Over 700 organisations from 88 countries demand a Just Transition Mechanism at COP31
More than 700 organisations from 88 countries, representing trade unions, Indigenous Peoples, feminist movements, children and youth, Afro-descendant and peasant groups, environmental advocates, disability networks and community organisations, have joined forces to demand climate action that puts people, not just emissions targets, at its heart. Their open letter supported by CIDSE, calls for a Just Transition that protects the rights and livelihoods of those most affected by the transition.
At COP30, social movements mobilised to secure a historic decision linking climate action to social and economic justice, human rights, inclusion and international cooperation, alongside a commitment to establish a mechanism at COP31 to turn Just Transition promises into action.
As world leaders arrive for COP31, billed as an “implementation COP”, governments face a crucial test: delivering on their promise to establish a Just Transition mechanism. A decade after the Paris Agreement recognised the need for a Just Transition that protects rights and livelihoods, that promise remains unfulfilled. The consequences are real: climate action has stalled, inequality has deepened and communities have been left behind. Establishing the Belém-Antalya Mechanism (BAM) for a Global Just Transition could be a landmark achievement of COP31. More than 700 organisations are calling on governments to make it happen.
Read the letter here.
The full list of signatories can be found here
Notes to Editors
The letter sets out three demands:
1. Put rights and justice at its heart. BAM must deliver on the commitments made at COP30, advancing human and labour rights, decent work and quality jobs, gender equality, intergenerational equity and the rights to health, development and a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. It must fully respect the individual and collective rights of Indigenous Peoples, including self-determination, Free, Prior and Informed Consent, and protections for Indigenous Peoples in voluntary isolation and initial contact.
2.Provide the support needed to deliver a Just Transition. BAM must have the mandate and institutional arrangements to provide technical and financial support for Just Transition strategies, coordinate relevant bodies within and beyond the UN, and facilitate inclusive, regionally balanced knowledge exchange that respects scientific integrity and methodological diversity.
3.Give workers and communities a seat at the table. BAM must be inclusive and democratic, ensuring that rights-holders and marginalised groups can meaningfully shape decisions affecting their lives and livelihoods. The principle is simple: nothing about us without us.
4.Today, workers, Indigenous Peoples, young people, feminist movements and climate justice activists from around the world came together at COP31 for a colourful, choreographed mass action demanding the establishment of the Belém-Antalya Mechanism. Through singing, drumming, chants, banners and collective movement, they called on governments to honour their COP30 commitments and put people, rights and justice at the heart of climate action.
Contacts:
CIDSE: Lydia Machaka (machaka(at)cidse.org)
CAN International: Attila Kulcsar (akulcsar(at)climatenetwork.org)
Cover image: Civils sociaty action at COP31. Credit CAN-International.