As COP30 comes to an end, one conclusion cuts across negotiations, side events and informal conversations: the world is turning to cities to drive the next chapter of climate action. While global agreements continue to face political complexity, local governments, from major metropolitan regions to small municipalities, are stepping forward with the resolve and urgency the moment requires.
This year’s COP revealed both progress and persistent gaps.
On mitigation, expectations to advance a formal commitment to transition away from fossil fuels, rekindled during COP28 in Dubai, did not materialize in the final text. The absence of fossil fuel language reflects the deep political and economic realities of countries whose infrastructure, labor force and fiscal health still rely heavily on hydrocarbons. The conversation continues, but formal consensus remains elusive.
Adaptation faced a parallel challenge. A long-awaited package of 100 global adaptation indicators, intended to harmonize methodologies and offer governments a shared framework for assessing risk and vulnerability, underwent major revisions during negotiations. Instead of approving the originally proposed 100 indicators, the COP adopted a condensed and reworked set of 59 “Belém Adaptation Indicators”. While this represents progress, many experts noted gaps in coherence and methodology, meaning cities and regions still lack fully standardized, widely accepted tools for assessing risk and vulnerability.
Yet beyond these headlines, COP30 delivered important signals of progress.
One of the most constructive developments was the renewed attention to climate information integrity. Discussions centered on combating misinformation, improving data quality and protecting the credibility of the climate information ecosystem, issues increasingly urgent in the face of rising denialism and fatalistic narratives, especially among youth.
Equally significant was the announcement of the Belém Just Transition Mechanism, designed to support developing countries in addressing the socioeconomic realities of transitioning their energy systems. Although still in its early stages and still without operational funding announced, the mechanism acknowledges a critical truth: transitions must account for workers, communities and infrastructure that currently depend on fossil fuel economies.
Perhaps one of the clearest outcomes of COP30 are the centrality of cities and sub-nationals in climate action and how to finance these efforts. Across pavilions, panels and working groups, the same pattern appeared: local governments are innovating, piloting solutions, mobilizing communities and developing actionable roadmaps, even when national political momentum is uncertain.
In many countries, including the United States and Argentina, sub-national action is advancing in spite of limited federal leadership. This bottom-up push is shaping a new global narrative: achieving climate goals depends on empowering cities with the data, capacity and funding necessary to act.
This is precisely why platforms like CityCatalyst drew sustained attention at COP30. Brazil’s national-scale experience, supporting more than 5,500 municipalities with standardized diagnostics, climate risk assessments and high-impact actions, resonated across governments, development banks and funders. The message was consistent: capacity remains one of the greatest global bottlenecks to implement effective climate actions, and tools that standardize data, simplify processes and accelerate decision-making are not optional; they are foundational climate infrastructure.
Adaptation received unprecedented visibility at COP30, yet it still captures only 10–15% of global climate finance. Sessions on the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF), nature-based solutions, public health impacts, climate justice and community-led resilience all echoed the same message: Cities urgently need credible, fundable adaptation portfolios, but lack standardized methodologies, high-quality data and access to financing pathways.
A recurring theme across bilateral meetings, technical roundtables and development bank conversations was clear: data alone will not solve the climate crisis.
Carlos Graffi, Product Designer Manager and Impact Lead at OpenEarth Foundation summarized it succinctly:
“The real impact comes from turning diagnostics into concrete, finance-ready projects. Everyone has data. What cities need is the ability to act.”
The climate implementation pipeline is universally recognized:
Data → Actions → Projects → Funding → Implementation → Measurable Impact → Narrative
Today, the world stalls between steps 1, 2 and 3 at their best.
Cities routinely report the same obstacles:
Without bridging this gap, thousands of climate plans remain frozen in documents, never translated into real-world outcomes.
COP30 was described by many as “the COP of truth.” Rising misinformation, political polarization and climate denialism are not abstract risks, they influence public trust, investment flows and policy cycles.
This is why transparent methodologies, open-source data and high-integrity climate infrastructure are becoming essential. The work of OpenEarth Foundation in this space resonated strongly.
Our mission is now both technical and narrative: To help cities tell evidence-based stories that unlock finance and accelerate implementation.
A key insight repeated across partners is that technology alone cannot solve climate challenges. No AI model, dashboard or platform can replace participatory processes and local ownership.
Open, interoperable tools must be paired with community-centered design and on-the-ground collaboration. This is where open-source approaches offer unique advantages: global standards combined with local agency.
For Carlos, the defining image of COP30 was the 70,000-person march led by Indigenous communities, youth, workers and families. A fist raised in Belém’s streets demanding urgent action, a powerful reminder that local voices and local action are the true engines of climate transformation.
Cities are ready to lead, but they cannot do it alone. They need:
COP30 made one thing indisputable:
Local, data-driven, finance-ready climate action is the future. And the world is searching for the infrastructure that can make this future possible.
