Climate change denialism and global financial markets are putting the future of the planet at risk.

On Monday, Brazilian President Lula da Silva condemned climate denialism and unilateral actions, warning that they are eroding progress and sabotaging the planet’s future.

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“A decade after the Paris Agreement, funding is still lacking for the planned just transition, which is essential for building a new cycle of prosperity,” Lula said in his opening speech at the final debate of the BRICS leaders’ summit in Rio de Janeiro.

He stressed that achieving this goal requires tripling renewable energy sources and doubling energy efficiency, and insisted that a just transition toward the end of fossil fuel use and deforestation is “urgent.”

Brazil — a global green energy powerhouse but also a major oil producer — is using this BRICS summit to push for a common position among the bloc’s 11 permanent members ahead of the COP30 global climate summit, set to take place in the Brazilian city of Belem in November.

Protecting the global environment, however, will be challenging, as the United States has taken a sharp turn in its climate policy since Donald Trump returned to the White House in January. The U.S. has again withdrawn from the Paris Agreement and is promoting fossil fuels.

In this context, Lula noted that “80% of carbon emissions are produced by fewer than 60 companies, most of them in the oil, gas, and cement sectors.” He also blamed the financial market for promoting such projects, which counter to sustainability goals.

“In 2024, the world’s 65 largest banks committed US$869 billion to the fossil fuel sector,” the Workers’ Party leader stressed.

He also pointed out that global warming is advancing “at a faster pace than expected,” and that tropical forests like the Amazon are nearing their “point of no return,” jeopardizing their ability to regenerate.

Even so, Lula maintained BRICS members and the Global South nations are in a position to “lead a new development paradigm without repeating the mistakes of the past.”

“We will not be mere suppliers of raw materials. We need to access and develop technologies that allow us to participate in every stage of the value chain,” the Brazilian president stated.

teleSUR/ JF

Source: EFE

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