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🏠 Read also the detailed guide to COP30’s most influential pavilions: Australia 🇦🇺 • Canada 🇨🇦 • Denmark 🇩🇰 • Finland 🇫🇮 • France 🇫🇷 • Germany 🇩🇪 • Japan 🇯🇵 • Malaysia 🇲🇾 • Norway 🇳🇴 • Ocean 🌊 • Peru 🇵🇪 • Singapore 🇸🇬 • Sweden 🇸🇪 • UK 🇬🇧 • WWF 🐼 • Buildings 🏢 • Business 💼 • Carbon 🪴 • Climate Action 💥 • Food 🍽️ • Forest 🌳 • Health 🏥 • Multilateral Dev. Banks 💰 • OECD 📊 • Planetary Embassy 🌍 • Regional Climate Foundations 🌱 • Science 🔬 • Water 💧 • WECAN 🚺
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As one of the world’s most-read platforms on sustainability, illuminem is proud to present to you the only Insiders' guide to the best events at the UN Climate Change COP30 Summit.
This guide aggregates the best happenings from over 30 pavilions. Just like our viral list of top sustainability events, it has been curated with insights from our 1,500+ illuminem Voices (the largest network of sustainability experts, many speaking at the events listed). And it is designed to help you navigate the key sessions, launches, and dialogues that matter most.
True to our style, ⭐ marks recommended events. Feel free to share your favorite events with us as well!
Whether you're a policymaker, investor, academic, journalist, or sustainability leader, this is "your essential" to COP30’s heartbeat.
What to expect from COP30
As the events highlight, three key topics take center stage at the annual Climate Summit.
• A decade since Paris: Nations are expected to present new, more ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to keep the 1.5 °C target alive.
• Nature at the center: Forests, biodiversity, and land restoration unsurprisingly dominate the agenda of the first "COP of the Amazon".
• Equity and inclusion: Indigenous leaders, who are the only constituency increasing their representation at this COP, have championed this topic with the support of youth movements and religious groups. (notably, the Pope’s remarks will emphasize this angle).
Monday, November 10
• 10:00-11:15 (Japan) | Nature on balance sheet
• 11:00-11:45 (Multilateral Dev. Banks) | Amazon burning bill: Estimating fire damages to manage the risks ahead (in Spanish)
• 12:30-13:30 (Peru) | Local adaptation champions awards ceremony, with Rosângela Lula da Silva (First Lady of Brazil) ⭐
• 12:30-13:30 (Singapore) | Powering resilient supply chains, with the Director of Sustainability of Bentley Systems
• 12:55–13:05 | Climate Leader interview: Nature as infrastructure, with Antonia Gawel (Global Director of Sustainability & Partnerships of Google)
• 14:00-14:50 (Denmark) | Key enablers of resilient, innovative, and competitive cities, with the Global Director of Rambøll
• 14:00-15:00 (United Kingdom) | Driving sustainable trade, with DP World
• 14:00-15:00 (Finland) | Digital transformation – AI and sustainability, with the Deputy Secretary-General of the UN International Telecommunication Union
• 14:30-16:00 (Business) | Delivering Adaptation: Scaling Investment from Plans to Projects, hosted by BCG
• 15:00-16:00 (Germany) | Too hot to handle? Coffee and the climate crisis, with Reem Alabali Radovan (Germany's Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development) ⭐
• 16:15-18:00 (Canada) | Building early warning systems that save lives, with the Secretary General of the World Meteorological Organization ⭐
• 17:00-18:00 (Norway) | Healthy diets within planetary boundaries, with Jacob Jensen (Denmark's Minister for Food, Agriculture and Fisheries)
• 17:00-18:00 (Australia) | Unlocking transition finance, with the Global Head of Sustainable Finance at Moody's
Tuesday, November 11
• 09:30-10:30 (France) | Placing forests and wetlands at the heart of climate and biodiversity solutions
• 10:00-10:45 (Norway) | Plant-based diplomacy in the North and the South, with Ghana's Minister for Sustainability and the former Danish Minister for the Environment ⭐
