350.org Asia said that climate movements across the region will keep alive the momentum to phase out fossil fuels, as the UN climate talks in Belém, Brazil fail to agree on a concrete and time-bound roadmap to transition away from fossil fuels. COP30 fell short of mentioning fossil fuels in the final text on cutting emissions, despite more than 80 countries backing a fossil fuel phaseout roadmap championed by President Lula. While countries agreed to triple adaptation finance–or the money needed for frontline communities to deal with global heating–the deadline was pushed to 2035 instead of 2030, and did not include a clear number.

Despite these shortfalls, 350.org Asia said that the global momentum created at COP30 for a fossil fuel phaseout roadmap, along with the adoption of the Belém Action Mechanism for a just transition, was the result of people’s movements coming together in an unprecedented push for multilateral climate action. The just transition mechanism, strongly backed by civil society, will work to ensure that workers’ and communities’ rights are protected in the energy transition. It included strong language on Indigenous rights and references additional, grant-based finance.

Norly Mercado, 350.org Asia Regional Director said: 

“COP30 did not deliver the ambitious outcome the world needs, but it proved what people’s movements can accomplish: an unstoppable momentum for climate justice and a fossil-free future. It is highly disappointing that most Asian countries, especially major economies, failed to support what could’ve been a landmark fossil fuel phaseout roadmap. However, the momentum gained for a fossil fuel phaseout and a just transition at COP30 offers us a glimpse of where real climate leadership could take us. Asia is home to some of the world’s most climate-vulnerable communities and the biggest fossil fuel expansion projects. The fight does not end with COP.  It continues in every community where people dare to demand better. The story of climate justice is still being written, and we are not stopping now.”

Chuck Baclagon, 350.org Asia Regional Finance Campaigner said:

“The Belém Action Mechanism, and the overdue recognition of Indigenous rights, remind us that global cooperation can still bend toward justice. But without a firm, funded timetable to wind down fossil fuels, Asia remains exposed to warming that is nearly twice as fast as the rest of the planet. With storms, heatwaves, and rising seas more punishing by the year, it’s unforgivable that wealthy nations can’t seem to muster the basic adaptation finance that frontline communities need simply to survive.

Asia’s urgent development needs and heavy reliance on coal necessitates real support for a just transition. This entails finance that doesn’t drive countries deeper into debt, technology that’s shared instead of hoarded, and a commitment to ensure Indigenous peoples and vulnerable communities aren’t left behind. This is a region rich with the sun and wind that could power its future—what’s missing is the political courage to seize that possibility. Asia can no longer wait for vague promises. After Belém, movements will continue to demand accountability from the nations that built this crisis, and press ahead with climate action rooted in human rights, equity, and the strength of communities determined to protect their homes.”

Sisilia Nurmala Dewi, 350.org Indonesia Team Lead said:

“Each year at COP, 8 billion people place their hopes and trust in their leaders to protect them from devastating climate breakdown. Time and again, that trust is betrayed—including at this COP. How can Indonesians trust their leaders when fossil fuel lobbyists were the biggest funders of the Indonesia Pavilion and even infiltrated the delegation? The largest ever presence of fossil fuel lobbyists at COP30 comes as no surprise given that our climate action plan (or Nationally Determined Contribution) lacks ambition and is marked by policy backsliding.

Indonesia is a country held hostage by the fossil fuel industry, which hides behind politicians who continue to give fossil fuels room to grow through policy exemptions–all in the name of the oft-touted 8% economic growth target. Yet only 1% of the population enjoys the benefits of this economic growth. The people will continue to hold the line for 1.5°C and for our survival. We will hold carbon polluters accountable until our leaders heed our clamor for change. We will not sit still. We will not stay silent.”

Amanullah Porag, 350.org South Asia Mobilizations Coordinator, said:

“Key technical and political gaps constrain the effectiveness of the Belém Package. It acknowledges historical responsibility and climate ambition gaps but does not translate these into an accountability mechanism or a structured approach for correcting past imbalances. While the proposed USD 1.3 trillion finance pathway is politically significant, without a clear operational framework that includes burden-sharing modalities, timelines, concessionality parameters, or safeguards for grant-based finance, it risks reinforcing the uncertainty that has long hindered implementation. The science on mitigation pathways is unequivocal–the absence of an explicit reference to a fossil fuel phaseout limits our collective ability to limit global heating to 1.5°C. These omissions shape the reality of who bears the cost of delayed action. We still lack a framework that reflects the urgency of science, the equity mandated by the Paris Agreement, and the lived realities of frontline communities. We will keep pushing until our leaders deliver.”

Masayoshi Iyoda, 350.org Japan Campaigner said:

“COP30 in Belem is yet more proof that Japan fails to contribute to achieving the Paris 1.5°C goal and protect Japanese people from the risk of climate disasters and the social and economic loss caused by addiction to fossil fuels. Japan did not play a role in supporting the transition away from fossils, but instead offered up greenwashing technologies and false solutions. Japan must immediately start increasing its climate finance support for adaptation, loss and damage, and tripling renewables.

A lack of ambition in Japanese climate policies is shown in Belem again and with the new coal-fired power plant project, GENESIS Matsushima, they are travelling in the wrong direction. A just roadmap of transitioning away from fossil fuels is what we need to respond to the science — not more investment in the most polluting industries.”

Media Contact:

Ilang-Ilang Quijano, 350.org Asia Communications Manager, ilang.quijano@350.org