Belém, hope or duty? By Bertrand Piccard (President of the Solar Impulse Foundation)

Bertrand Piccard President of the Solar Impulse Foundation The Amazon. Belém

I have just arrived: at the end of the world and at the center of the climate debate, not only Brazilian, but global, since COP30 is being held here.

Thirty climate conferences have already taken place. A generation of summits, negotiations, and disappointments. Unlike the COPs of yesteryear, which I attended with hope, this time I've come to Belém out of necessity. And I hope we'll be as numerous as possible. Why?

Because what's at stake here is nothing less than saving environmental cooperation from the collapse of multilateralism, while the 1.5°C limit set at COP21 in Paris risks being broken. If there's one summit not to be missed, it's this one. To send the message that we haven't given up.

The world is moving forward, but its momentum is slowing.

The world has already set things in motion, but it's slowing down its own momentum. It would take very little for the climate transition to go from being a concept that generates strong resistance to becoming a triumphant, efficient, and profitable advancement.

Renewable energy already provides the most competitive energy in the world. Energy efficiency, recycled materials, and clean mobility are advancing everywhere, despite criticism from defenders of the status quo. From the villages of the Sahel to the great metropolises of Europe, from the Andes to the Pacific, many are already seeing their advantages.

But the movement remains too slow, too timid, and its detractors are trying to bring it down mid-flight. More and more countries are lowering the ambitions of their nationally determined climate plans (NDCs), which no longer align with the 1.5°C trajectory or are implemented on the necessary scale.

However, many solutions exist, even as droughts, rising sea levels, food insecurity, and forced migration intensify. But we reassure ourselves by thinking that this primarily affects countries in the Global South, even though they are the least responsible.

Adapt without giving up

As if the fight against climate change were already lost, in Belém there will be much talk about adaptation issues: strengthening infrastructure, reinventing agriculture in the face of new climate realities, guaranteeing access to water.

To restore hope, we must demonstrate that these efforts, both in the North and the South, are not about spending more, but about doing more with less, making the most of existing resources.

Less loss, less waste, to achieve greater resilience, more benefits, a higher quality of life, and greater sovereignty. Efficiency must become the software of our societies.

Innovate to transform

At the Solar Impulse Foundation, we see concretely what this means: every day we certify innovations that combine efficiency and profitability, demonstrating that it is possible to transform limitations into opportunities that reconcile ecology and the economy.

Therefore, the real question is no longer what to do, but how quickly we can do it. Will we be able to implement these solutions faster than the impacts of climate change are unfolding? That is the race we are in.

Action instead of promises

Once again, the COP presidency wants to focus on "action instead of promises." The frustrating thing is that they say the same thing every time.

Will we reach the beneficial turning point that echoes our conviction: to act concretely, to turn the possible into reality? That is why we must be present in Belém.

The COP, an essential space

Yes, COPs are imperfect. But they remain the only place where humanity can collectively decide not to give up.

In a world where the temptation to retreat prevails everywhere, these meetings are bulwarks against fragmentation, places where we relearn to speak the language of the common future.

And that makes the trip mandatory.

Dr. Bertrand Piccard President of the Solar Impulse Foundation

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