From 11–22 November 2025, global leaders, policymakers and practitioners gathered in Belém, Brazil, for the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Opening the conference, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called for renewed trust in multilateralism and accelerated collective action to keep the 1.5°C target within reach. Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva emphasised equity, people and the Amazon, framing COP30 as an opportunity to reconnect climate diplomacy with communities most affected by climate impacts.
Against this backdrop, the United Nations Office to the African Union (UNOAU) engaged at COP30 to support the African Union’s priorities on climate, peace and security (CPS). Working closely with the African Union Commission (AUC), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), and the African Group of Negotiators (AGN), UNOAU contributed technical inputs, supported high-level advocacy, and represented the UN Climate Security Mechanism (CSM) across a range of engagements.
UNOAU supported the Climate Security Mechanism, ODI Global and the Group of Friends on Climate and Security in convening a high-level dialogue focused on unlocking climate finance for fragile and conflict-affected contexts. The event highlighted persistent barriers to access and the need for conflict-sensitive financing approaches.
UNOAU contributed to the inaugural high-level dialogue of the Baku Climate and Peace Action Hub convened by the COP 29 Presidency—Azerbaijan, advancing global recognition of climate-related security risks and the need for integrated responses across policy and practice.
UNOAU supported the African Union in launching the Africa Climate Action Programme and the Africa Action Plan on Carbon Markets, marking a key milestone in strengthening Africa’s coordinated climate response and financing strategy, that also integrates climate, peace and security elements in practice.
Co-hosted by the African Union, UNOAU and UNECA, this high-level side event focused on strengthening partnerships to support climate adaptation in fragile and high-risk contexts, linking resilience-building with peace and stability outcomes.
Co-organised by the African Union, UNOAU and the Climate Security Mechanism, in partnership with UNSSC, UNDP RSCA, CCCPA, the Government of Switzerland, Afreximbank, the Berghof Foundation and GGGI this practitioner-focused dialogue built on the outcomes of the AU Member States workshop on climate policy and finance for sustaining peace and security held in Cairo, Egypt. The dialogue advanced practical pathways for integrating climate finance into peace and security efforts across the continent, in line with African Union priorities and the Green Climate Fund.
Indigenous Peoples — around 476 million across 90 countries — are among the planet’s fiercest biodiversity guardians. And many live on the frontlines of conflict: 80 percent of armed conflicts globally are unfolding in biodiversity-rich hotspots. Indigenous women in particular bear the brunt of these overlapping crises, even as they lead the way in advancing climate and peace initiatives.
Against this backdrop, UNOAU representing DPPA, UN Women, the United Nations Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) — supported by the Global Alliance of Indigenous Peoples, Gender Justice and Peace — brought together Indigenous women leaders on 19 November 2025, at the COP30 joint Pavilion of IOM and the Brazilian Ministry of Environment and Climate Change. The session spotlighted the powerful nexus between Indigenous women’s leadership, climate action and peace, aligning with COP30 Goals 6 and 19 and SDGs 5, 13 and 16.