A Global Task Force to Implement the Paris Agreement: Brazil’s Vision for COP30

In its fourth official letter to the international community, the Brazilian Presidency of COP30 unveiled an ambitious and innovative proposal: to transform the multilateral response to the climate crisis into a global mutirão — a collective and coordinated climate task force. Presented on June 20, 2025, during the UNFCCC intersessional meetings in Bonn, the document marks a new phase in Brazil’s climate diplomacy by proposing that the Belém Summit become a turning point — a moment of concrete, systemic, and inclusive implementation of the Paris Agreement.

Rather than launching new negotiations, Brazil’s presidency proposes a new global guidance framework, grounded in the outcomes of the first Global Stocktake (GST) and structured as a “Globally Determined Contribution (GDC)”. This vision aims to increase ambition, align global efforts, and mobilize both state and non-state actors around shared goals. In this architecture, the GST is no longer a retrospective report, but a collective compass guiding the implementation of climate commitments.

The Strategic Role of the COP Presidency and the Political Use of Letters

The publication of presidential letters has become a key diplomatic practice for COP Presidencies. While not legally binding, these letters serve critical political and procedural purposes:

First, they allow the Presidency to share its strategic vision with UNFCCC Parties and the wider international community. These letters clarify priorities, highlight negotiation dynamics, and promote alignment on core themes ahead of the summit.

Second, the letters provide space for engagement with non-state actors — such as civil society organizations, the private sector, Indigenous Peoples, youth, and academia — helping to broaden participation and democratize the climate process.

Third, these communications help build political legitimacy. As the presidency rotates annually, each host country must articulate its leadership role beyond national interests and act as a trusted facilitator of global consensus.

In the case of COP30, Brazil has embraced this diplomatic tool with increasing sophistication. The four letters published thus far reflect growing maturity and clarity of purpose, laying the groundwork for a COP that prioritizes delivery and participation. The idea of a “climate mutirão”, the structuring of the Action Agenda into six thematic pillars and 30 key objectives, and the innovation of the GDC reflect the presidency’s political commitment to implementation.

More than preparatory documents, these letters are calls to action, designed to mobilize constituencies, build consensus, and shape the agenda of a milestone climate conference.

Urgency, Science, and the Shift from Negotiation to Execution

Signed by Ambassador André Aranha Corrêa do Lago, Brazil’s designated COP30 President, the letter reaffirms that the science is clear, the frameworks already exist, and the world must now act with urgency. “We do not need new negotiations to begin implementing what has already been agreed,” he said in a press briefing.

The presidency proposes that the GST be elevated to the status of a globally shared climate contribution — a GDC — to guide collective efforts toward climate justice, ambition, and equity. This conceptual shift turns the GST into a practical guide not only for governments, but also for civil society, businesses, local authorities, and communities around the world.

Six Strategic Axes and 30 Key Objectives for Global Action

The COP30 Action Agenda is framed as a “granary of solutions”, structured around six thematic pillars:

1. Transitioning Energy, Industry, and Transport
2. Stewarding Forests, Oceans, and Biodiversity
3. Transforming Agriculture and Food Systems
4. Building Resilience for Cities, Infrastructure, and Water
5. Fostering Human and Social Development
6. Unleashing Enablers and Accelerators, including on finance, technology, governance, and capacity building

Under these six axes, the presidency identified 30 key objectives, framed as “super-leverage points” for systemic transformation. These include tripling global renewable energy capacity, phasing out fossil fuels in a just and equitable manner, halting deforestation, ensuring universal access to clean energy, investing in nature-based solutions, and integrating digital technologies, AI, and climate finance.

The presidency also proposes the creation of Activation Groups to bring together stakeholders under each objective — from governments and investors to grassroots organizations and scientific communities — promoting replicable, scalable, and financeable climate solutions.

The Mutirão as a Political Narrative: From Southern Brazil to the World

The letter draws on Brazil’s recent experience during the 2024 floods in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, where spontaneous community-led mutirão efforts brought together people, public institutions, and technologies to respond to a devastating climate emergency.

This real-world example of solidarity and mobilization becomes a symbol of what the Brazilian presidency seeks to replicate globally. The climate mutirão is not just a rhetorical device — it is a political framework grounded in collective action, multilevel coordination, and democratic participation. In this vision, climate action must transcend sectors and geographies, and unite the capacity of all.

Transparency, Accountability, and Climate Justice

The COP30 Action Agenda will incorporate a robust system for transparency and accountability, in line with the Paris Agreement’s Enhanced Transparency Framework. All voluntary initiatives under the Action Agenda are expected to be measurable, trackable, and results-driven.

Equally important is the emphasis on climate justice. The implementation of climate solutions must address historic inequalities and guarantee fair distribution of both the costs and benefits of the transition. Indigenous Peoples, vulnerable communities, women, youth, and the Global South must be prioritized and protected.

Aligning Ambition, Action, and Participation

The Brazilian presidency commits to working closely with the High-Level Climate Champions, Dan Ioschpe and Nigar Arpadarai, along with youth representatives, special envoys, and climate circles launched in earlier letters.

This coordination aims to transform the Action Agenda into a durable platform for climate implementation that goes beyond COP30. The presidency is also calling on existing coalitions, such as the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty (launched under Brazil’s G20 Presidency in 2024), to connect their efforts with the COP30 framework and offer scalable, evidence-based solutions.

Conclusion: Civil Society as the Cornerstone of Transformation

The fourth letter from Brazil’s COP30 presidency delivers a clear message: the implementation of the Paris Agreement will not happen without active and central participation from civil society.

Non-governmental organizations, youth networks, Indigenous Peoples, grassroots communities, women-led movements, universities, and local activists must be seen not as peripheral actors, but as co-creators of the global climate agenda.

Belém has the potential to become not only the COP of Implementation, but also the COP of Participation — a milestone where climate multilateralism is reinvigorated by democratic legitimacy, diversity of knowledge, and the power of organized people.

The mutirão moment is now. And there is no mutirão without the people.