21 November 2025, Belém, Brazil: Indigenous people gather on stage to sing ‘songs of resistance’ on what is scheduled to be the closing day of COP30 in Brazil. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
Climate summit outcome did not reflect urgent action needed for the most vulnerable
While negotiations at the United Nations climate summit COP30 in Belém, Brazil, started with an earnest call for collective effort and shared responsibility by all parties, key issues to advance ambitious climate action remained unresolved. Several countries expressed concerns over the global goal on adaptation and the mitigation program.
For The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) delegates, who mobilized onsite and online during the summit, the outcome was a disappointment, as it did not rise to the level of ambition and urgent action they had hoped to see.
“Science is clear: we must cut carbon emissions by 60 percent by 2030 to keep 1.5°C alive. While COP30 made some progress establishing a Just Transition Mechanism and reaffirming the 1.5°C goal, the outcome is far from enough. We need urgent, concrete action, not empty promises, to accelerate the Paris Agreement and protect communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis,” said LWF Program Executive for Climate Justice Elena Cedillo, recalling the COP21 decision to limit rising temperatures globally to a maximum increase of 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels.
“The COP30 package contains no reference to phasing out fossil fuels, and this omission is reflected in all official decisions. At the same time, the COP, which was expected to deliver strongly on adaptation, fell far short, the pledge to triple adaptation finance by 2035 lacks ambition, clarity on the obligations of developed countries, and guarantees that resources will meet the real needs of developing nations. Adaptation cannot be based on vague promises, but demands accountability,” Cedillo emphasized.
The work continues, through communities, churches, people of faith
The failure to bring ambition up to the scale called for by the most vulnerable countries, or by large sections of civil society including faith-based communities, serves as a reminder of the importance of also mobilizing efforts more widely, LWF delegates said.
Indigenous people sing 'songs of resistance' as they march through the COP30 venue. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
LWF Program Executive for Climate Justice Elena Cedillo attends a People's plenary held at COP30 in Belém. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
People observe a minute of silence for the thousands of lives lost in the Gaza war, during a People's plenary held at the United Nations climate summit in Brazil. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
“As important as it is as a unique platform for multilateral agreements on how to address the climate crisis, it is not the first time that the COP falls short of delivering solutions and commitments at a scale called for by frontline communities, least developed countries, and faith-based communities advocating for climate justice,” noted Wiebke Zimmermann, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hanover, Germany.
“For us faith-based organizations, as Christians, it's really vital to speak up about injustices, to advocate for more climate justice, to advocate that all communities in our world are heard in the same way and that they are listened to and not ignored,” she said. It is critical to support local communities that are addressing the challenges they face by ensuring their initiatives are coordinated and contributing to building momentum for climate justice around the globe, she noted.
Jorge Fernando Cunha, Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil (IECLB), observed that “the countries with the most political power are still very reluctant to accept their obligations regarding the mitigation of climate change consequences and also about financing.”
Stocktaking plenary underway at the climate negotiations in Belém. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
UN Secretary-General António Guterres pictured at COP30. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
There was also hope for more movement on issues such as gender justice and indigenous peoples’ rights for example, Cunha reflected. Moving forward, churches have a particular role to play in the work for climate justice.
“We should keep in mind the strength in churches as well as other religions not being in this for the short term. Our hope will not end, and because we have faith, we cannot be thinking that things are lost even when the global agenda is not willing to do what it takes to protect Creation,” he said.
Rev. Lukas Gabriel Ulrich of the IECLB affirmed, “the climate crisis is in many ways also a faith crisis. Yet as Christians, we do not separate what is spiritual, what is social and environmental justice. When we talk about the Christian context, we talk about something that is one and the same whole.”
LWF delegates from the Latin American and Caribbean region pictured at COP30. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
LWF delegates Lucas Gabriel Ulrich (left), Carine Josiéle Wendland (center), and Jorge Fernando Cunha (right), all from the Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
Maro Micah Maua (left) of the Kenya Evangelical Lutheran Church and Konstantin Vergara (right) of the Lutheran Church in Chile attend the United Nations climate summit. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
Grassrooting climate action, witnessing locally and globally
A core dimension of LWF’s approach to climate justice advocacy is grassrooting engagement and encouraging concrete action at the local and global levels.
Following their participation at the COPs, LWF delegates from around the globe implement small-scale projects in their own communities, as a way to both make a tangible difference where they live, and to sustain efforts for climate justice as a long-term commitment and process.
For Carine Josiéle Wendland, gathering in her home country and particularly in Amazônia, has been special. “The presence of so many Indigenous peoples here has made this an Indigenous COP. I think there is an impact in this for everyone in the world, and also in the Amazon,” she said. COP30, she added, “has served as great inspiration, because there is a lot of collective momentum.”
Christine Moffett, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), stressed the essence of bringing the COP experience back to the local churches. “I think it's really important for the faith community to keep beating the drum of the moral imperative as well as the human component, caring for people, caring for our neighbor,” said the ELCA Program Director for Environment and Energy Policy.
In the end what we as people of faith bring to this is our interconnectedness.
Konstantin Vergara, Lutheran Church in Chile
“We are a public witness back to our communities. So much can be agreed upon here that then risks disappearing into nothingness. And so being that witness for our communities, to remind ourselves what world leaders decided on, and the commitment that we made as a country, a community, a church, is really important.”
Nurturing a global community of climate justice advocates
Advocacy for climate justice is not a one-off event of engaging at COP, as Cedillo explained. “Many of the young delegates are active at the national level, and some are even invited to the COP by their own governments. They are becoming experts who understand the public voice of the church, viewing advocacy as an ongoing process involving medium- and long-term strategies. This approach ensures true intergenerational collaboration and sustained impact,” she said.
She also highlighted the keen interest among LWF member churches to be part of the delegation. “This year we had 74 applicants from almost 40 LWF member churches. This sends us the clear message that churches do care and know about the climate negotiations, and they want to contribute,” she concluded.
Konstantin Vergara, Lutheran Church in Chile (ILCH) shared a word of prayer. “I pray for guidance, that Jesus Christ can help me see what I need to do both here and back home, that I can have the clarity to help the people around me. I pray for understanding among everyone, that we can follow our best intentions, that we can all act in good faith, that we leave behind egocentrism and selfishness and that we can really understand each other and care for each other and care for our planet,” he said and concluded: “In the end what we as people of faith bring to this is our interconnectedness.”
Moment of prayer held at the IECLB, Belém congregation, in connection to COP30. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
Young LWF delegates to COP join hands during a moment of prayer. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
Candles lit around a cross as LWF delegates to COP30 come together for evening devotion during COP30 in Brazil. Photo: LWF/A. Hillert
The LWF delegation to COP30 comprises church leaders—men, women and youth—from all continents, highlighting how advocacy has inspired local solutions to the climate emergency and policies that protect the most vulnerable. They join efforts with the Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil and other faith partners in online and face-to-face meetings.
