The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS)
UNOPS at COP30
From rising sea levels to extreme weather events, the impacts of climate change are being felt by communities in every corner of the world. For vulnerable populations at the forefront of this crisis, support must move beyond ambition to action.
At the 30th UN Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Belém, Brazil the UNOPS family is focused on the practical solutions needed to deliver bold climate action. Held from 10-21 November 2025, we will join the international community to accelerate these efforts.
UNOPS is committed to enabling and accelerating climate action with practical solutions – from addressing implementation gaps, to managing and supporting a range of multilateral partnerships, platforms and initiatives.
Together, the UNOPS family is helping to build climate resilience in communities around the world, advance a just transition to clean and sustainable energy, and drive positive change for people and the planet to thrive.
Explore our activities at COP30
The below information may be subject to change. Please check back regularly for further updates on event details.
Monday, 10 November
The Global Climate Action Partnership: Launching a new era of accelerated implementation
12:00-13:00 | SDG Pavilion, Space D138, Blue Zone
Hosted by UNOPS and the Global Climate Action Partnership
At COP30, the Global Climate Action Partnership (GCAP) marks its entry into a new era, gearing up for stronger, faster implementation of climate goals.
The session invites delegates to explore how shared knowledge and proven solutions are driving climate action and SDG implementation on the ground. It highlights GCAP’s unique role in connecting policy, science, and practice – turning experience into tangible results. Through concrete examples from GCAP’s global network, the panel will discuss proven climate solutions from resilient agriculture, electrical mobility to clean energy, highlighting synergies under the SDG framework.
Moderator: Katrin Lichtenberg, Senior Portfolio Manager, Water, Environment and Climate Portfolio, UNOPS
Keynote: Trigg Talley, Former Senior Advisor to the Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and Director, Climate Negotiations and Programs, U.S. Department of State
Panelists:
Francisco Maciel, Co-Chair, Global Climate Action Partnership
Esther Wang'ombe, Director of Renewable Energy (Energy Conservation and Climate Change), the State Department for Energy, Ministry of Energy and Petroleum, Kenya
Hershey dela Cruz, Chief Science Research Specialist, Department of Energy, the Philippines
Julia Dorbandt, Policy Advisor, International Climate Initiative (IKI), Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Germany
Cristina Figueroa Vargas, Carbon Pricing and Carbon Markets Coordinator, Ministry of Environment, Chile
Closing remarks: Hailey Campbell, Youth Activist and Co-Executive Director, Care About Climate
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Driving climate action through public procurement: Solutions for resilient and inclusive economies
16:45-18:15 | Side Event Room 6, Blue Zone
Hosted by UNOPS, in partnership with UNEP, FAO, UNIDO and UN Global Compact.
Can climate action start with a contract? Public procurement - representing 13–30% of GDP in many countries - is one of the largest levers governments have to direct finance toward sustainable outcomes. Yet it remains underused in climate policy and practice. This event will ask what happens when governments embed climate ambition into every procurement decision, and show how procurement can shift markets, accelerate resilience, and become a climate solution in its own right.
Moderator: Samantha Stratton-Short, Head of Climate Action Programme, UNOPS
Speakers:
Jorge Moreira da Silva, Executive Director, UNOPS
Sanda Ojiambo, CEO & Executive Director, UN Global Compact
Inger Andersen, Executive Director, UNEP
Ambroise Fayolle, Vice-President, European Investment Bank
Esther Dweck, Minister of State for Management and Innovation in Public Services, Brazil
Afke van Rijn, Vice Minister for the Environment and International Affairs, Netherlands
Prof. Nana Ama Browne Klutse, Chief Executive Officer, Environmental Protection Authority & Vice Chair of Working Group 1, IPCC, Ghana
Rana Ghoneim, Director of Energy and Climate Action Division, UNIDO
Liva Kaugure, Natural Resources Officer, FAO
Tuesday, 11 November
Fireside Chat: Our Shared Journey: Youth, Leadership, and the Road Ahead. A Conversation with Jorge Moreira da Silva
10:50-11:35 | Children and Youth Pavilion, Blue Zone
Hosted by the Children and Youth Pavilion
Young people are driving climate action worldwide, yet their voices remain underrepresented in key decision-making spaces. This fireside chat with UNOPS Executive Director, Jorge Moreira da Silva, will explore how institutions can partner with youth as genuine change-makers to turn ideas into impact.
Panelists:
Jorge Moreira da Silva, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director, UNOPS
Dr Harshita Umesh, Youth Activist, YOUNGO Energy Working Group / UNFCCC Youth
Saikat Das, Youth Activist, YOUNGO Energy Working Group / UNFCCC Youth
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UNOPS-BRIGC partnership announcement event: Accelerating green transition through partnership and innovation
13:00-13:45 | UN CT Brazil Pavilion
Hosted by UNOPS and BRIGC
Join UNOPS and the Belt and Road International Green Development Coalition (BRIGC) for the launch of a new partnership.
This event will introduce the Global Case Study Repository Initiative. This new platform will promote knowledge exchange and help scale up innovative green solutions by collecting and sharing best practices, with a focus on the Global South.
The launch will highlight the power of South–South cooperation to advance low-carbon, climate-resilient development.
