As world leaders gather in Brazil for the latest round of negotiations on global action to tackle climate change, Scotland is being urged to decisively turn the page on damaging delays and restore public trust through fair climate action.
The talks come at the start of a critical six months for climate action in Scotland, with the finalisation of the Scottish Government’s draft Climate Change Plan covering 2026-2040 and then the Scottish elections in May 2026.
Stop Climate Chaos Scotland, a coalition of more than 70 organisations united by a common cause to tackle global warming, says this period must be used to repair Scotland’s shaky climate credentials.
They say this can only credibly be achieved through strong, effective and fair measures to shrink the country’s climate footprint while safeguarding lives and livelihoods from the worst effects of extreme weather.
After a period of weakened climate ambition and diluted or inadequate action in key high-emitting sectors, like transport, agriculture and buildings, SCCS says it’s time for every political party to “reboot” Scotland’s contribution to global climate action.
The call comes as Scottish climate change and energy secretary Gillian Martin prepares to travel to the Amazon to attend the United Nations COP30 climate summit, which starts on 10 November, following the Leaders Summit on 6 and 7 November.
SCCS international policy lead Ben Wilson, director of public engagement at the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund, who is also attending the conference, says that the positive reputation the Scottish Government enjoys on the international climate stage must be backed up by stronger climate action at home.
“Although Scotland is not an official party in the COP negotiations, devolved governments have an important part to play in driving ambition and commitments. This is especially true at COP30, where states and cities from the US will try to get across the message that they are still acting on climate change, even though the Trump administration has dramatically ditched its global climate commitments,” he said.
“Scotland enjoys a strong international reputation as a leader on climate action, cemented at COP26 in Glasgow. However, after years of missed climate targets, the Scottish Government now needs to double down and deliver on strong climate action to maintain this reputation and lead from the front. A bold new Climate Change Plan is vital.”
Background
The latest United Nations Conference of Parties – COP30 – will get under way on 10 November in the city of Belém, in the region that is home to the Amazon rainforest.
It will bring together heads of state, officials, environmentalists and delegates from nearly 200 countries for 11 days of discussions.
The talks come in a year which has already endured the hottest summer in history and is tipped to be one of the three warmest years the world has ever known. Last year replaced 2023 as the planet’s hottest year since recording began in 1880, while all 10 of the warmest years have occurred in the past decade.
The ultimate aim of the talks has been to keep the Paris Agreement goal – to restrict warming to “well below” 2C above pre-industrial levels, but ideally no more than 1.5C – within reach, and to secure net-zero emissions by 2050.
However, the world is currently on track to smash the 2C threshold – beyond which scientists agree climate change will be not only catastrophic but irreversible – in the next 25 years. And the latest predictions suggest warming could spike to around 4C by the end of this century.
From heatwaves and wildfires to hurricanes, flooding and mudslides, the world has this year already experienced a brutal taster of the kind of extreme events that will become the norm as the planet continues to heat up.
A recent report from the World Meteorological Organization confirmed that 2024 had seen a record rise of carbon dioxide, a key driver of warming, in the atmosphere.
In an interview ahead of the conference, UN secretary-general António Guterres acknowledged it was now “inevitable” that humanity will overshoot 1.5C of warming, with “devastating consequences” for the world.
Meanwhile, thousands are expected to take to the streets of Glasgow during the summit to demonstrate the strength of public concern over climate change and the lack of action by leaders to tackle it. A mass climate march is being staged on 15 November, the biggest such event since 150,000 people turned out in the city when it hosted COP26 in 2021.
Wilson added: “Surveys show Scots support strong action to combat climate change and safeguard nature. To retain international credibility and show Scots that their biggest concerns – energy supplies, food production, harm to nature and the cost of living – we urge the Scottish Government to get on with the things they can do now that will help tackle all these and cut emissions.
“The new Climate Change Plan should drive the shift to climate-and-nature-friendly farming, accelerate peatland restoration, make our homes warmer and enable more sustainable transport options.
“In addition, we want to see Scotland bolster the leadership it has shown at previous COPs with a commitment to raise new money for climate finance by making the biggest polluters pay up and raising global ambition for a just transition to a low-carbon world.
“It is a terrible injustice that those who have done the least to cause this crisis are suffering first and worst from its effects. COP30 must deliver a bold new climate finance deal that will provide vital cash flow to help protect communities from floods, droughts and extreme weather events. Scottish leadership on this issue has been very impactful in the past, and we hope the Scottish Government will announce new commitments to its modest climate finance portfolio in Belém.”
Every year at COP countries make commitments about what they will do over the next 12 months to lower greenhouse gas emissions. But this year’s summit is particularly important as it marks the critical halfway point to 2030, when Paris Agreement signatories are expected to meet their climate pledges.
At a pre-COP UN meeting, Guterres said: “The science demands action. The law commands it. The economics compel it. And people are calling for it.”
He added: “COP30 in Brazil must conclude with a credible global response plan to get us on track.”
