‘Just Transition Must Make Climate Work for People Living its Consequences’

An open letter by more than 1,000 organizations from 106 countries, including trade unions, Indigenous leaders, feminist and youth movements, Afro-descendants, peasant groups, environmental advocates, disability networks and community organizations, to all States Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is calling for a people-centered Just Transition.

Belém’s Hunger, Poverty Declaration Places World’s Most Vulnerable Populations at Centre of Global Climate Policy

A young woman at COP30 speaks about retracing her father’s footsteps. At only 16, her father and her grandfather were among the first families displaced by an unfolding climatic crisis of erratic weather and worsening climate conditions that goes on to date from their ancestral village in Sundarbans. Nearly 60 years later, she is on a mission to reclaim her ancestral lands.

We’re All in the Same Storm, Different Boats, Says Young Activist With Disability

At the UN Climate Conference venue in Belém, young activist João Victor da Costa da Silva is trying to make his case heard by negotiators. The 16-year-old Da Silva has a specific request for the parties: the needs of young people with disabilities should be addressed through the lens of climate justice.

Brazil is Breathing Life into Climate Commitments—Human Rights Lawyer

Binaifer Nowrojee, a human rights lawyer and the president of the Open Society Foundations (OSF), has lauded the Brazilian government “for significant steps taken to breathe life into the climate commitments.”

Poor Countries Welcome Loss and Damage Fund’s Call for Requests, Warn It Falls Short of Needs

Least Developed Countries have hailed the debut call for proposals for the Loss and Damage Fund, which was launched on 11 November at the United Nations climate summit known as COP30 in Belem, Brazil.

Without Truth, There Can Be No Climate Justice—Experts

Concerned scientists at the UN climate conference in Belém are appealing for collective action to combat climate change-related misinformation and disinformation.

Demonstrators Face-Off With Security as COP30 Activism Intensifies

In a departure from the past three COPs, in Egypt, Dubai and Azerbaijan, there have been increasingly intense demonstrations from activists at the COP30 venue in Belém, the capital of the northern Brazilian state of Pará.

Indigenous Knowledge Holders Want to Be Acknowledged

Generational lived experiences are key to confronting and living with a changing climate, say Indigenous knowledge holders and activists at the UN Climate Conference (COP30). As the first COP to be held in the Amazon region, in Belém, representatives of Indigenous communities reiterated the importance of generationally transferred knowledge and skills to adapt to and mitigate the threats posed by climate change.

Syria’s Fragile Transition Threatened by Severe Aid Shortfalls and Increasing Abductions, UN Warns

Eleven months after the fall of the Assad regime, Syria continues to grapple with severe instability as the country navigates a turbulent political transition. Rates of displacement have surged, and humanitarian organizations are struggling to support large numbers of refugees returning home. In recent weeks, the United Nations (UN) has documented numerous cases of enforced disappearances and abductions, calling for stronger accountability measures as the transition continues to unfold.

COP30’s Crossroads: To Accelerate Implementation or Make More Promises?

“Devastating climate damages are happening already, from Hurricane Melissa hitting the Caribbean, Super Typhoons smashing Vietnam and the Philippines to a tornado ripping through Southern Brazil,” said Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of UN Climate Change, on the eve of COP30 in the Amazonian City of Belém. “This is why COP must achieve three things: It must send a clear signal: nations are fully on board for climate cooperation—that means agreeing to strong outcomes on all the key issues.”

‘We Want a Place at the Negotiation Table’ — Indigenous Leader

Indigenous leaders from across the Amazon region are calling on climate negotiators to base climate initiatives on the recognition of the land rights of affected Indigenous communities. From the COP30 venue in Belém, these leaders are demanding full participation in the design and implementation of proposed projects.

A Lesson for Pakistan in Indian Sweet Syrup Death

When 23 children died in India’s Madhya Pradesh after consuming contaminated cough syrup in early September, the news barely registered across the border. In Pakistan—where self-medication is rampant and syrup bottles are household staples—the tragedy strikes dangerously close to home.

Displaced Farmers in Southern Lebanon Still Denied Access to Land

Food security and livelihoods in southern Lebanon are under severe threat as the repercussions of Israeli bombing continue to be felt across the region, a report released today (NOV 10) has warned.

Turning Indigenous Territories From ‘Sacrifice’ Zones to Thriving Forest Ecosystems

A report by the Global Alliance of Territorial Communities (GATC) and Earth Insight paints a stark picture of how extractive industries, deforestation, and climate change are converging to endanger the world’s last intact tropical forests and the Indigenous Peoples who protect them.

Mayor Mamdani for New York, for Multicultural Dignity

The New York City mayoral elections captured the world’s attention with an excitement normally reserved for the United States presidential elections. It all culminated on Tuesday night with Zohran Mamdani’s decisive victory, signaling that hope was emerging after a period of anxiety and uncertainty for the United States. Zohran Mamdani will represent and govern New York City, one of the world’s wealthiest and most high-profile cities.

US Skips High-Level Presence at COP30 Climate Summit

“Has the world given up fighting climate change?” was a rhetorical question posed recently by the New York Times, perhaps with a degree of sarcasm. It might look that way, says Christiana Figueres, a founding partner of the nongovernmental organization Global Optimism, “as US president Donald Trump blusters about fossil fuel, Bill Gates prioritizes children’s health over climate protection, and oil and gas companies plan decades of higher production.”

What’s Now Needed is Political Courage, Says UN SG Guterres at COP30

Political courage is the biggest obstacle to limiting the rise in global average temperature to no more than 1.5°C, said UN Secretary-General António Guterres. 

Global Emissions Falling Too Slowly, Expert Urges Renewables Push, Fair Finance

A decade has passed since the adoption of the Paris Agreement, and a United Nations synthesis report released ahead of COP30 in Belém shows that "Parties are bending their combined emission curve further downwards, but still not quickly enough."

Hurricane Melissa Devastates The Caribbean As The UN Distributes Lifesaving Aid

In late October, Hurricane Melissa, a powerful Category 5 storm, made landfall in the Caribbean, causing catastrophic damage to civilian infrastructure and a devastating loss of life. Humanitarian agencies have mobilized on the ground to deliver urgent assistance to affected communities facing widespread destruction of homes, mass displacement, fatalities, and severe shortages of essential services, including food, water, medicine, shelter, and electricity.

Power-Sharing —Boomers and Gen Z Face Off at the ICSW

The message is clear: today’s youth are not “wishy-washy.” They are not just the future—they are the present, full partners in shaping it, and “power-sharing” is the new mantra. The veterans of activism are being reminded not merely to listen but to hear and to leave their egos at the door.

Deliver Emission Cuts, or Risk Locking the World Into ‘Catastrophic Warming’

The world is falling dangerously short of meeting the Paris Agreement goals, with global greenhouse gas emissions rising to record levels and current national pledges still far off the mark, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) said in its Emissions Gap Report 2025: Off Target.