Moderator: Dalila Ramos Moreira Goncalves, Director, UNOPS Latin America and the Caribbean
Panelists:
Zhao Yingmin, President of BRIGC
Jorge Moreira da Silva, Under-Secretary-General of United Nations and Executive Director of UNOPS
Ana Toni, CEO of COP30
Lei Hongpeng, Chief of the Mitigation Branch of UNEP’s Climate Change Division
Zhang Xiaohua, ClimateWorks Foundation Representative
Marina Guyot, Executive Manager of Climate, Land Use & Public Policy, Imaflora
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WIM ExCom event at COP 30: Turning Knowledge into Action on Loss and Damage
12:30-14:00 | Special Event Room 4, Parana, Area C
How do we move from talking about Loss and Damage to acting on it?
This event, hosted by the Warsaw International Mechanism (WIM) Executive Committee, explores how to turn expert knowledge into real-world impact.
Join us to see:
How WIM knowledge products are already driving tangible work through real-world case studies.
Learn about new plans of action from expert groups on non-economic losses, displacement, and comprehensive risk management.
Understand how we are connecting expertise with on-the-ground action in the evolving Loss and Damage landscape.
Moderator: Tessa Kelly, Australian Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW), Assistant Director,
Panelists:
Atle Solberg, Task Force on Displacement, Platform on Disaster Displacement (PDD)
Soumyadeep Banerjee, Task Force on Displacement.
Aliona Cara-Rusnac, Secretary of State, Ministry of Environment, Republic of Moldova.
Sönke Kreft, Technical Expert Group on Comprehensive Risk Management.
Daniel Lund, Adviser to Fiji’s Permanent Secretary for Environment and Climate Change.
Stella Brożek Everaert, WIM ExCom member of the expert group on non-economic losses.
Elisa Calliari, WIM ExCom Co-Chair and WIM ExCom member of the Technical Expert Group on Comprehensive Risk Management.
Mohammed Hafijul Islam Khan, WIM ExCom Co-Chair.
Wednesday, 12 November
Bridging commitments and communities: Accelerating loss and damage action through NDCs
09:30-10:30 I NDC Partnership Pavilion PV-B45, Blue Zone
Hosted by UNOPS and the Santiago Network
This event brings together frontline voices, governments, and development partners to explore how to accelerate action on Loss and Damage (L&D) and deliver tangible results for developing and climate-vulnerable countries and communities. These communities are already experiencing irreversible losses and damages. At the same time, the L&D architecture is strengthening, with the establishment of the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage and operationalization of the Santiago Network under the UNFCCC marking major progress. The challenge now is to ensure that technical assistance and finance are effectively coordinated at local, national and regional levels.
This event will explore how technical assistance delivered through the Santiago Network can serve as an entry point for integrating and operationalizing L&D priorities within the implementation of NDCs and related national frameworks.
Moderator: Katrin Lichtenberg, Senior Portfolio Manager, Water, Environment and Climate Portfolio, UNOPS
Opening remarks: Jorge Moreira da Silva, Executive Director, UNOPS
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Santiago Network in action: Averting, minimizing and addressing loss and damage
16:45-18:15 | Side Event Room 3, Blue Zone
Hosted by UNDRR
The Santiago Network is now fully operational, marking a major step in delivering technical assistance to help developing countries and communities manage climate change loss and damage. This event will spotlight opportunities available for developing countries to access and catalyze technical assistance.
Moderator: TBC
Panelists:
Jorge Moreira da Silva, Executive Director, UNOPS
Carolina Fuentes Castellanos, Director, Santiago Network Secretariat
Kamal Kishore, SRSG, Head of the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR)
Angela Rivera, Co-Chair Santiago Network Advisory Board
Ralph Regenvanu, Minister for Climate Change and Disaster Management for the Republic of Vanuatu
Thursday, 13 November
Scaling up and speeding up infrastructure resilience
16:15-17:15 | CDRI Pavilion
Hosted by Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) & UNOPS
Infrastructure loss from disasters costs low- and middle-income countries billions annually. Building resilient infrastructure is a critical, high-impact investment, resulting in a $4 benefit for every $1 invested. However, scaling up planning and implementation remains a challenge.
Join UNOPS and CDRI to explore how evidence-based planning and innovative tools can accelerate the development of resilient infrastructure systems. This session will highlight the opportunities and practical solutions needed to protect lives, minimize economic disruptions, and build a more sustainable future for vulnerable communities.
Moderator: Samantha Stratton-Short, Head of Strategic Initiatives, UNOPS
Key Note Speaker: Fabrizio Feliciani, Senior Advisor on SIDS, UNOPS
Panelists:
Alfred Grünwaldt, acting Climate Change Division Chief, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
Noelle O'Brien, Director, Climate Change, Resilience, and Environment Cluster, Asian Development Bank (ADB)
Sakshi Dasgupta, Lead Specialist- Technical Studies, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI)
Friday, 14 November
Saturday, 15 November
Sunday, 16 November
Monday, 17 November
Full day | UN City Copenhagen, Denmark
Hosted by UNOPS
As part of our broader COP30 events programme, UNOPS is again hosting a dynamic climate-focused problem-solving event at UN City, Copenhagen.
The event will bring together local university students from diverse academic backgrounds, alongside UNOPS experts, to tackle a real-world climate challenge related to a UNOPS project.
The event will focus on developing practical, actionable solutions to inspire future climate leaders, foster innovation and empower youth to take a leading role in driving sustainable change.
