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COP30 Evening Summary – November 12

Published on Nov 12, 2025 9:57 PM

Day 3: Wednesday, 12 November

Prepared by the COP30 Communications Team

Thematic Focus Areas: Health, Jobs, Education, Culture, Justice and human rights, Information integrity, and Workers

Summary Recap:

Empowering and Equipping People to Accelerate Progress

Day three at COP30 was defined by action and optimism — a reaffirmation that people, skills, and cultural heritage are at the heart of the climate transition. With a focus on equipping societies for change, the launch of the Global Initiative on Jobs & Skills for the New Economy set a powerful tone. Uniting governments, industries, and civil society, the initiative underscored how climate action can be a source of shared prosperity — with the potential to create over 650 million jobs in the coming decade. From Brazil to Kenya, early commitments signal that building human capacity is now central to building a resilient, low-carbon economy.

Empowerment also took shape through inclusivity. The Indigenous Adaptation event elevated ancestral knowledge and local governance as essential tools for national and global resilience, with new commitments to finance Indigenous-led projects directly. Meanwhile, the debut of Information Integrity on the COP agenda acknowledged the vital role of trust in climate communication. With six new member states joining the Global Initiative on Information Integrity, the day spotlighted how fighting disinformation is foundational to empowering people with truth — and protecting the integrity of collective action.

The spirit of collaboration extended to public and private sectors alike. The UNIDO/IDDI Plan on Sustainable Public Procurement and the Asset Owners Summit emphasized the systemic changes needed to align finance, industry, and policy. These initiatives linked just transition principles with tangible mechanisms — using trillions in public procurement and investor capital to favor low-carbon materials, fair labor, and inclusive growth. As COP30 President Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago reminded delegates, countries that embrace this transformation “will fit into the new economy in a more comfortable way.”

Finally, the day celebrated the role of culture, creativity, and intergenerational dialogue in sustaining momentum. Through Narratives and Storytelling to Face the Climate Crisis, artists, Indigenous leaders, and cultural ministers illustrated how identity, heritage, and imagination drive climate awareness and resilience. The Youth Climate Champions’ dialogue reinforced that progress must be intergenerational — built on justice, participation, and shared purpose. Together, these conversations shaped a powerful message: empowering people in all their diversity is not only the means but the measure of true climate progress.

Notable Actions and Outcomes:

  • Action Agenda:

    - Global Initiative on Jobs & Skills for the New Economy Launches
    ▪ The day began with the launch of the Global Initiative on Jobs & Skills for the New Economy, aimed at connecting governments, industry and civil society to integrate jobs and skills into economic and climate strategies.
    ▪ The group unveiled its Flagship Report today, outlining analysis for decision-makers in government, business, and civil society shaping countries’ transitions to a low-carbon, resilient economy. The report shows that the climate transition could create an estimated 375 million new jobs over the next decade and adaptation activities could generate an estimated 280 million jobs worldwide.
    ▪ The Global Initiative has been working closely with the SBCOP Working Group on Jobs and Skills in order to mobilize industry partnerships. Eight countries have already committed to work with the Initiative on the Action Plan: Brazil, Cambodia, Indonesia, Kenya, Pakistan, the Philippines, South Africa, and Egypt. Operationalization of the initiative, via the Plan to Accelerate Solutions, aims to bring together 20+ countries, 40+ institutions by 2028.

    - High-Level/Ministerial Event: Indigenous Adaptation
    ▪ Indigenous leaders from across regions exchanged experiences and best practices on adaptation planning methodologies and demonstrated how ancestral knowledge and local governance can shape national and global policy, including by being reflected in the indicator framework of the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA).
    ▪ The roundtable positioned Indigenous actors as crucial to elevating adaptation, reinforcing the importance of integrating indigenous voices and knowledge into climate negotiations and decision-making.
    ▪ The Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR) presented the 5 indigenous adaptation plans that it has developed so far, exploring how this innovative Brazilian experience can be replicated by indigenous peoples worldwide.

    - Information Integrity Features for First time, and Frequently, on COP Action Agenda
    ▪ The 2024 UN Risks Report identified mis/disinformation as a top global vulnerability - in this context, COP30 is the first COP featuring information integrity as a key-objective. Today, new member States announced adhesion to the Global Initiative for Information Integrity on Climate Change: Belgium, Canada, Finland, Germany, Spain and the Netherlands. 
    ▪ The day also marked the announcement of the 10 first projects to be funded by the Global Initiative worldwide, launch of the Declaration on Information Integrity on Climate Change open to the adhesion of members and non-members and of a Dialogue Roundtable that will last until COP 31, with relevant stakeholders and the digital companies on information integrity on climate change
    ▪ To accelerate implementation, the initiative is launching a plan towards 2028 aiming to:, (i) support over ten countries in developing new legal frameworks, (ii) mobilize USD 10 million through UNESCO’s Global Fund for Information Integrity on Climate Change, prioritizing the Global South, (iv) establish a Charter of Principles for Accountable Climate Advertising, to be adopted by fifteen or more leading publishers, digital platforms, and AI firms by 2028.

    - Harnessing Public Procurement to Drive Climate Action and a Just Transition
    ▪ UNIDO/IDDI launched a Plan to Accelerate Solutions around “Harnessing Public Procurement in High-Impact Sectors to Drive Climate Action and a Just Transition,” alongside the Belém Declaration on Sustainable Public Procurement, committing to use the multi-trillion dollar global public procurement market as a driver of climate action aiming at a just transition.
    ▪ It builds upon UNEP/10YFP’s Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) programme which includes departments and agencies of 19 governments from all regions and UNIDO’s Industrial Deep Decarbonisation Initiative (IDDI).
    ▪ Besides Brazil, three countries have confirmed participation—Mexico, Norway, and the Netherlands—while others are in active discussions.
    ▪ The initiative is different from a commitment of countries, it is a coordination among countries that already have specific policies for public procurement in different sectors to advance the potential of sustainable public procurement in prioritizing low emission cement, concrete and steel, fair labor, and inclusive action.

