This panel examined the outcome of the 2025 UN Climate Change Conference (COP 30), which brought over 56,000 delegates to the Amazonian city of Belém. Elected politicians, government officials, business leaders, and civil society representatives gathered to coordinate a global response to climate change. This COP featured breakaway countries headed up by Colombia and the Netherlands who are committed to rethinking climate action beyond the confines imposed by obstructionist petrostates. Each of our panelists, who come from a range of academic disciplines and activist groups, offered a unique perspective and long experience with climate dialogues, COPs, and climate politics. Did COP 30 truly incorporate a wide range of perspectives, or did the agendas of governments and corporate lobbyists take center stage? What prospects are there for meaningful action to mitigate the effects of climate change?
On January 14, 2026, the Center for Brazilian Studies gathered four scholars and activists to discuss the aftermath of the COP30 climate negotiations, held in Belém in November 2025.
The panelists included:
Dan Kammen, Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Energy and Climate Justice,
Department of Civil and Systems Engineering, Johns Hopkins University
Raoni Rajão, Associate Professor, Department of Production Engineering,
Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais
Simone Athayde, Research Integrity Lead, World Resources Institute
Ben Kantner, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Geography, UCLA
The webinar was moderated by Susanna Hecht, Professor of Urban Planning and Director of the Center for Brazilian Studies.
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Published: Friday, January 16, 2026
