At the center of the talks is the Belém Gender Action Plan, a proposed plan that recognizes that climate change hits women hardest and sets out measures for funding, training and leadership roles.
“Climate justice only exists when gender equality also exists,” says Ana Carolina Querino, Interim Representative of UN Women in Brazil, echoing a sentiment heard in the hallways and venues since the summit opened last Monday, November 10.
If adopted, the plan would run from 2026 to 2034, incorporating gender-responsive approaches to just transitions, adaptation and mitigation strategies, and mechanisms for loss and damage.
Nanci Darcolete is a self-employed recycler from São Paulo and political advocacy advisor for the Movimento de Pimpadores.
Recyclers on the front line of emissions reduction
On the streets of São Paulo, Nanci Darcolete has been a recycler since 1999.
Today he runs Pimp My Carroça, an organization that fights for the rights of workers who convert discarded materials into resources, preventing mountains of waste from being dumped or burned.
Waste pickers, he says, played a historic role at COP30 by showing how their work reduces emissions and relieves pressure on natural resources.
“Now we see how important it is for recyclers to also work on composting organic waste,” he explains. “That will save municipalities money, provide income for recyclers and capture tons and tons of gases (and) provide important mitigation by removing heavy pollutants from the environment.”
Women leading the recycling chain
In Brazil, women make up the majority of waste pickers and run most cooperatives. However, they still face racism and gender-based violence on the streets, often while juggling caring for their homes and families.
For Nanci, climate change is making her job more difficult. Rising heat and flooding hit low-income neighborhoods hardest, adding stress to already difficult conditions. He wants the COP30 adaptation agenda to recognize recyclers as “agents of transformation”, with better urban logistics, hydration points and paid contracts.
Litigation as a weapon for climate justice
Across the Atlantic, Portuguese lawyer Mariana Gomes, 24, uses the law as what she calls “the most important tool” to fight the climate crisis. He founded Último Recurso, the group behind the first climate litigation case in Portugal, which is now leading more than 170 lawsuits.
Mariana believes that litigation can turn promises into binding actions, especially after the recent opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) requiring states to act to keep global warming below 1.5°C.
“I think that in the future we will see many judicial processes against States, especially those that must increase their ambition, adopt climate laws and align their objectives with the Paris Agreement. Because now, more than ever, we carry the weight of the International Court of Justice on our backs,” he tells us.
Portuguese lawyer Mariana Gomes is a social entrepreneur and climate activist.
The right to a clean and healthy environment
Mariana maintains that citizens can demand that their governments guarantee the right to a clean and healthy environment and a stable climate. In Portugal, it is driving municipal climate action plans to help local authorities prepare for droughts, forest fires, floods and other disasters.
For her, adaptation and mitigation must recognize that climate disasters affect women more, increasing the risks of gender violence, displacement and care burdens. Litigation, she says, can do more than reduce emissions or stop extractive projects: it can unlock funding and compensation for affected communities, while protecting women’s rights.
UN Newsis reporting from Belém, giving you front-row coverage of everything happening at COP30.