    - High-Level Event: Asset Owners Summit
    ▪ This high-level event convened asset owners, investors, development finance and corporate leaders to align on priority solutions, geographies, and effective policies that accelerate capital deployment into these markets and make the fiduciary case and narrative for transition finance.
    ▪ The event agreed to a set of key outputs / points of consensus to deliver a ‘read-out’ to Finance Ministers on Finance Day (Friday, Nov. 14) and inform the 5 year plan for the Global Climate Action Agenda.
    ▪ Additionally on climate finance, the fourth report of the High-Level Expert Group on Climate Finance (IHLEG) on delivering an integrated climate finance agenda. REad the report here.

    - Narratives and Storytelling to Face the Climate Crisis
    ▪ The event launched the Plan to Accelerate the Integration of Cultural Heritage into National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), led by the Group of Friends of Culture-Based Climate action aiming to (i) increase number of countries that explicitly include cultural heritage in their NAPs; (ii) establish operational guidance and tools for heritage-inclusive adaptation planning; and (iii) support planning in pilot countries.
    ▪ To illustrate how creative expression, ancestral wisdom, culture, and storytelling can transform awareness into action towards the 1.5°C goal, the panel “Narratives and Storytelling to Face the Climate Crisis” brought together Minister of Culture of Brazil Margareth Menezes, Janja Lula da Silva, first-lady and sociologist, Claudia Roth, former Minister of Culture of Germany, Member of Parliament and artist, Davi Kopenawa, Indigenous leader,  Klebber Toledo, actor and environmental activist, Kumi Naidoo, South African activist and former Secretary-General of Amnesty International, and Juliano Salgado, film director and co-director of The Salt of the Earth.

    "Art and culture are powerful bridges — they connect hearts, awaken awareness, and move people to action. Through art, we can transform emotion into strength and imagination into change. That is why culture must be at the center of the fight for our planet." "We will need everyone. This is the great collective movement of humanity — a union of art, science, and spirit to save our planet and our own lives. Because the Earth does not belong to us; it belongs to every generation that came before and every life that is yet to come."
    - Margareth Menezes, Minister of Culture, Brazil
  • Global Mobilization:

    - Youth Champions Host High-Level Dialogue on Intergenerational Leadership
    ▪ This high-level dialogue brought together youth leaders, government officials, and Indigenous and social movement representatives to ensure intergenerational perspectives shape the COP30 agenda. By connecting emerging and established voices, the event reinforces collaboration, inclusivity, and accountability in advancing climate solutions.

    “Beyond environmental racism, beyond injustice, we continue fighting—and we need young people in this fight.”
    - Marcele Oliveira, Youth Climate Champion of the COP30 Presidency

    - Maloca brings voices of justice, culture, and resilience to COP30:
    ▪ Maloca brings voices of justice, culture, and resilience to COP30. Today, the People’s Circle continued its live sessions on Maloca, featuring dialogues on racial justice, traditional knowledge, and community-led climate solutions. Highlights included the Opening Ritual of the Indigenous COP, led by Minister of Indigenous Peoples Sonia Guajajara, who underscored the role of Indigenous peoples and territories in achieving Brazil’s zero-deforestation goals and climate balance. The event, held in the Green Zone, featured live English subtitles to ensure inclusion of international participants. Other sessions in Maloca included an ICAT–UNFCCC discussion on NDC transparency, which brought together Global South representatives to strengthen cooperation and data transparency in climate reporting.
  • Negotiations:
    “We’re seeing a very good mood among the parties; we’ve also had very good interactions with the observers and interesting discussions. I think there is a strong indication that everybody who is here wants to show the world that multilateralism works and that we’re all together to prove that.”
    - Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago, COP30 President

What to Expect on Day 4:

Themes: Health, Jobs, Education, Culture, Justice and HR, Info Integration, Workers

  • 9:00AM - 7:00PM Day of Justice, Climate and Human Rights
  • 9:00AM - 12:00PM High-Level/Ministerial Event “Health and Climate Ministerial Meeting: The Belém Health Action Plan for the Adaptation of the Health Sector to Climate Change”
  • 12:30PM - 1:30PM Carbon Accounting
  • 3:00PM - 4:00PM Tropical Architecture: From Heritage to Action
  • 3:00PM - 6:00PM ACE Presidency Event - Empowering an Informed and Engaged Society for Effective Climate Action
  • 3:30PM - 6:30PM COP30 High-Level Ministerial Roundtable on Greening Education
  • 5:30PM - 6:30PM Integrity of Information and Climate Action in Brazil: Synergies Between Government and Civil Society
  • 6:00PM - 7:00PM Belem Climate Dialogue with Indigenous Peoples

For More Information:

Follow the COP30 WhatsApp Channel
Visit the COP30 Website

UNFCCC/COP30 Daily Events Schedule:
● COP 30 - Overview Schedule
● Belém Climate Summit Documents
● COP 30 - Main conference schedule
● Global Climate Action at COP 30 | UNFCCC
● Climate High-Level Champions Website
● Top of the COP Newsletter
● 2025 Action Agenda Granary of Solutions