Blog: Why COP30 showed farmers’ views matter

Our environment expert Rachael Madeley-Davies joined world leaders and key players in climate change in Brazil this month for COP30. Here, she reflects on the key takeaways and why farmers can play a crucial role in shaping the future.

If we’re not in the room, someone else is telling our story. Fresh back from the tropical climes of COP30, never has this statement been more true.

Global climate negotiations set both the tempo and detail of what directly affects our domestic policy landscape – including our agricultural systems.

COP30 welcomed governmental delegations from over 190 countries to Brazil, along with a flurry of non-governmental organisations (NGOs), researchers and other interested parties.

I joined the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Farmers’ Constituency, the only sector-specific constituency that ensures that there is a farmer representative at each key negotiation and meeting, and that what is happening on the ground for farmers is voiced during pavilion and side events.

My three key reflections:

Global climate negotiations are now in implementation mode

What we need to do to tackle the climate crisis has long been decided; it’s now about the how. In addition to this, climate adaptation is hurtling alongside, accepting that farmers everywhere are on the coal face when it comes to the impacts of our changing climate, so we need to mitigate emissions while adapting to our climate alongside producing food, fuel, fibre and other ecosystems services.

Implementation means delivery, and delivery needs farmers; this is why it is critical that we have farmers in the room, on the panels and providing evidence to our negotiators on what is being done and what can be achieved.

Farmers hold essential knowledge for climate solutions

Across the world, farmers utilise both traditional and innovative techniques that protect soil, manage water, enhance biodiversity and build resilience. Farmer insights are crucial for designing policies that are genuinely workable on the ground.

When farmers participate in climate dialogues, solutions become more implementable, cost-effective and scalable, transforming climate ambition into practical action. We can also learn from other farmers across the globe – it’s refreshing meeting up with global farming colleagues to understand that they have similar challenges, and that they can also offer useful insight in overcoming challenges.

Climate policy cannot succeed without farmer buy-in

The food systems space at COP is a busy place with lots of organisations and individuals presenting and advocating for their own version of the future – not always with farmers involved.

While negotiators design policies with good intentions, there are limitations in the understanding of the constraints farmers face, including tight margins, market volatility, land pressures and regulations. Having farmers at the table ensures policies are realistic, fair and supportive, and can therefore deliver.

Being at COP30 reaffirmed my belief that the global community must recognise that farmers are not passive stakeholders but are climate leaders, innovators and guardians of ecosystems, all while producing nutritious food.

To overlook them is to weaken the world’s response to climate change. To include them is to strengthen it.

The path to a resilient, food-secure future begins by ensuring farmers are not just spoken about but listened to and empowered to tell their own story.