São Paulo – The Tropical Forests Forever Facility (TFFF) is close to reaching the investment level needed to begin operations, according to a speech delivered Wednesday (11) by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva at the opening of the COP31 summit in Antalya, Turkey. The fund is a global mechanism proposed and led by Brazil to financially reward countries that keep their tropical forests standing.
“The TFFF has secured the support of dozens of countries and is close to securing the investments needed to begin operations. Support from new partners is welcome to help the mechanism reach its full potential,” Lula said at COP31.
The fund was launched at the previous climate conference, COP30, held in Belém, in the Brazilian state of Pará, last November.
Lula said he was bringing five messages to COP31, inspired by initiatives Brazil has championed at the international and national levels. He spoke of the three road maps left as a legacy by the Belém conference, which he said would help the world secure USD 1.3 trillion in climate financing; promote the transition from fossil fuels to other energy sources; and halt and reverse deforestation.
“We are counting on the leadership of Turkey and Australia to ensure that the recommendations contained in these documents are disseminated and incorporated into the next Global Stocktake. Brazil will do its part by adopting national road maps to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels and eliminate deforestation and forest degradation,” Lula said.
The second message was about the TFFF.
“The third message underscores the urgency of raising emissions reduction targets,” Lula said.
He cited data from the United Nations Environment Programme stating that a 1.5-degree Celsius increase in the Earth’s average temperature is inevitable.
“But even if current NDCs are met, we are heading toward an increase of 2.8 degrees. It is imperative to consider new strategies to accelerate the energy transition,” he said.
NDCs are each country’s climate action plans.
Lula also spoke about the role of forests and said Brazil had a historic decline in deforestation across all biomes, with a 71% drop in the Amazon region between 2022 and 2026. As his fifth message, he also highlighted the importance of international cooperation to preserve the Amazon Rainforest.
“Brazil relaunched the Amazon Fund in 2023. Last year, we had a record number of projects approved, benefiting three out of every four municipalities in the Amazon region. The collaboration of partner countries shows that global action can have a significant local impact,” he said.
In his speech, Lula said it would be up to COP30 to restore the attention that climate change deserves.
“At the beginning of this year, climate change disappeared from the speeches and documents of global leaders. At G7 and G20 meetings, forums bringing together the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitters, concern gave way to silence. We began talking more about weapons and tariffs than about the survival of future generations,” he said.
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Brazil to flag deforestation, emissions at COP31
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
