Latin American leaders set the agenda for COP30: launch of the publication “The power of cities: Latin America’s call to action at COP30”
At the Local Leaders Forum, Latin American leaders reaffirm their commitment to local climate action in their cities.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – In a clear message of action and commitment, the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy Latin America has launched a publication featuring more than 100 climate projects currently underway, demonstrating the urgency and innovation with which local governments are responding to the global climate crisis. This action comes on the eve of COP30 (30th United Nations Climate Change Conference), to be held in Belém, Pará, Brazil, in November 2025.
The initiative highlights the fundamental role of local authorities as the first line of response to the crisis, translating global goals into concrete, multisectoral solutions that directly benefit their communities.
Tangible projects and local solutions
The publication includes mitigation, adaptation, energy transition, food security, citizen participation, and social inclusion actions in cities such as Despeñaderos (AR), San Justo (AR), Salvador (BR), Serra Talhada (BR), Renca (CL), Vitacura (CL), Cartagena de Indias (CO), La Estrella (CO), Belén (CR), Oreamuno (CR), Ambato (EC), Manta (EC), Guadalajara (MX), Coronel Portillo/Pucallpa (PE), and San Isidro (PE). These examples show that local leadership is essential to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement.
Launch at the COP30 Local Leaders Forum: a strategic choice
The publication is part of the announcements from the Local Leaders Forum, co-organized by the COP30 Presidency and Bloomberg Philanthropies. This forum brought together hundreds of mayors, governors, and regional leaders from around the world to:
- Accelerate climate action: showcase how subnational governments are achieving measurable progress on climate goals.
- Anchor the COP30 Global Task Force: shift the focus from negotiation to action by connecting local initiatives with global results.
- Position local leadership: held just before the COP30 World Leaders Summit, the Forum puts local leaders at the center of the international climate agenda, reinforcing their role in implementing the action agenda.
A unified platform for multilevel implementation
The meeting served as a platform for important meetings over three days, including the C40 World Mayors Summit, the Amazon Cities Forum, the Global Summit of States and Regions, the General Assembly of Brazil’s FNP, and the America Is All In Solutions Exchange.
To culminate successfully, the Forum featured the Local Climate Action Summit, which brought together local and national leaders to chart the next phase of implementation towards COP30 and beyond, and where a Final Declaration of Local Leaders to COP30 was presented. This declaration affirms an unwavering commitment to fighting the climate crisis with real and concrete solutions, demonstrating that multilevel action is the key to climate ambition.
A decade of local climate leadership
This momentum builds on more than a decade of advocacy for the role of subnational governments, which began with the call by UN Special Envoy Michael R. Bloomberg and Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes for cities to have a seat at the table at Rio+20 in 2012. The Forum celebrates ten years since the Climate Summit for Local Leaders at COP21, which inspired the Paris Agreement, and capitalizes on the success of the Local Climate Action Summit (LCAS) at COP28 in Dubai, where initiatives such as the Coalition for High Ambition Multi-Level Partnerships (CHAMP) were launched.
The presentation of this portfolio of more than 100 projects in Latin American cities highlights that, on the road to Belém, action is already underway and local leaders are the indispensable catalysts for a sustainable future.
About COP30: The 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference will be held in November 2025 in Belém, Pará, Brazil, a crucial event for the global debate on emissions reduction, adaptation, and climate finance.
