There’s a very positive atmosphere here, Italians say at COP30

Italian biologist Emanuela Evangelista, who has already won a medal for her work in protecting the Amazon, reported a “very positive” atmosphere during the first week of COP30 in Belem and praised the participation of civil society, especially indigenous communities, at the UN climate change summit.

Evangelista, founder and president of the NGO Amazonia ETS, which promotes health, education, training, labor and sustainable development projects in protected forest areas on the border of Amazonas and Roraima, has been closely monitoring activities in the capital, Pará, to find effective solutions to the global climate crisis.

“Given the challenges and concerns, it is certainly a success that it is becoming a reality,” the biologist said in an interview with ANSA. “What we are breathing here in Belem is a very positive atmosphere,” he added.

The Italian fell in love with the Amazon in 2000 while researching his master’s degree on the giant otter, a characteristic and endangered mammal of the region, and has lived for more than a decade in a riverside community called West Xuaú, which is only accessible by boat.

Earlier in the week, Evangelista traveled to Belem to attend COP30, joining a “global effort” to reach agreement on vexing climate issues, from ending dependence on fossil fuels to helping countries reduce pollutant emissions.

“In addition to the delegations, there is a layer of participants from civil society, each acting within the scope of his role, and traditional peoples managing to show their strength,” he declared.

Indigenous communities held a series of demonstrations in Belém throughout the week. One incident ended in a confrontation with a security team that took advantage of the unique opportunity of a climate summit in the middle of the Amazon, the largest rainforest on Earth.

“Even from a pressure point of view, it is important for the world to see that there is such a diversity of cultures. The whole world doubted until the end, but we are here,” Evangelista stressed.

But negotiations face a number of obstacles, and while Italians do not currently expect a “final solution”, they do hope countries can reach an agreement on limits on fossil fuel use.

“Dubai is the first step, and for the first time, the COP report has put the issue in perspective. It will be a great success to leave here with an action plan on fossil fuels. It will also be important to look at the way traditional peoples live and listen to the practical solutions they are proposing to us,” he explained.

NGO Amazonia has already held an event within the scope of COP30 in the Italian Pavilion on 10 November to present strategies and good practices accumulated over 25 years of forestry work, and will hold another event next Monday (17th) to give a voice to young people and indigenous women in the field of scientific research.

Evangelista, who was awarded the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic by President Sergio Mattarella in 2020, said: “What we have been doing for 35 years has been working together and forming networks to protect 600,000 hectares of forest.” .