By Sean Marcus David
THE Conference of Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), better known as the COP, is the annual checkpoint of each party to the UNFCCC where each nation assesses global progress in dealing with climate change, particularly those in the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) set out by the 2016 Paris Agreement. COP30 is the 30th such meeting, happening at Belem, Brazil, this November 10-21, 2025.
And as citizens of a nation already suffering the effects of climate change, the negotiations at COP30 are not only relevant to our quality of life; it’s a matter of survival.
The unfortunate reality is that, although developing countries like the Philippines barely make a dent in global carbon emissions, it is countries such as ours that continue to find themselves at the highest risk of the climate catastrophe’s worst effects. This was proven just recently by the devastation brought by Typhoon Tino -- a storm that brought back the tragic, all-too-real memories of Haiyan (Yolanda) together with Typhoon Uwan, with more similar typhoons threatening to drown the country for good.
And yet, provisions stated in the NDC’s of the Paris Agreement still demand large cutbacks to global emissions for developing countries like us, which while certainly helpful in the fight against climate change, serves as a double-edged sword for indigenous attempts to improve quality of life, as opposed to those in countries which have already finished industrialization.
In this, the COP30 represents a chance for the Philippines to finally demand a sense of justice. This isn't just about amending emission goals; it's about accountability. A key battleground will be the Loss and Damage Fund—a mechanism designed to pay for the irreversible impacts we are already suffering. The Philippines is not just a participant; we are the host of the Fund's Board, placing us at the very center of the fight for climate justice. The demand for "larger investments" isn't a plea for aid; it's a call to finance the solutions we are already building, from our expanding renewable energy auctions to community-led mangrove restoration. We need support to scale these, not to start from scratch.
With these, the world shall eagerly await the results of the upcoming Conference of Parties. It will judge the contributions of every party to the Paris Agreement, and every initiative laid out to delay the inevitable. We, the millions who are already feeling the effects of the climate catastrophe, will finally get the chance to delay the apocalypse.
And if our pleas don’t end up falling on deaf ears, maybe we’ll even survive it. But survival is just the baseline; we are fighting for our right to a future.
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Sean Marcus David is a third year student of Visayas State University in Baybay City, Leyte, studying Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, and an active Environmental Journalist of Panaad Ha Sinirangan-AYEJ Leyte.