, such as actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (mitigation) and adapt to climate change, including early warning systems for extreme weather events; biodiversity conservation; pollution control; sustainable waste management; promotion of the circular economy; access to genetic resources and sharing of benefits resulting from their use; marine environment; and management of forest, coastal and marine ecosystems.

In Vietnam, Lula and President Luong Cuong signed the Action Plan for the Implementation of the Strategic Partnership, which outlines priorities for bilateral relations in areas such as defense, economy, trade and investment, agriculture and food security, science, technology and innovation, environment and sustainability, energy transition, and socio-cultural cooperation and consular affairs. The Strategic Partnership aims to deepen political dialogue, strengthen economic cooperation, increase trade and investment flows, improve coordination on issues on the multilateral agenda, and promote new cooperation initiatives.

English version: Trad. Bárbara Menezes

Proofreading by Enrique Villamil