Brazil, host of the next global climate summit, wants the European Union to set an earlier net-zero target.
With the United States expected to leave the Paris climate accord once Donald Trump takes office, pressure is growing on the EU to fill the void ahead of the landmark COP30 conference taking place next year in the Brazilian city of Belém.
Brazil’s climate chief Ana Toni told POLITICO that a perfect leadership opportunity for the EU would be to move forward its 2050 climate neutrality target. She suggested the revision could form part of the bloc’s new United Nations-mandated climate plan, the so-called nationally determined contribution (NDC), which is due next year.
“For us, Europe has been a leader on the climate issue,” she said in an interview on the sidelines of the ongoing COP29 summit in Azerbaijan. “For them to come with a very strong NDC and perhaps bringing an earlier date for their net-zero target, and on time, I think that’s a strong signal. I hope they will do so.”
Brazil’s COP30, which centers on delivering a fresh round of climate targets for 2035, is set to be the most consequential climate summit since the Paris conference in 2015.