Fossil fuel CO2 emissions increase again in 2024
2025.10.27
Global carbon emissions from fossil fuels have reached a record high in 2024, according to new research by the Global Carbon Project science team.
Read MoreUniversity of Exeter at COP30
With global warming set to exceed 1.5°C – breaching a goal of the Paris Agreement set at COP21 – Exeter’s experts will help provide the latest research, policy insight and solutions to the escalating climate crisis.
The University of Exeter is renowned for its environmental research and education, and is home many of the world’s leading climate scientists. We now have more than 1,500 people working on the environment and climate emergency. Exeter’s work at COP30 includes:
The second Global Tipping Points Report, led by Professor Tim Lenton at Exeter’s Global Systems Institute, was published on 13 October to coincide with the pre-COP30 meeting in Brasilia. At that meeting, ministers and negotiations saw a video about the tipping points report, narrated by former New Zealand Prime Minister Dame Jacinda Ardern, COP30 Special Envoy for Oceania. The report will be presented and discussed at various events at COP30 (see listings below).
The University of Exeter is involved in international collaborations to research the role of tropical forests as carbon stores and for sustaining biodiversity and ecosystem services. Initiatives such as AmazonFACE, AmazonSOS and CSSP Brazil exemplify science in action to support resilience and inform policy. The AmazonFACE programme will be officially inaugurated by the Brazilian Minister for Science Luciana Santos and the UK Government’s Chief Scientific Advisor Professor Dame Angela McLean. Professor Richard Betts, from the University of Exeter and the Met Office, will attend the AmazonFACE inauguration and COP30 to speak about these initiatives. Professor Stephen Sitch and Dr Thais Rosan – both part of the AmazonSOS and Global Carbon Budget teams – will share their expertise in rainforest research at various events (see listings below).
The University of Exeter is a core partner of the Planetary Science Pavilion, alongside research institutions from Brazil, the US and Germany, and international organisations. Mandated by the COP30 Presidency, the pavilion will serve as a high-profile platform to ensure that science is central to the agenda of COP30, enabling meaningful engagement between scientists, policymakers, negotiators, Indigenous leaders, and the wider public.
Professor Pierre Friedlingstein leads the annual Global Carbon Budget (GCB). Now in its 20th year, GCB tracks the trends in global carbon emissions and sinks. More than 100 people from 70 organisations in 18 countries now work on GCB. This year’s report will be published on 13 November at COP30, with the findings presented at various events during the conference (see listings below).
ClimaVAR is an open-source initiative developed by Exeter’s Nature & Climate Impact Team and supported by climate researchers, data scientists, and concerned citizens working together to combat climate misinformation. Using the football concept of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), ClimaVAR reviews controversial claims and provides clear, science-based verdicts on climate-related content. Dr Marcos de Oliveira Jr from the Nature & Climate Impact Team will be at COP30.
The Parliamentarians’ Global Guide to Climate Change and Climate Solutions has been published to coincide with the start of COP30. It is an updated, global version of the guide published initially for UK policymakers last year. The earlier version has already been republished in Azerbaijan and Brazil – host countries of COP29 & COP30 – and has reached more than 200,000 people so far. It has also been references in both UK Houses of Parliament.
Blue Zone:
| 10-15 November | UN exhibits area | AmazonFACE science, impact and benefits: showcasing the world’s largest open-air climate change experiment at the heart of the Amazon forest to inform climate policy. |
| 10-21 November | UK Pavilion | Display on AmazonFACE and related research, with 3D interactive video. |
| 10 November
15:00-16:00 |
Planetary Science Pavilion | A new reality: key findings of the Global Tipping Points Report 2025 and implications for governance. Presentation by Professor Tim Lenton. |
| 10 November
16:30-17:45 |
Earth Information Day, Room 1 | Dr Thais Rosan will present at the breakout session: Observations for supporting climate action, and the ocean and cryosphere. |
| 12 November
14:00-15:00 |
UK Pavilion | Roundtable on The Role of Business in Building Climate Resilience, speakers include Stuart |
| 12 November
17:00-18:00 |
World Green Economy Organization Pavilion | Climate Education Revolution. Speakers include Dr Marcos de Oliviera Jr. |
| 13 November
09:00-10:00 |
IDFC Pavilion | Stuart Brocklehurst and others will speak on Climate and Nature Scenarios for Ministries of Finance Building the Foundations of the Post-COP30 Implementation Agenda |
| 13 November
14:15 |
Coalition for Rainforest Nations Pavilion | Professor Stephen Sitch and Dr Thaís Rosan will present the findings of the 2025 Global Carbon Budget.
