A frequently overlooked barrier to climate action is the international investment treaty system. Investment treaties, through a special dispute settlement mechanism called investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS), allow foreign investors to directly sue host governments before private arbitral tribunals when governments are alleged to have breached the investment treaty.

With more than 2,600 investment treaties currently in force, this system gives foreign investors a powerful legal tool to challenge states’ legitimate regulatory measures when they affect investors’ profits. The investment treaty system was not designed with climate change in mind. It provides wide investment protections to fossil fuel investors whose activities must be phased out to reach global climate goals. The fossil fuel sector is the most frequent user of ISDS provisions—accounting for around 20% of all known ISDS cases worldwide—and the number of ISDS cases brought forward due to states’ climate policies has been rising.

ISDS mechanisms affect governments’ policy space to address climate change. The threat of costly ISDS claims alone can chill or delay ambitious climate policies because compensation awards can reach into the billions of dollars. Hence, the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and UN Special Rapporteurs have recognized ISDS as a “major obstacle” to urgent climate action.

What to expect from the event

This event will examine how investment treaties—particularly, ISDS provisions—hinder green investment and climate action. Panellists will discuss policy solutions and actions within the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change process to align investment governance with climate goals.

Confirmed speakers

• Anne Hammill, Associate Vice-President, International Institute for Sustainable Development
• Elisa Morgera, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Climate Change
• Nikki Reisch, Director, Climate and Energy Program, Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL)
• Laurence Tubiana, CEO, European Climate Foundation
• Rob Moore, Associate Director, Public Banks and Development, E3G (moderator)

We expect to welcome 1–2 senior government representatives, to be confirmed.

This event is co-organized by E3G, Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), CAN Europe, Global Justice Now, and War on Want.

The event is hosted by the Regional Climate Foundations Pavilion through our official partner, the European Climate Foundation.

Fiscal policies are a primary tool for transitioning away from fossil fuels. The Clean Energy Transition Partnership and Coalition on Phasing Out Fossil Fuel Incentives Including Subsidies are two leading coalitions of countries committed to international and domestic action on transitioning international public finance from fossil fuels to renewables and on fossil fuel subsidy reform.

This event will highlight shared ambitions and strengthen connections between governments and business in advancing this agenda. The event will also serve as an opportunity to announce new coalition members and spotlight progress across both initiatives.

A reception will follow.

Agenda

Moderated by: Karl Vella, Director of Climate Policy, We Mean Business Coalition

Keynote Statements

Sophie Hermans, Minister of Climate Policy and Green Growth, Kingdom of the Netherlands

Rachel Kyte, UK Special Representative for Climate, United Kingdom

Bremity Lakjohn, Minister-in-Assistance to the President and Environment, Marshall Islands

Irene Velez Torres, Acting Minister for Climate and Environment, Colombia

Will Nankervis, Ambassador for Climate Change, Australia

Seyoum Mekonen, State Minister for Climate, Ethiopia

Ronny Rodríguez Chaves, Vice Minister of Environment and Energy, Costa Rica

The Energy Transition Council (ETC) is a multilateral platform, co-chaired by the United Kingdom and the Philippines, that unites over 40 governments and institutions offering global political, financial and technical leadership in the power sector.

For the COP 30 Ministerial, the ETC will partner with the Clean Energy Transition Partnership (CETP) and the Coalition on Phasing Out Fossil Fuel Incentives Including Subsidies (COFFIS) to host a unified platform that connects policy reform, fiscal transition, and clean energy investment.

