COP 29 Was… Not Great. What Does It Mean for Climate Action in 2025?

The journey from industrialization to climate stability was never going to be quick or easy. But as the calendar turns on what’s been the hottest year on record—and one when coal use hit an all-time high—you might wonder if the end of 2024 will be remembered as a misstep along the winding road. 

We hardly think 2025 is the time to give up. But before we turn to why, let’s look back at what’s gone on lately in the U.S. and at COP 29.

Why is 2024 ending on a down note for climate?

For a few reasons. The United States—the country that has emitted more planet-warming carbon dioxide than any other over the last two centuries—is now expected to withdraw from the international effort to curb climate change known as the Paris Agreement once Donald Trump returns to the White House. (Trump did this once before during his last term in office.)

This spells bad news for international climate negotiations, and it set the tone in November for COP 29—an international climate meeting one outlet summed up as “a major bummer.”

What happened at COP 29?

The 29th meeting of United Nations climate delegates—a Conference of Parties, or “COP” for short—was billed as the Finance COP because a crucial goal was to negotiate new ways that wealthier countries, which tend to bear more historic responsibility for climate change, could channel more financial support to poorer countries, which often face disproportionately harsh climate impacts from severe heat waves, flooding, and so on.

This climate finance effort set out to build on an older goal from 2009. The idea was by 2020 richer nations should be channeling an annual $100 billion to their less affluent peers to fund climate action. That amount took until 2022 to materialize, and a significant chunk took the form of loans.

Still, part of the 2015 Paris Agreement ratcheted up this financial commitment, with nations pledging to set a “new collective quantified goal,” or NCQG, with $100 billion as the floor, by 2025.

The result, negotiated this past November at COP 29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, is an agreement for rich countries to channel “at least” $300 billion to poorer countries by 2035. That’s a long way off, and well short of the $1.3 trillion some had called for, drawing backlash as a “joke” and a “betrayal.”

What’s next for global climate action?

COP 29 and other negotiations like it have, in recent years, seen outsize lobbying from fossil fuel interests—which need to rapidly phase down as part of the effort to stop the planet from getting even hotter. In all, some 1,700 lobbyists for coal, oil, and gas were granted access to COP 29, a report found, despite calls to exclude them.

So what’s next? This is the part where you come in. 

Though the emissions that cause global heating may soon peak and start falling, so far they have not. And even when they do, a tremendous amount of work will remain: Work decarbonizing old infrastructure and buildings. Work rethinking our approaches to food and farming. Work preparing and adapting for climate impacts it’s too late to avoid altogether. Work communicating about, funding, and organizing all of these efforts.

If the “major bummer” of COP 29 is any indicator, 2025 is the year even more individuals who care about halting climate change need to step up. We can’t afford to wait for better leadership or international negotiations to break through. You need to find ways to learn and do more about climate change—in your career, your community, your day-to-day life, or perhaps all three.

Terra.do exists to accelerate this journey. We’re enrolling now for a 12-week online climate fellowship that starts in late January. How much further down the winding road of climate progress do you want to be 12 weeks later?

Table of Contents
SUBSCRIBE
The Climate Switch
Maximizing your climate impact and focusing on effective solutions requires knowledge. Get weekly trends, expert insights, inspiring stories, and actionable tips directly in your inbox.
Learn the skills to work on climate