Brazil Climate summit without decision on exit plan for coal, oil and gas
Despite more than 19 hours of extra time, the World Climate Conference in Brazil was unable to agree on a binding plan for moving away from oil, coal and gas. In Belém, the 200 or so countries only agreed on a voluntary initiative to accelerate the climate protection efforts of the states.
22.11.2025, 18:01
SDA
Oil, coal and gas are not included
Federal Environment Minister Carsten Schneider (SPD) expressed his "slight disappointment" and said that the oil states had prevented more ambitious resolutions with a "blockade". There is no mention of fossil fuels in the central final document, nor are oil, coal and gas explicitly mentioned - except in the term "greenhouse gases".
It was decided that rich countries would significantly increase their climate aid to poorer countries to help them adapt to the consequences of global warming. Specifically, there is talk of a threefold increase by 2035. Financial expert Jan Kowalzig from Oxfam criticized the fact that "no base year for the tripling and no concrete amount" is mentioned. The amount is likely to be well below the 120 billion US dollars per year demanded by the developing countries.
German government and allies could not get their way
The German government, as part of a broad alliance of around 80 countries, had campaigned for the more tangible goal of a roadmap for phasing out coal, oil and gas, but was unable to achieve this. At the climate conference in Dubai two years ago, the global community had already decided to move away from these fossil fuels - but contrary to hopes, no details were given in Belém as to when and how this should happen.
Nevertheless, Environment Minister Schneider emphasized with regard to the withdrawal of the USA from the Paris Climate Agreement: "The decisive factor is that the world is sitting at the table", even if a major player is no longer there.
Belly landing for Brazil
For Brazil, the result is a belly landing. At the start of the conference at the beginning of last week, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva declared that roadmaps were needed to enable humanity to overcome its dependence on fossil fuels and to halt and reverse deforestation. This had raised high expectations among many summit participants.
Although the conference location on the edge of the Amazon, which is important for the global climate, was deliberately chosen symbolically by Brazil, the conference did not adopt a concrete "forest action plan" to curb the destruction of forests. It merely recalled an earlier resolution to halt deforestation by 2030.
New fund to help preserve rainforest
What the hosts can present is a new fund to protect the rainforest, for which Germany is providing one billion euros over a period of ten years. Countries that preserve their forests are to be rewarded according to the new model. Conversely, they are to pay a penalty for every hectare of forest destroyed.
The megacity of Belém on the edge of the rainforest posed challenges for the tens of thousands of guests from all over the world over the past two weeks - and not just because of a shortage of hotel beds, which were filled by cruise ships and private accommodation.
The outside world was rarely as noticeable at a climate conference as it was in Brazil: on several occasions, the hall-sized tents could not withstand the heavy tropical downpours and it dripped into the corridors. During the final spurt, a fire even broke out for unknown reasons and drove everyone out onto the streets. The COP, as the climate conference is called in UN jargon, was on fire, just like the world, activists promptly said.
Indigenous activists stormed the site
Indigenous people were more strongly represented at the Amazon COP than ever before. Nevertheless, many indigenous groups knew how to take advantage of the global publicity: One evening, a number of indigenous activists stormed the secured site, a few days later a group blocked the entrance in the morning - in the fight for more say and land rights.
The external pressure was a clear contrast to previous climate conferences in authoritarian states such as Azerbaijan and Egypt. The highlights of the protests in Belém were a "People's Summit" lasting several days on the university grounds and a huge, colorful march of tens of thousands for more climate protection.
1.5 degree limit is temporarily exceeded
Rapid action is necessary in view of the escalating climate crisis. After all, burning oil, gas and coal produces the most climate-damaging greenhouse gases, which are causing the planet to heat up more and more. The ten warmest years since records began were the last ten.
Scientists now assume that the maximum global warming of 1.5 degrees targeted in the Paris Climate Agreement compared to pre-industrial times will be exceeded for at least a limited period of time, and by the early 2030s at the latest. The drastic consequences would be more and more severe storms, forest fires, droughts and floods.
