COP30 Volunteers Make World’s Biggest Climate Event Possible

They are doctors, lawyers, students, and businesspeople. They are natives of Belém or they have relocated to the city. They are sharing a common experience: volunteering at COP30.

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“I’m volunteering because this is a one in a million experience,” Beatriz, a volunteer from Belém, a city of 1.4 million sitting at the mouth of the Amazon River delta, told Earth.Org.

More than 1,900 residents of the Brazilian city that is hosting this year’s UN climate summit were trained as volunteers, after a selection process where they had to demonstrate English skills and other competencies.

Nathália, a psychologist, decided to join the program “to learn about other cultures,” while Pedro, a recent graduate in animation, was looking for the opportunity to practice his English. Along with this experience, he hopes the UN certificate each volunteer receives will be helpful for his future. “I’m looking forward to my post-graduate career and I’m trying to experience different things,” he told Earth.Org. 

“The program can strengthen community engagement, especially among young people. It can help build a more participatory, aware, and resilient society,” Flavia Castelhano, project director for the volunteer program, said in a statement.

The volunteers are helping some 56,000 attendees navigate every aspect of the conference – from catching the dedicated COP30 buses to and from the venue to giving directions within it. They also support registration and accessibility, answer technical questions, and manage meeting rooms.

COP30 volunteering is a coordinated effort connecting riverine communities that use agroecology for sustainable forest development, youth who bring clean energy to remote areas, and women in underserved neighborhoods who teach urban sustainability, according to the organizers. 

Most of all, the volunteers are enthusiastic about the attention the sessions have brought to their city. “COP30 has brought a whole new look to the city,” said Beatriz. “It’s a vibe change.”

Featured image: Jan Lee.