Hannah Eves works for the Christian development charity Tearfund. She will travel next month to Belém, Brazil to attend COP30 (10 November to 21 November) – the UN Conference on Climate Change – with campaigner and Tearfund Ambassador Laura Young (‘Less Waste Laura’) in partnership with the Christian Climate Observers Programme. 

Operation Noah: Can you tell me about what you’ll be doing at COP30 and the programme you are taking part in? 

Hannah Eves: ‘At Tearfund, we see that people living in extreme poverty are living through the reality of the climate crisis every day. I will be travelling to Brazil with our Tearfund Ambassador, Laura Young (‘Less Waste Laura’), lobby UK negotiators on climate finance and other key issues which affect our global neighbours living in poverty, draw attention to the lived experience of the climate crisis on the communities we serve, and highlight these issues in the media.’  

‘For this year’s COP, Tearfund has partnered with the Christian Climate Observers Programme (CCOP). This programme seeks to equip young advocates to engage with the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) process and international climate negotiators. The Tearfund team from the UK will be staying at the CCOP “base camp” which will include devotional and prayer time together as well as opportunities to support those who are attending their first COP.’

Operation Noah: What are some of the international priorities and goals for COP30 – and what can we realistically, or even optimistically, hope might be achieved? 

Hannah Eves: ‘The President of COP30, Correa de Lago, said: “Paris was a time of international agreement; Belém is the time of implementation.”‘ 

‘COP30 marks ten years since the historic Paris Agreement was signed and over 2025 countries have been submitting their updated climate plans – or “NDCs”. COP30 is also significant as the COP process comes home! The first ever Earth Summit was actually hosted in Brazil, as in 1992 countries met in Rio de Janeiro and set up the process of annual climate summits. This COP will be a full circle moment to take stock of what we have and haven’t yet achieved on climate.’

‘Another key issue will be finance. Agreement from wealthy nations to support lower income countries financially as they tackle this challenge has been a large part of international climate negotiations. But the amount of money and how it is delivered has been a point of contention for years. Communities who have contributed the least to causing the climate crisis are bearing the brunt of it and have the fewest resources to adapt. A new climate finance goal was set at COP29 which called on higher income countries to “take the lead” in raising $300bn a year for lower income countries by 2035. However, it fell far short of what was needed for communities impacted by the climate crisis. At the end of the last summit, countries agreed to set up the “Baku to Belém Roadmap” as a way for them to work together to scale up the money needed.’

‘We will be monitoring how this will play out at COP and will be calling for wealthy nations to deliver on the desperately needed climate finance.’

Operation Noah: Will there be a significant Christian presence at COP30, and do you have plans to meet up with other Christians or faith groups at the conference? 

Hannah Eves: ‘The Tearfund team in Latin America have spent months preparing for this conference, mobilising churches from across the region to engage on the issue of climate change. The team includes church leaders, youth activists, and representatives from indigenous groups in Brazil, bringing their perspectives and experiences to the conversation. They have been working with coalitions of faith organisations and faith leaders in Brazil. I’m very excited to collaborate with and pray with them on the ground at COP30.’

Operation Noah: Some campaigners have all but given up on the COP process due to the ways in which the conference has been influenced by fossil fuel lobbyists and petrostates, while others remain convinced that international agreements and treaties are the only way forward; how do you view the COP process?

Hannah Eves: ‘I believe that the COP process is the best tool that we have to combat the climate crisis. It’s not a perfect system, but it is worth defending our multi-lateral spaces, particularly on a threat like climate change which is a global challenge and will need global cooperation to solve. We have made progress on climate action since Paris, even if it has been slow progress. For example, we’re seeing an energy revolution – it was reported recently that renewable energy has overtaken coal as the world’s leading source of electricity for the first half of 2025. Clean power is pushing into the profits of oil and gas companies: it is estimated that nine out of ten renewable projects are cheaper than their fossil fuel competitors. It’s important to remember that there is cause for celebration among all the challenges of climate engagement.’  

Operation Noah: What gives you hope for COP30 and what would you like to learn or observe while there? 

Hannah Eves: ‘After years of host countries with limited civil society engagement, it is exciting to see Brazilian civil society able to make a big noise for climate action. This could be the “People’s COP” – and I hope it will be. I’m looking forward to working closely with other organisations and advocates committed pushing the agenda that a greener, fairer world is possible. I am also excited to try out the Brazilian Portuguese I have been learning on Duolingo over the last few months!’

Operation Noah: Is there anything else you want to add? 

Hannah Eves: ‘If you’d like to pray with us, pray for wealthy nations to step up in delivering the vitally needed climate finance to support communities to adapt to a crisis they didn’t cause; pray for churches and faith leaders, particularly in Latin America, to be bold in advocating for the people impacted by climate breakdown; and pray for the people of Belém as they prepare to host COP30.’

‘The scale of the conference is huge and the logistics around this COP have been particularly challenging. And finally, pray for travelling mercies for me and Laura as we prepare to go to Belém in only a few weeks time!’