Brazil’s president is promoting a “roadmap” away from fossil fuel use, but countries remain divided on key issues.
Published November 20, 2025
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has called for a show of unity at the COP30 summit, with the US’ absence highlighting the need for more cooperation to tackle the climate crisis.
Lula and UN Secretary-General António Guterres met with key figures at a climate change summit in Belem, Brazil, on Wednesday to seek an agreement that would bridge the controversial issue.
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“We need to show society that we want this without imposing anything on anyone and without giving deadlines for each country to decide what it can do in its own time and within its own possibilities,” Lula told reporters. Countries must find a common “roadmap” on climate action.
But Brazil’s leaders, who have positioned themselves as major advocates of both climate action and greater cooperation among non-Western countries, have struggled to bridge gaps on issues such as fossil fuel use and climate financing.
Scientists have warned that failing to quickly transition away from fossil fuel use could lead to disastrous changes to the Earth’s ecosystems, a dangerous increase in extreme weather events around the world, and leave poorer countries more vulnerable to severe impacts.
“The Roadmap is not a workshop or a ministerial meeting. It is a real work plan that needs to show us the path from where we are to where we want to go, and how we will get there,” said the letter from seven prominent scientists, including those advising the COP30 Presidency.
While the US decision not to attend the climate change summit looms large, other influential countries are also hesitant to commit to ambitious goals.
Some countries, such as India, have criticized the inaction of rich countries, which account for the lion’s share of cumulative emissions, and are facing calls from poorer countries to lower barriers to advances in renewable technologies.
“Climate change is no longer a distant phenomenon, but something real and urgent,” Indian Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said in remarks at a conference on Monday. Yadav suggested India could submit its climate change plan in December, rather than the self-imposed deadline at the end of the conference.
