Health at COP 30: Side events to center stage

As world leaders gather in Belém, Brazil, for the 30th UN Climate Change Conference (COP 30), a major shift in global climate policy is unfolding, placing health at the heart of climate action. For the first time in COP history, the conference is set to feature a comprehensive, globally coordinated Health Action Plan, marking a turning point in addressing the human toll of climate change.

Putting health at the center of COP discussion, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Government of Brazil under COP 30’s presidency, jointly developed the Belém Health Action Plan (BHAP), which has officially launched on Health Day, 13 November 2025. The plan urges nations to build climate-resilient, low-carbon, and equitable health systems, positioning health as a central pillar of both adaptation and mitigation efforts.

Ahead of COP 30, at the Global Conference on Climate and Heath in June 2025 the head of the states provided a clear guidance for addressing climate change induced heath impact and vulnerabilities with an informed policy decision at COP 30.  Jess Beagley, policy lead at the Global Climate and Health Alliance (GCHA), remarked that “health should not be just in footnote,” this should be reflected in the COP decision.

Health in Climate Diplomacy: Periphery to the Core

Health has long been recognized as a basic human right under international conventions and national constitutions. Yet for years, it was barely visible in UN climate negotiations. For decades, health was treated as a side event, occasionally mentioned in scientific inputs but rarely appearing in official COP decisions. The turning point came with the Paris Agreement in 2015, where the preamble explicitly recognized the “right to health” as a guiding human rights obligation for the Parties. That single line changed the direction of the debate, embedding health as a moral and legal principle within the UNFCCC process. However, it’s at COP 26 in Glasgow in 2021 that Paris Agreements’ preamble into practical ambition by launching a Heath Programme by the UK government as the Presidency of COP26, the World Health Organization (WHO), Health Care Without Harm, and the UNFCCC Climate Champions. The Heath Programme also established an alliance called’ Alliance on Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH) to support its member states to transform towards climate resilient and low carbon sustainable health systems.      

Yet, it was a sideline initiative beyond the scope of agenda-specific negotiation of the COP process. This has become a particular issue of negotiation at COP 28 in Dubai 2023 wherein the country Parties agreed to integrates heath as one of the indicators towards measuring the progress of Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA). The conference also hosted the first-ever Health Day. The decision adopted there set a target for 2030 to strengthen health resilience to climate change, acknowledging that adaptation cannot succeed if people’s well-being is left behind. The mmomentum continued through 2025, and strengthen by setting strong political notion for at the Global Conference on Climate and Health in July 2025 co-hosted by WHO and the Brazilian government. And right before the COP, during the UN General Assembly in September 2025, Brazil’s Ministry of Health and the COP30 Presidency co-hosted a high-level side event to present the updated draft of the Belém Health Action Plan.

By the time delegates arrived in Belém, the foundation was laid for health to take its rightful place at the center of global climate diplomacy. Now, in Belém, the world faces the next step: turning political commitments into national systems that can protect lives in a changing climate.

Belém Health Action Plan: Blueprint for a Healthy Climate Future

The Belém Health Action Plan (BHAP) aims to translate global ambition into national action. It focuses on three priority areas.

First, building climate-resilient health surveillance systems, encouraging countries to link meteorological and health data, improve early warnings for heatwaves, and strengthen public health infrastructure to manage disease outbreaks triggered by floods, droughts, and temperature changes.

Second, integrating health co-benefits into national climate policies, urging nations to view health as both an adaptation and mitigation advantage. Measures that reduce emissions, improve air and water quality, and enhance sanitation can boost public health, while equity considerations emphasize reproductive health, mental well-being, and menstrual hygiene, especially for women and girls in vulnerable regions.

Third, advancing equity, finance, and monitoring frameworks, with the BHAP calling for global metrics on climate-related mortality, disease burden, and loss of well-being, to be integrated into UNFCCC mechanisms such as the Global Goal on Adaptation, loss and damage, and climate finance. The plan also stresses improving access to national and international funds to ensure rapid and effective implementation of health-focused adaptation initiatives.

Health at COP30: A New Metric of Climate Success

Labelled as the “Implementation COP”, the world leaders at are expected to address the implementation challenges of the Paris Agreement what was decided a decade ago at COP 21 in 2015.  The Belém Health Action Plan launched at COP 30 could redefine climate ambition by making health a key measure of success. Its credibility will depend on how quickly countries implement it, how transparently progress is reported, and how equitably finance is delivered.

In regards to transform Belém Health Action Plan to actions the COP 30 should establish a formal Work Program to integrate health indicators into global adaptation and loss and damage frameworks, and create dedicated funding windows for health resilience.

Indeed, the significance of Belém runs deep. It is where the Amazon River meets the Atlantic, where forests breathe life into the planet, and where the health of people and ecosystems converge. It reminds the world that every climate decision is, at its core, a decision about life. If Paris was about promises and Glasgow about pledges, then Belém must be about protection -protection of people, health, and the systems that sustain life. As the world looks to the Amazon for leadership, one truth stands above all: Climate action is not only about reducing carbon. It is about preserving every heartbeat on this planet.

The authors are affiliated with the Center for Participatory Research and Development (CPRD)