The 11th ETC Ministerial, co-hosted by the COP 30 Presidency, will serve as a broad convening space, bringing together ministers, donors, financiers, and technical partners to reflect the diversity of perspectives and priorities shaping the global fossil-to-clean transition. It will

• send a strong political signal on aligning finance and policy to support the energy transition, highlighting the importance of reforming public financial support systems and demonstrating progress in shifting international and domestic public finance from fossil fuels to clean energy;
• showcase practical examples of reform that balance affordability with equity (incorporating protection for vulnerable groups) with increased funding for renewable deployment, energy efficiency, and upgrading grids;
• mobilize international finance and technical support, linking country-led reforms with donor, multilateral development bank (MDB), and private sector financing;
• highlight collaboration among the ETC, CETP, and COFFIS as delivery platforms supporting countries to implement transition plans aligned with updated nationally determined contributions and COP 30 outcomes;
• Enable a North–South dialogue between partner countries, donors, and MDBs on aligning policy, finance, and social equity in managing the fossil-to-clean transition.

The ETC Ministerial will focus on three strategic priorities:

1. Accelerate fossil fuel to clean energy transition—reforming inefficient fossil fuel subsidies to create fiscal headroom and price signals that enable renewable energy investment and efficiency gains.
2. Country-led planning and implementation—designing the right financial incentives and system for the clean energy transition, leveraging concessional, blended, and private finance to shift investment from unabated fossil fuels to clean energy systems and grid modernization.
3. Solutions and success stories—promoting tailored regional and national approaches that address specific local challenges and opportunities while ensuring just and inclusive outcomes.

Together, these priorities will align with the broader COP 30 narrative on the economic transition, emphasizing the steady move away from fossil fuel production and consumption in a just, orderly, and equitable manner while scaling clean energy solutions that drive sustainable growth and inclusion. 

The outcomes of the first global stocktake (GST) at COP 28 called on parties to work toward an orderly, just, and equitable transition away from fossil fuels. Building on this mandate, this COP 30 side event will mark a key milestone in translating ambition into action by launching and presenting action plans that set out concrete next steps to accelerate the transition and emphasize how shared experiences and enabling partnerships are driving progress on the ground.

Reflecting the COP 30 Presidency’s “mutirão” spirit of collective implementation, the event will showcase how collaborative action across multiple coalitions and countries is accelerating the transition in line with the GST mandate through on-the-ground results, practical solutions, and enabling partnerships.

Organized by the Powering Past Coal Alliance, Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance, Clean Energy Transition Partnership, Coalition on Phasing Out Fossil Fuel Incentives Including Subsidies, and Equitable Framework and Finance for Extractive-based Countries in Transition, the event aims to outline progress on implementation and launch action plans outlining next steps to transition away from fossil fuels.

This workshop, part of the COP 30 Action Agenda, convenes governments and stakeholders to advance the alignment of economic incentives with a just, orderly, and equitable transition away from fossil fuels by redirecting public financial flows and mobilizing private investment.

Organized by the Coalition on Phasing Out Fossil Fuel Incentives Including Subsidies, the Clean Energy Transition Partnership, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Centre, and the We Mean Business Coalition, the event aims to:

1. Identify existing progress and actionable steps for governments, businesses, and financiers on how aligning public financial flows and incentives, including subsidies​,​ can support transitioning away from fossil fuels toward clean energy.
2. Share successful examples and lessons learned from governments and international initiatives on fossil fuel subsidy reform and shifting international public finance for oil, gas, and coal toward clean energy—as critical building blocks of the emerging dialogue on transitioning away from fossil fuels while safeguarding energy security, jobs, and economic stability.
3. Identify commitments for follow-up actions, partnerships, and investments to accelerate implementation of the global stocktake outcomes.

The climate emergency is accelerating across Latin America, with extreme- and slow-onset events straining ecosystems and vulnerable populations. Ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) is a promising cost-effective adaptation approach to enhance the resilience of people to climate change while supporting biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. Yet, implementation is not advancing at the speed and scale needed.

Recently, Latin America has ramped up experiences in implementing EbA across diverse ecosystems and communities, revealing both the opportunities and the barriers to scaling up and accelerating adaptation actions.  

This side event will

• explore how to turn lessons learned into operational pathways for scaling up EbA in NAPs and NDCs 3.0;  
• highlight success factors that enable sustainable results;  
• present country cases from the EbA LAC program; and  
• identify barriers and entry points for wider uptake, from local to national levels. 

