Brasil and the UN launch Global Ethical Stocktake: a worldwide call to climate action ahead of COP30

On Tuesday, June 17, Brasil's government, the United Nations (UN), and the COP30 Presidency unveiled the Global Ethical Stocktake (GES). This mark a worldwide call to climate action ahead of the Climate Conference in Belém, Pará, Brasil, this November. Inspired by the process of the Paris Agreement's first Global Stocktake, which assessed progress and challenges in implementing the climate treaty in 2023, the Global Ethical Stocktake aims to complement technical assessments with reflections on the ethical dimensions of climate negotiations.

The initiative draws upon the most robust and recent scientific evidence from academia, Indigenous Peoples, and traditional communities. It also addresses the imperative for nations to forge new development paradigms aligned with the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting global average warming to 1.5ºC above pre-industrial levels.

As a centerpiece of one of the four COP30 leadership circles, and jointly led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and UN Secretary-General António Guterres, this initiative is part of the “mutirão” proposed by the COP30 Presidency — a global collective effort to drive climate action and ambition.

Attendees at the GES presentation briefing included Brasil’s Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Marina Silva; COP30 President Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago; Selwin Hart, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Climate Action and Just Transition; Brasil’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Antônio Patriota; and the co-organizers of the Africa, Europe, and North America Dialogues: Wanjira Mathai, Mary Robinson, and Karenna Gore.

The Global Ethical Stocktake "is simply about integrating the ethical dimension to bolster political decisions and technical measures," stated Minister Marina Silva. "Only this dimension can instill the urgency required to address the problems we face."

"I often say we already possess virtually all the technical solutions for climate change, biodiversity loss, and even pressing social issues. What is needed is the ethical commitment to apply our technical capabilities and accelerate our political decisions, ensuring we fulfill what we've already committed to" 
— MARINA SILVA, minister of the Environment and Climate Change

“This effort will be critical. This year, countries must present their new national climate plans, known as NDCs, under the Paris Agreement. These plans must fully reflect the principles highlighted in the Global Stocktake and the elements of justice and equity. It is essential that the Global Ethical Stocktake and the dialogues held in the coming weeks inform how these NDCs should be shaped and implemented,” said Selwin Hart.

“This innovative approach brings a new ethical dimension, a decade after Paris, underscoring the necessity of incorporating into our discussions the reality that technological, economic, and climatic shifts compel us to re-evaluate human behavior on the planet—and among ourselves,” emphasized COP30 President Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago. “This debate will convene fascinating individuals who will highlight the concerted efforts required to advance vital climate actions.”

Concept and methodology

The Global Ethical Stocktake's discussions aim to align the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) framework and negotiation processes with the urgent implementation of climate agreements forged over the past decade.

Crucially, this includes upholding the decisions enshrined in the United Arab Emirates Consensus, reinforced by the Paris Agreement's first Global Stocktake. This consensus emphasizes the 1.5ºC target through tripling renewable energy capacity, doubling energy efficiency, and promoting the transition away from fossil fuels and deforestation."

Furthermore, the GES seeks to foster an ecological transformation and a just transition across production and consumption sectors, while mobilizing USD 1.3 trillion in annual climate financing to support developing countries in planning and implementing their respective transitions.

Central to the initiative is the understanding that no technical solution can be truly effective without a fundamental shift in behavior and collective pathways. The GES aims to facilitate the strengthening of cultural values that guide ecological transformation, a critical endeavor for humanity’s future amidst the climate crisis.

The Global Ethical Stocktake will comprise six Regional Dialogues, engaging civil society from across the globe: North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, Europe, Asia, and Oceania. The inaugural dialogue is scheduled for London Climate Action Week, from June 21 to 29. The meetings will convene religious leaders, artists, representatives of Indigenous Peoples, local and Afro-descendant communities, youth, scientists, businesspeople, women, public policy makers, and activists. Participants will be selected to reflect the diversity of identities, geographies, sectors, and worldviews.

In each region, a co-organizer will help promote and coordinate the principles, objectives, processes, and outcomes of the GES. Wanjira Mathai, Mary Robinson, and Karenna Gore will serve as the co-organizers for the Africa, Europe, and North America Dialogues, respectively.

“I am profoundly honored to co-organize the Europe Dialogue, the very first one,” said Mary Robinson. “That’s the value of the Global Ethical Stocktake: it will unfold differently across each region, ensuring remarkable diversity. It aims to deliver a profoundly human-centered and urgent message to leaders, one which I sincerely hope they will heed,” she noted during the briefing.

“Our global efforts have been predicated on science and public policy, but they often overlook the moral clarity and ethical imagination that this moment demands. The Global Ethical Stocktake can alter this trajectory — placing humanity, equity, and justice at the core of the climate narrative. It invites all of us — artists, elders, scientists, spiritual leaders, activists, and citizens — to ask not only how we can change, but why and for whom,” said Wanjira Mathai.

“I’m honored to support a process that embraces culture and all the beauty and interconnections of life that cannot be quantified by money, yet fill us with meaning and belonging, and possess the power to motivate our behavior,” said Karenna Gore.

Building on the Regional Dialogues, Self-Organized Dialogues will be encouraged and promoted by civil society, national, and subnational governments. These aim to reinforce the global call for climate action and the implementation of UNFCCC agreements. The self-organized format will adhere to the same methodology and documentation process as the official meetings, with prioritized proposals to be delivered to regional leaders.

The Regional Dialogues will culminate in six regional reports and one synthesis report. These will be submitted to the COP Presidency during the Pre-COP in October for consideration in decision-making and subsequent transmittal to heads of state and climate negotiators. The process's results will be showcased in a dedicated space within the COP30 Blue Zone, featuring event videos, co-created works from the Dialogues, and potential products inspired by other ethical stocktakes worldwide.

Ethics demands the courage to denounce misplaced priorities and insist on peace pacts with nature. Keeping the 1.5-degree goal alive is not just a political choice—it is a moral obligation to future generations. Climate collapse will not be gradual; instead, it will be triggered by tipping points that, once crossed, will render irreversible the degradation of life-supporting systems. Ethics compels us to act before it’s too late,” reinforced Antônio Patriota.

Global Ethical Stocktake Circle

The Global Ethical Stocktake Circle is spearheaded by President Lula and UN Secretary-General António Guterres. Its executive committee comprises the Brazilian COP30 Presidency; Selwin Hart, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Climate Action and Just Transition; the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (Ministério do Meio Ambiente e Mudança do Clima/MMA); and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Ministério das Relações Exteriores/MRE).

Access the presentation on the Global Ethical Balance made during the briefing, with information on the schedule and the Regional Dialogues: versions in Portuguese and English

Translation by COP30 Communications Office
English Version: Trad. Bárbara Menezes
Proofreading by Enrique Villamil