United Nations Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell addressed an audience in Istanbul alongside Murat Kurum, the incoming COP31 President of Türkiye. Stiell emphasized the potential for climate cooperation to foster stability amidst global political turmoil.
He highlighted significant progress in clean energy investment and international climate negotiations over the past year, suggesting climate action can serve as a stabilizing force.
Clean energy investment has increased tenfold in the decade since the Paris Agreement, rising from $200 billion to over $2 trillion annually. In 2025, despite economic uncertainty and political challenges, clean energy investment continued to grow strongly, exceeding double the investment in fossil fuels. Renewables surpassed coal as the world’s leading source of electricity.
The majority of countries have developed new national climate plans intended to stimulate economic growth and reduce global emissions. COP30 resulted in commitments including a trillion-dollar pipeline for clean grids and substantial investments in forest protection and climate health initiatives.
Significant progress was made in intergovernmental negotiations, including an agreement to triple adaptation finance to USD 120 billion per year by 2035, benefiting African nations. Indicators to measure this progress were also established.
Stiell outlined a four-point plan for continued progress leading up to COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, and COP32 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This plan includes rapidly scaling up clean energy and climate resilience projects, increasing financial support to developing countries, fostering “coalitions of the willing” to address specific challenges, and integrating climate work more closely with the real economy.
The Brazilian Presidency and United Nations facilitated real-world progress through the COP30 Action Agenda. Key outcomes included a trillion-dollar global pipeline for clean grids and energy storage, USD 5.5 billion in new commitments for the Tropical Forests Forever Facility (with at least 20 percent directed to local communities and Indigenous Peoples), and over USD 9 billion in new investments in land and food systems. The Race to Resilience campaign has increased climate resilience for nearly 438 million people worldwide.
Additional information and figures cited in the speech are available online.
Distributed by the African Media Agency (AMA) on behalf of UN Climate.
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