Hosted by the Ministry of Environment of Guatemala, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, International Union for Conservation of Nature, International Climate Initiative Federal – Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety of Germany, and IISD.

Background

Climate mitigation and sustainable development require not only cleaner technologies but also coherent trade and industrial policy frameworks that can drive green structural transformation. Around the world, governments are redefining their industrial strategies to promote low-carbon production, green manufacturing, and resilient supply chains. Yet these shifts are unfolding amid rising trade tensions, new green subsidies, and divergent national standards.

While national green industrial policies are essential for climate action, their international spillovers—on competitiveness, trade flows, and global emissions—are becoming increasingly evident. The race to decarbonize industries can create both new opportunities for cooperation and new risks of fragmentation or unequal market access. Ensuring that national measures support a truly global transition, rather than shifting emissions or disadvantaging developing economies, will be key to their long-term success.

About the Event

This event will explore how countries can design trade and industrial policies that both accelerate the climate transition and foster inclusive development. The discussion will unpack practical policy approaches—from building domestic green industries to managing international competitiveness and avoiding new forms of protectionism. It will also examine how international cooperation, finance, and governance reforms can ensure that climate-related industrial policies contribute to shared prosperity rather than deepening divides.

Speakers

• Chantal Line Carpentier, Head, Trade, Environment, Climate Change and Sustainable Development Branch, UN Trade and Development
• Dr. Amir Lebdioui, Director, TIDE (Trade, Industrial Policy and Development) Centre; Fellow, London School of Economics
• Rodrigo Monardes, Head of International Affairs Division, Ministry of Finance, Chile
• Charra Tessfaye Terfassa, Program Manager, Open Society Foundations
• Ieva Baršauskaitė, Lead, Trade and the Green Transition, International Institute for Sustainable Development

Technology transfer has long been recognized in international treaties and UN outcome documents as essential for achieving climate mitigation and adaptation goals. However, the technologies most needed to accelerate climate action often fail to reach the regions that need them most, and their adoption is limited by multiple barriers. Trade can play a critical role in facilitating access to these technologies, particularly where domestic production is costly or complex. However, accelerating affordable access requires a broader approach. 

This session will explore the full range of factors that influence technology access, including capital costs, skills, regulatory environments, investment, trade policies, and the roles of public, private, and academic sectors. It will also highlight win-win solutions such as co-development, local production, and strategic partnerships.

Participants will gain insights into how diverse actors can collaborate to ensure that those most in need of climate technologies and capacity-building support can access them affordably, while delivering co-benefits for biodiversity, pollution reduction, and progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals.

Speakers

• Chantal Line Carpentier, Head of the Trade, Environment, Climate Change and Sustainable Development Branch, UN Trade and Development
• Yasmin Sherif Ismail Mohamed
• Ieva Baršauskaitė, Lead, Trade and Green Transition, International Institute for Sustainable Development
• Manon Frezouls, Youth Negotiator
• UN Resident Coordinator, Republic of Congo (tbc)
• ISO Representative (tbc)

As countries launch ambitious green industrial policies to meet climate goals and navigate geopolitical and energy challenges, international coordination has never been more important. This COP 30 high-level panel will bring together leading experts to explore how industrial policy and trade rules can accelerate global decarbonization, avoid harmful subsidy races and trade frictions, and ensure developing countries benefit rather than fall behind. The discussion will highlight pathways for fair transitions, wider access to clean technologies, and recommendations to strengthen cooperation ahead of COP 30 and beyond.

This session will discuss how regional and international cooperation can accelerate industrial decarbonization and promote green trade in emerging economies. Drawing on Indonesia’s experience and other developing regions, the panel will explore how trade agreements, technology transfer, and climate finance can support a just and competitive transition. It will highlight green trade as both a climate imperative and an opportunity for sustainable growth and resilience in the global low-carbon economy.