Nairobi, Kenya – As the third round of UN Tax Convention negotiations concludes today, Greenpeace is calling on countries to step up their ambition and deliver a robust and ambitious treaty that can finally set fairer and more equitable global tax rules.[1]
Nina Stros, Senior Policy Expert, Greenpeace International and Head of Greenpeace delegation said: “The deeper we go into the UN Tax Convention negotiations, the more evident it becomes that stronger, unwavering commitment is needed in order to deliver a fairer and more equitable international tax system for sustainable development. Without effective global tax cooperation, the super-rich and polluting corporations are let off the hook for their climate damages while avoiding paying their fair share of taxes. It is the people who are picking up the tab.”
“Negotiators need to maintain cohesion and solidarity in order to avoid the tax convention process slipping back to the failing status quo. As a delegate to the UN Tax Convention rightly noted, if we didn’t need a new way of doing things, we wouldn’t be here.”
Greenpeace is calling on countries that have already expressed political support for increasing the contributions of high-net-worth individuals and major polluters to translate that support into concrete proposals within this process. While Greenpeace welcomes the positive discussions on sustainable development, with some countries proposing stronger language on a need to integrate the polluter pays principle into the article on sustainable development, countries must raise overall ambition in their written submission expected by December 5th.
Fred Njehu, Fair Share Global Political Lead, Greenpeace Africa, said: “It is clear the current global tax system is unfair and unjust – we are on the brink of the world’s first trillionaire while public services everywhere are being cut due to a lack of funding. This has to change. Countries must back up their public pledges to tax the super-rich and major polluters by participating constructively in the negotiations. While that follow-through is currently lacking, there’s still time to accelerate progress, cultivate political will and bring more pragmatism, commitment and bold approaches to the negotiating table.”
“Over at COP30 in Belém, countries are debating how to transition away from fossil fuels, end forest destruction and assure adequate climate finance, when the UNTC – if negotiated with ambition – could actually be a space to unlock missing trillions in public funds for climate action, nature protection and public services. No country can afford to ignore this historic opportunity for agreeing on a global tax system that can finally put people and the planet first.”
On 8 November, hundreds of volunteers from Greenpeace Africa formed a giant human banner in the shape of the African continent and displayed a printed message Tax the Super-rich for People and Planet to demand urgent tax reform at the UN Tax Convention negotiations. Greenpeace International had taken up a billboard in Nairobi presenting a giant bill and asking for negotiators to make polluters pay.
Belém, Brazil – Brazilian artivist Mundano delivered, in partnership with Greenpeace a striking art installation to demand world leaders take bold action for forests at COP30, today. Mundano wrote the message “COP30: Rise for Forests” with transparent ink, and used ashes taken from forest fires in the Amazon to reveal the text. The ashes used in the performance were taken from the Anambé Indigenous land, near Belém, in 2024, when the territory was impacted by forest fires.
Carolina Pasquali, Executive Director, Greenpeace Brazil said: “Time is running out at COP30. We cannot leave this COP with symbolic gestures, voluntary commitments or vague promises. We need a concrete, time-bound action plan to end deforestation in all forests by 2030. The Global Stocktake at COP28 recognised this goal, but recognition is not action. This artwork stands here today as a warning and an invitation to negotiators, ministers and governments: the future is burning, and the world is watching. Deliver real action now.”
Mundano, Brazilian artivist said: “Human greed is turning entire ecosystems into ashes, and that is unacceptable. I have walked through burned forests, and the sadness there is profound. That is why, for the past four years, I have been bringing these ashes as a cry to turn burned forests into standing ones.”
At COP 30, Greenpeace and WWF are calling for a new, dedicated 5-year Forest Action Plan to halt and reverse deforestation and forest degradation by 2030.
Mauricio Voivodic, Executive Director, WWF-Brazil said: “Mundano turns into art a warning that science, Indigenous Peoples and traditional communities have been sounding for decades: without protecting native vegetation, we jeopardise the very continuity of life on Earth. The Amazon is on the brink of a tipping point — a moment after which forest loss becomes irreversible — and there is no room left for hesitation. In the coming days, Parties must show real commitment and deliver an ambitious, concrete and urgent roadmap to end deforestation and the conversion of native forests by 2030.”
Mundano is a Brazilian artivist and advocate for environmental and human rights causes. In recent years, he has been collecting residues from some of the biggest environmental crimes in Brazil, creating his own paint from toxic mud, ashes from forest fires, and oil spilled on the beaches of Brazil’s Northeast. Through his artivism, he works to fight the climate emergency.
The world’s shared promise to limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels is hanging by a thread. The 2024 global temperature exceeded the 1.5°C threshold for the first time, and scientists now warn that we may temporarily overshoot this critical limit in the years ahead. This is not the moment to surrender. It is the moment to act.
There is no climate cliff at 1.5°C and no single point of no return, but there is no safe level of warming either. Every fraction of a degree avoided means lives, cultures, and ecosystems preserved. Each tonne of carbon we prevent from entering the atmosphere and each hectare of forest we protect could mean the difference between safety and devastation for millions of people.
July 2025, Quezon City, The Philippines. As residents brace for the impacts of upcoming storm Emong (international name: Co-May) and another low pressure area, many are using the limited time to clean and organise what’s left of their flood-damaged homes.
We’re midway through one of the most important COPs in years and governments must seize the moment to deliver a Global Response Plan that closes the 1.5°C ambition gap, phases out fossil fuels, ends deforestation, and ensures that those most responsible for the crisis finally pay for the damage they have caused.
The threat is real and the difference between 1.5°C and 3°C is enormous
The world remains on a dangerous path. Currently, we’re facing a predicted global temperature rise of up to 2.5°C by the end of the century. That would mean mass displacement, severe food and water shortages, irreversible ecosystem collapse, and unbearable heat across large parts of the planet.
We are already seeing a glimpse of this future. Unprecedented heatwaves, floods, wildfires, and droughts are devastating lives and livelihoods across every continent. For the most climate-vulnerable communities, a fraction of a degree can decide whether families can remain on ancestral land or are forced to flee.
In the 10th anniversary year of the Paris Agreement, Greenpeace constructed an Eiffel Tower replica made up of cardboard boxes in the COP30 venue with the sign ‘Fragile. Handle With Care’ to symbolise how the 1.5°C limit agreed in Paris is under threat.
The solutions are known and achievable. To keep 1.5°C within reach, the world must phase out coal, oil and gas, and end deforestation once and for all.
Fossil fuels are the single biggest driver of climate chaos. Governments must agree to a fair and fast phase-out, while ensuring a just transition for workers and communities. The fossil fuel industry has known about its destructive impact for decades and continues to profit while pushing false solutions such as carbon capture and offsets that delay real change. These distractions cannot replace urgent emission cuts.
As Shell announces record profits an electric advan in London is showing images of the damage caused by Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica. The images raise awareness that the biggest polluters continue to profit while ordinary people bear the brunt of the costs of these climate disasters. It’s time to hold Shell accountable and demand they pay for the damage they’ve caused.
At COP30, governments must agree on a five-year Forest Action Plan to protect and restore forests and other vital ecosystems while upholding Indigenous Peoples’ and local communities’ rights. Protecting forests is protecting our collective future.
The Paris Agreement was built on solidarity, fairness, and shared responsibility. Its 1.5°C limit represents a global safety aspiration for people and the planet. Yet too many governments are failing to meet their own promises.
Meanwhile, the corporations that have driven this crisis—the fossil fuel giants, industrial agribusinesses, and financial institutions that bankroll them—must be held accountable. Polluters must pay for the damage they have caused, and governments must ensure that public money supports solutions, not destruction.
At COP30, countries must now come together to deliver a global response plan to bridge the 1.5°C ambition gap, phase out fossil fuels and close the gap between words and deeds. The world is watching.
Hopelessness only serves those who profit from destruction. The real power to change course lies with people: in Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities defending their forests, in young people taking to the streets, and in movements demanding justice and accountability.
Organized by the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (Apib), the march brought together Indigenous people and activists this Monday, 17 November, in the streets of Belém, the host city of COP30. Carrying the message “We Are the Answer,” the demonstration marked “Indigenous Peoples’ Day at COP30,” promoting climate debate and the defense of the rights and territories of Indigenous peoples.
Hope is not naïve optimism. It is courage in motion. Across the world, renewable energy is growing faster than ever, Indigenous leaders are protecting their territories, and courts are delivering landmark rulings holding governments to account. Each of these examples shows that collective action works.
During this second week of COP30, we carry both the weight of responsibility and the strength of solidarity. We can still secure the safest climate possible, but only if we act now, with honesty, urgency, and hope.
Every government at COP30 must now rise to the challenge of keeping 1.5°C within reach.
Belém, Brazil – Ten years after the Paris Agreement, Greenpeace International has launched a new report at COP30, revealing the insufficient climate ambition in the 2035 NDCs of the G20 countries.
The report, 2035 Climate Ambition Gap, was released at the UN climate change conference in Belém as part of Greenpeace’s call for governments to agree on a Global Response Plan to ensure the 1.5°C limit remains in reach.
Tracy Carty, Climate Politics Expert, Greenpeace International said: “When the G20 countries – responsible for 80% of global emissions – deliver collective ambition that falls dangerously short, the world has a problem. With 85% of the global economy behind them, the G20’s decisions shape trade, investment and technology worldwide. Their choices will make or break the 1.5°C goal, but their plans amount to just a 23-29% cut in emissions towards the 60% reduction globally that is needed.”
“Given their historic responsibility for emissions and greater capacity to act, developed G20 countries should be out front, cutting emissions far in excess of the 60% global average needed. But taken together, G20 developed country NDCs amount to only a 51% – 57% cut from 2019 levels – a striking failure to lead from those expected to drive global ambition.”
The Greenpeace analysis also assessed the energy related content of G20 NDCs and found that none of them have credible plans to phase out the fuels driving the climate crisis.
Carty added: “G20 countries are home to the world’s largest producers and consumers of fossil fuels which are driving the climate crisis, yet none of their 2035 NDCs include credible plans to phase them out. Developed countries in particular have the greatest responsibility to lead and move first, but their NDCs fall far short of what science and fairness demand.”
Jasper Inventor, Deputy Programme Director, Greenpeace International said: “At this COP we are fighting for a Global Response Plan to bridge the 1.5°C ambition gap. That must include a roadmap to phase out fossil fuels and include an action plan to end deforestation. We’ve seen progress in week one, but we need an outcome that leads to change and not just another roadmap to nowhere.”
“We must ensure COP30 leads to urgent action to phase out fossil fuels and fast-track renewables. But it must also yield progress for crucially needed climate finance, including steps towards making polluters pay for climate damages and a just transition. COP30 must deliver an outcome that accelerates real action.”
Respect the Amazon
Polluters Pay Pact