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| 13 November
16:30-18:00 |
Planetary Science Pavilion | Global Carbon Budget launch event. Speakers include Professor Stephen Sitch and Dr Thaís Rosan.
|
| 13 November
16:30-18:00 |
UK Pavilion | Advancing Global Forest Science for Climate Policy: Showcasing UK Brazil Research Partnerships & AmazonFACE. Speakers include Professor Richard Betts. |
| 13 November
17:00-18:00 |
World Green Economy Organization Pavilion | Dr Marcos de Oliviera Jr will host a discussion entitled: ClimaVAR: Fighting Climate Misinformation with AI & Football. |
| 14 November
11:30-12:30 |
UK Pavilion | Roundtable on Rallying Radical Climate Collaboration: Building Low Carbon Industrial Clusters, speakers include Stuart Brocklehurst |
| 14 November
13:15-14:45 |
Side Event Room 1 | Earth observation for forest monitoring, speakers include Stuart Brocklehurst |
| 14 November
14:15 |
Coalition for Rainforest Nations Pavilion | Seeing the wood for the leaves: Bring clarity to the role of forests and why they need protecting. Speakers include Professor Stephen Sitch and Dr Thaís Rosan.
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| 15 November
10:00-11:15 |
Higher Education for Climate Action Pavilion
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Presentation on science and policy, including the Parliamentarians’ Global Guide to Climate Change, Stuart Brocklehurst |
| 15 November
11:30-13:00 |
UN Side Event Room 8 | Critical science for tropical forests: regional and global science for policy and climate resilience. Speakers include Professor Richard Betts, Professor Stephen Sitch and Dr Thais Rosan. |
| 15 November
14:15 |
Coalition for Rainforest Nations Pavilion | Securing a sustainable future for the Amazon agricultural frontier. Speakers include Professor Stephen Sitch. |
| 15 November
17:15-16:15 |
Planetary Science Pavilion | “Initiatives and solutions in the Amazon – Part 2”. Speakers include Professor Richard Betts. |
| 19 November
10:00-11:00 |
World Green Economy Organization Pavilion | Climate-smart agriculture for food security. Speakers include Dr Marcos de Oliviera Jr. |
| 19 November
17:00-18:00 |
Planetary Science Pavilion | Stuart Brocklehurst and others will discuss engaging policymakers with climate science |
| 20 November
10:00-11:00 |
World Green Economy Organization Pavilion | Green innovation for climate-resilient enterprises. Speakers include Dr Marcos de Oliviera Jr. |
| 20 November
18:00-19:00 |
UK Pavilion | The COP30 Pub Quiz, hosted by Stuart Brocklehurst |
Green Zone:
| 12 November
14:30-15:00 |
Extreme Hangout | Title TBC. Poetry readers include Professor Richard Betts. |
| 14 November
18:00-20:00 |
Extreme Hangout | British Chambers of Commerce Half Time Report, speakers include Stuart Brocklehurst |
Belém city:
| 13 November
18:00-21:30 |
JAQ Hydrogen Vessel – Escadinha Cais do Porto | Frontrunners’ Dinner, speakers include Stuart Brocklehurst |
| 14 November
11:35-12:10 |
Assembléia Paraense | Professor Stephen Sitch will speak at the World Climate Foundation’s Panel 5B: Building Integrity in Nature and Ocean Markets – Trust, Impact and Equity. |
| 19 November
14:00–17:00 |
House of Science, Emilio Geoldi Museum | Roundtable: Climate and Amazonian Biodiversity. Speakers include Professor Richard Betts. |
2025.10.27
Global carbon emissions from fossil fuels have reached a record high in 2024, according to new research by the Global Carbon Project science team.
Read More2025.10.27
The world faces a “new reality” as we have reached the first of many Earth system tipping points that will cause catastrophic harm unless humanity...
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Three University of Exeter scientists have been appointed as authors for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Seventh Assessment Report.
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A new Portuguese translation of a key guide to climate change for policymakers has been launched at the Pre-COP30 Parliamentary Forum in Brazil.
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