• 12:00-14:00 (Sweden) | Inauguration: How can we future-proof resilient societies?, with Inger Andersen (Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme) ⭐
• 12:30-13:30 (Peru) | Unlocking the full potential of circularity, with the Head of Sustainability of PwC Brazil
• 12:45-13:30 (Canada) | Powering the digital age, with the Global Director of Sustainability & Partnerships of Google ⭐
• 13:00-13:15 (Singapore) | Cities day opening, with Chee Hong Tat (Singapore's Minister for National Development)
• 14:00-15:00 (Finland) | Pavilion opening
• 15:00-16:00 (Finland) | Circular Economy – Good for business, good for climate, with the Global Head of Sustainability of Nokia and Ville Tavio (Finland's Minister for Foreign Trade and Development) ⭐
• 15:30-17:00 (Carbon) | The oceans as a climate hero
• 16:00-16:50 (Denmark) | Charting the course: Next steps for the energy transition of global shipping, with the Secretary General of the International Maritime Organization ⭐
Wednesday, November 12
• 09:00-09:45 (Norway) | Building tipping point governance
• 09:30-10:15 (Canada) | A dialogue on Indigenous climate leadership, with Julie Dabrusin (Minister of
Environment and Climate Change of Canada)
• 10:00-10:30 (Singapore) | Pavilion Finance Day Opening
• 11:00-12:00 (Germany) | Where do we stand on just transition?, with Yasmin Fahimi (President of the German Trade Union Confederation) ⭐
• 12:55–13:05 | Climate leader interview: Financing the net-zero gap, with Chris Hogg (Global Head of Public Affairs of Nestle)
• 13:30-15:00 (Carbon) | How the public and private sectors can unlock CDR at scale
• 14:00-15:00 (Peru) | Peruvian Amazon: Resilience for sustainable investment and inclusive development, with the Chief Economist of the Food and Agriculture Organization
• 15:00-16:00 (Australia) | Sharing First Nations wisdom on nature-based solutions, with the CEO of WWF Australia ⭐
• 16:00-17:00 (Singapore) | Building resilient and sustainable supply chains, with Frances Chen (Head of Sustainability, ASEAN, of HSBC) ⭐
• 16:00-17:30 (France) | Restoring tropical forests in the Amazon and the Congo basin
• 16:00-17:30 (United Kingdom) | Seed banking and plant science for a climate-resilient future, with Ismahane Elouafi (Executive Director of CGIAR and formerly Chief Scientist at FAO)
Thursday, November 13
• 09:00-09:45 (Norway) | Advancing peace & resilience with locally led climate solutions, with Inger Andersen (Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme) ⭐
• 09:00-10:00 (Business) | Frontline Leaders. The Role of Women in Climate Resilience, with the Chief International Advocacy Officer of Natura
• 12:00-14:00 (Sweden) | Rethinking the grid: Global lessons for a new power paradigm, with the Global Head of Sustainability of Hitachi Energy ⭐
• 09:15-10:00 (Canada) | Decarbonizing the medical supply chain
• 14:00-15:30 (United Kingdom) | The lungs of Africa: The Congo Basin and why it matters, with Congo's Minister of Environment
• 14:30-15:30 (WWF) | Collective climate futures: Business, communities & biodiversity
• 15:00-16:50 (Denmark) | Wind energy: powering the green industrialization, with the Global Energy Leader of ARUP ⭐
• 19:00-20:00 (Sweden) | Harvesting solutions: Transform food, land, and agriculture
Friday, November 14
• 09:00-09:45 (Norway) | Financing adaptation at scale
• 09:00-09:45 (Canada) | A conversation with civil society, with Julie Dabrusin (Canada's Minister of the Environment and Climate Change)
• 11:30-12:45 (Malaysia) | Accelerating Malaysia’s energy transition roadmap, with Angela Wilkinson (Secretary General & Chief Executive Officer of the World Energy Council) ⭐
• 14:00-15:00 (Peru) | Shark Tank – Building scale across adaptation finance transactions, with the Global Head of Climate Risk & Response of KPMG
• 13:00-14:00 (Finland) | How does a country see hydrogen as a security asset?
