“Climate finance is not charity,” says COP30 director
The Second Forum on Climate and Nature Finance (FFCN) began on Monday (May 26) in Rio de Janeiro, bringing together stakeholders to discuss strategies for aligning socio-economic development with sustainability.
Ana Toni, executive director of the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30), highlighted the Brazilian presidency’s efforts to engage wealthier countries in financing global decarbonization.
“Securing a greater flow of funding from developed to developing countries is not an act of goodwill, kindness, or charity. The interest in mobilizing up to $1.3 trillion for developing countries should come from the developed countries themselves—and they are not providing these resources,” said Ana Toni.
“If these resources don’t reach developing countries, we won’t be able to contribute to decarbonization. This should be in everyone’s interest. It’s a shared responsibility—for countries, multilateral banks, private banks, and the private sector. Without it, we won’t succeed,” she added.
The event, which continues with more discussions on Tuesday (27), is organized by seven civil society organizations: Instituto Arapyaú, Instituto AYA, Instituto Clima e Sociedade (iCS), Instituto Igarapé, Instituto Itaúsa, Open Society Foundations, and Uma Concertação pela Amazônia.
The forum seeks to bring together representatives from the public and private sectors, financial institutions, multilateral agencies, academia, civil society, and the press. Its second edition aims to help create institutional and regulatory environments that encourage investment in sustainable technologies and practices.
One of the key areas of focus is debating the financing of projects that align climate action, nature conservation, and economic development, generating positive returns for both society and investors.
One notable contribution to the debate came from Marcele Oliveira, appointed by the Brazilian government as “Youth Climate Champion.” In this role, she leads youth engagement in climate policy and advocates for concrete actions to combat global warming.
“You can’t talk about the TFFF [Tropical Forests Forever Fund] without including the young people who live in the forests. You can’t discuss new agreements or the 10-year mark of the Paris Agreement without considering the communities waiting for these efforts to deliver real results in their territories. Otherwise, it simply doesn’t make sense,” said Marcele Oliveira.
“Discussing the financial system is important, but real funding must be efficient, transparent, equitable, participatory, and inclusive of local youth,” she added.
