Guest post by Laura Baumgartner, the pastor of the Haller Lake United Methodist Church in Seattle, WA.
In the days before COP30 began, 44 countries signed on to the Belém Declaration on Hunger, Poverty, and Human-Centered Climate Action which centers the reality of indigenous peoples and others in the global South whose livelihoods are threatened by the changing climate. The Declaration describes centering the human stories of the most affected peoples as a means of implementing these commitments and tracking progress toward them. On this first day of COP30 in Belém Brazil, we can already see the ways that the voices, needs, and concerns of those most impacted by the climate crisis are prioritized, centered, and heard.
At a very early press conference, UnaMay Gordon, Principal Director of Climate Change in the government of Jamaica talked about the catastrophic devastation in her country from Hurricane Melissa that destroyed much of the island’s infrastructure, agricultural land, cultural heritage, churches, and many people’s lives. She called on leaders of developed countries to take responsibility for the effects of climate change that are so devastating to people in her country.
During the Opening Ceremonies, a Brazilian pop singer, Fafá de Belém, performed her song, Emoriô. Translated to English, Emoriô means love and spiritual connection with the sun, moon, and sky. The word was on the screens behind her with the English words, “I See You.” It was literally the backdrop to part of the session in which Brazilian president, Luis Inacio Lula da Silva, and the UN Climate Change Executive Secretary, Simon Stiell, called participants to learn from the Amazon river. They explained that the same way the river is supported by many rivers, streams, tributaries, and smaller waterways, solutions to the climate crisis must be supported by innovations at many levels, not just by national governments. Creating a future together that can mitigate some of the effects of climate change and adapt to others will require innovation by scientists and engineers, politicians at every level, companies, banks, non-profit organizations, churches, and individuals. It will require all of us and it will require us to see clearly those most affected.
There is one country, the United States of America, that is conspicuously absent, in an official capacity, from the proceedings. There are many observers, including several of us from the United Methodist Church, organized by the General Board of Church and Society. The absence of the world’s largest economy from the talks has several effects, most notably it creates more time and space to center the voices of the countries and the peoples who are most impacted by the effects of the climate crisis, who have named the need for full and respectful inclusion in the solutions that are proposed. What indigenous peoples ask for is self-determination and free, prior, informed consent before development changes their land and their way of life. While not attending COP30 also has obvious ramifications for continued damage to the earth’s precious ecosystems, it also has the perhaps unintended effect of amplifying the leadership of those who do attend, especially those with first-hand knowledge of ecological resilience efforts.
One session that demonstrated the leadership of indigenous communities in sustainable agriculture was led by the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA). During the session, a man from the Amazon basin stood up and spoke to the representatives from across the African continent about how sustainable agricultural practices are providing food for people in one region could be points of collaboration with farmers in another region. Anne Maina received his comments with grace and invited further discussion throughout the COP and cooperation beyond. It was in this session that Musa Usman Ndamba, a representative of the indigenous peoples of Cameroon, named this COP, the COP of Indigenous Peoples. These are the voices that will lead us to a future where all can thrive.
By meeting in the Amazon, this 30th COP centers indigenous voices in important ways. The very location of the conference invites interactions among those most affected by climate change and places other visitors in a position to learn from their valuable sources of wisdom. By showcasing the sights and sounds and foods and cultures of the Amazon, the world will be focused on its rich and diverse abundance for the next two weeks. The work of finding real solutions instead of false promises is still mostly to come for COP30 attendees. Yet, the initial signs point toward a set of priorities and an approach that is aligned with values of justice and peace over competition and control.
Rev. Laura Baumgartner is the pastor of the Haller Lake United Methodist Church in Seattle, WA. She serves as co-Caretaker of God’s Creation Coordinator for the Pacific Northwest conference of the United Methodist Church with Rev. Jackie Celin and works closely with the Commission on Environmental Stewardship in her conference. Laura worked for many years as a science teacher before becoming a pastor and has degrees in chemistry, environmental engineering, and divinity. She loves to spend time outside with her dog, Calvin and husband, Eric. Their daughter lives in Chicago, where they love to visit.