• 13:30-14:30 (Germany) | Empowering the global energy transition, with André Clark (Vice President of Siemens Energy Brazil) ⭐
• 15:00-16:00 (Business) | Transport & mobility investment dialogue, with the Head of Latin America of BloombergNEF
• 15:30-16:15 (Multilateral Dev. Banks) | Powering more with less: Scaling up energy efficiency
• 15:45-17:00 (Japan) | Turning avoided emissions into corporate value ⭐
• 17:00-17:45 (Norway) | Climate strategies for banks, with the Chief Regulatory Engagement Office of the Mitsubishi Financial Group ⭐
Saturday, November 15
• 09:30-10:15 (Canada) | Scaling solutions for the coal-to-clean transition
• 10:00-11:00 (Forest) | Grand opening
• 11:45-13:00 (Science) | The cryosphere as a driver of global change ⭐
• 12:00-13:00 (Food) | Catalysing climate tech: Unlocking bioeconomy pathways for systemic change
• 14:00-15:00 (Health) | From data to decarbonisation: Health system emissions in the Asia-Pacific
• 14:30-16:00 (Water) | Catalyzing systems approaches for water and climate resilience
• 15:00-16:00 (Australia) | Next stop: COP31 – Supporting Australia’s climate leadership
• 15:00-16:00 (Singapore) | Risk and uncertainty: Scaling climate impact through carbon markets, with the Head of Carbon Markets Policy, of MSCI) ⭐
• 16:00-17:00 (Peru) | Community-driven resilience for conflict-affected, fragile, and displaced communities
Monday, November 17
• 08:30-11:00 (Planet Embassy) | From waste to opportunity
• 09:00-10:30 (Buildings) | Arming institutions and practitioners with tools to achieve green and resilient buildings ⭐
• 10:30-12:00 (Singapore) | Delivering concrete impact through carbon markets
• 11:00-12:00 (Finland) | Decarbonizing the energy system
• 13:45-15:45 (Japan) | Promoting climate change mitigation in agriculture ⭐
• 15:30-16:15 (Multilateral Dev. Banks) | Forests and nature finance solutions ⭐
• 16:00-17:30 (OECD) | Indigenous economies of the forest
• 17:00-18:00 (Food) | Transforming forest-risk agricultural commodities
Tuesday, November 18
• 08:30-11:00 (Planet Embassy) | Good corporate practices for people, the environment, and the climate
• 09:30-11:00 (France) | 10 years since the Paris Agreement: how to promote implementation? ⭐
• 10:30-11:30 (Germany) | Climate club high-level event
• 12:15-13:45 (Science) | From voluntary action to legal obligation: Science-driven corporate climate responsibility
• 13:05-13:55 (Forest) | Environmental communication and climate diplomacy for Central Africa
• 15:00-16:00 (Australia) | You’re barking up the right tree – Sustainable construction and forest policy in action
• 15:30-17:00 (Singapore) | Flood and coastal resilience in Southeast Asia, with the Climate & Sustainability Lead Southeast Asia of the Boston Consulting Group) ⭐
• 16:00-17:30 (Water) | Progressing water: How to move the new plans from paper to action
• 17:00-18:30 (Forest) | Political dialogue on the Congo Basin forest ecosystems
Wednesday, November 19
• 08:30-11:00 (Planet Embassy) | Innovation in the Amazon’s bioeconomy
• 09:30-11:00 (France) | Combating climate disinformation: what tools are at our disposal
• 10:00-11:00 (Finland) | Nuclear for climate: Achieving net zero requires cooperation, not competition, with Sari Multala (Finland's Minister for Climate and the Environment)
• 10:00-11:30 (United Kingdom) | Voices from the Three Basins (connect, mentor, inspire), with the Director General of WWF International ⭐for Energy and Climate Change
• 14:00-15:15 (Water) | Promoting water-resilient food systems for climate action ⭐
• 15:00-16:00 (Singapore) | Scaling up agrobiodiversity for climate-resilience and nutrition
• 15:30-17:00 (Carbon) | Paving the way for a regenerative economy ⭐
• 15:30-16:30 (Food) | Community-led forest economies: Redefining development from the ground up
Thursday, November 20
• 10:00-11:00 (Australia) | Pacific climate champions high-level panel
• 10:00-11:15 (Japan) | Japan’s cooperation for ASEAN’s decarbonization ⭐
• 12:00-13:00 (Finland) | Policy brief
• 12:00-13:00 (Food) | Scaling solutions for resilient animal and aquatic food systems
• 13:00-14:00 (WWF) | Scaling urban Nature-based Solutions through integrated planning, with Elisa Moguera (UN Special Rapporteur on Climate Change and Human Rights)
• 14:00-15:30 (Forest) | Scaling afforestation for economy, livelihoods, and climate resilience
• 14:00-15:30 (OECD) | Making agricultural trade more sustainable: What are countries doing?
• 17:00-18:00 (Germany) | Global fossil fuel exit ⭐
• 17:00-18:00 (Australia) | Pavilion closing celebration
Friday, November 21
• 08:30-11:00 (Planet Embassy) | Chemistry of the forest
• 10:00-11:30 (OECD) | Scaling up net-zero and climate-resilient infrastructure
• 11:45-12:15 (United Kingdom) | Closing remarks, with Ed Miliband (UK's Secretary of State for for Energy and Climate Change) ⭐
