Reclaiming Climate Justice: United Call for an Urgent Reform of the UN Climate Talks

A joint statement by over 200 organizations, including Climate Action Network (CAN) and YOUNGO, calling for a comprehensive reform of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to address power imbalances, corporate capture, and a lack of accountability in climate negotiations.

• The UNFCCC's current consensus-based decision-making model is viewed as a barrier to progress, allowing a small number of countries to block ambitious outcomes. The signatories propose moving toward majority-based decision-making when consensus fails to prevent the process from being "held hostage by the narrow interests of a few."
• The document argues that the UNFCCC is susceptible to corporate capture, noting a lack of a formal definition for "conflict of interest" and a lack of measures to prevent polluting industries from influencing policy. It calls for a strong Accountability Framework to exclude fossil fuel and high-emitting industry lobbyists from State Delegations and COP Presidencies.
• The signatories criticize the increasing size and commercialization of COPs, describing them as "global trade fair[s]" where corporate interests are prioritized through paid pavilions and partnerships. They advocate for "rightsizing" COPs to prioritize negotiators and rights-holders over commercial entities.
• There is a call to strengthen the UNFCCC compliance mechanism to move beyond mere reporting of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). The document suggests that reviews should result in binding recommendations and that the regime should have options to address failure to comply with international legal obligations.
• The statement highlights systemic barriers to participation for delegates from the Global South, specifically citing discriminatory visa policies. It proposes a unified digital visa system with guaranteed approval within one week for all accredited participants.
• The document calls for the UNFCCC to align with international law and the rulings of international courts, such as the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR), to ensure State responsibilities are upheld.
• To achieve a full fossil fuel phase-out, the signatories suggest pursuing legal pathways outside the UNFCCC, specifically mentioning the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty (FFNPT) and the Global Plastics Treaty.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (n.d.). Reclaiming Climate Justice: United Call for an Urgent Reform of the UN Climate Talks. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/United-Call-to-Action-TheCOPWeNeed.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. Reclaiming Climate Justice: United Call for an Urgent Reform of the UN Climate Talks. n.d. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/United-Call-to-Action-TheCOPWeNeed.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=Reclaiming Climate Justice: United Call for an Urgent Reform of the UN Climate Talks |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/United-Call-to-Action-TheCOPWeNeed.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centerforinternationalenvironmentallawndreclaiming, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{Reclaiming Climate Justice: United Call for an Urgent Reform of the UN Climate Talks}}, publisher = {Center for International Environmental Law}, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/United-Call-to-Action-TheCOPWeNeed.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }