ECO 1, SB64
8 June 2026
The more things change, the more they stay the same – or do they?
ECO welcomes delegates to the SB64 session. It is always nice to be back, seeing so many familiar faces and places. It reminds one of the saying “the more things change, the more they stay the same”. Many things have changed since we last saw each other. While we were apart, a sovereign country was invaded and its sitting President kidnapped, a sovereign nation blockaded, international court judges sanctioned for doing their job, military spending reached record levels of $3,2 T and let us not forget the over 16,000 fatalities due to extreme climate events and a bill of over $170 billion in economic losses. ECO notes an extraordinary shift – renewable energy investments have nearly doubled fossil fuel investments since last year. And of course how can ECO miss the decision to have a dual COP Presidency, a first in the history of the UNFCCC. We look forward to watching them duel it out on the soccer field.
With all these changes ECO somehow still feels the more things stay the same. It was exactly a year ago that ECO called for the end to an illegal war against Iran. And yet here we are again. Another illegal war against Iran and this time with devastating consequences. It was almost three years ago that ECO called for a ceasefire in Gaza and yet here we are. Not only does the genocide continue, mass killings have expanded to Lebanon using the same playbook as in Gaza, with targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure.
It was over three years ago that governments agreed to transition away from fossil fuels, and yet here we are, wealthy nations who are supposed to lead, like the US, Australia, Canada, Norway, have in fact done the opposite. Five years since governments pledged to double adaptation finance by 2025, here we are with developed countries still not delivering this commitment. It was three years ago since governments established the Fund to Respond to Loss and Damage, and yet only half of the pledged USD 822 million funding has been received. ECO also gets the feeling that the Roadmap from Baku to Belem will be a similar long and winding one.
However, ECO believes we can buck the trend. We have that opportunity right here in Bonn. Firstly, you can build on the good achievement in Belem and ensure real steps are taken towards the operationalisation of the agreed global mechanism for a Just Transition, the BAM (Belem Antalya Mechanism) by delivering a draft text that grounds the COP30 Just Transition principles, has the capacity to mobilise practical support, public finance and technical assistance for national and local Just Transition Plans and include workers, Indigenous Peoples, People of African descent, local communities and other rights-holders in the decision-making and governance structures of the BAM. This level of ambition and innovation will truly be a change.
Secondly, ECO feels it is time for the money to flow in order to meet the ever growing adaptation needs on the ground. The commitment made in Belem, to triple adaptation finance by 2035 now requires a credible plan for its delivery. This funding has to be public, grant-based finance. You can start preparing these plans during the many dialogues.
Thirdly, ECO looks forward to the COP30 Presidency’s first discussion on the Roadmap to Transition away from Fossil Fuels. We recognise he has three Roadmaps on his shoulders. We do not envy him. We believe the TAFF Roadmap has some good momentum behind it with the Santa Marta conference having taken place, and we believe that the plans for transitioning away from fossil fuels has to be dealt with in this multilateral space where the agreement was made. However, ECO wants to emphasise that these “roadmaps” have to be national plans and linked to NDCs. The global framework on the other hand would need to ensure an equity and justice-based approach to these transitions, as well as ensuring that finance is available to developing countries for these transitions.
ECO therefore says to all delegates, what you do here can make a real difference in the lives of the millions of people who are suffering from the many crises facing them. Many have lost hope in the multilateral process. You have the opportunity to change this. ECO stands ready with all those who are committed to real change and breaking the mold on things staying the same.
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Implementation without finance is just bad fiction
So, we all heard the mantra “from ambition to implementation.” According to good sources, ECO heard that ‘the core mandate of the presidency focuses on the global transition from ambition to strict implementation of previous climate commitments.’ Oh wait… that’s great!
But here’s ECO’s blunt question: How will this work in practice when finance is being cut across the board and the appetite to discuss the Global North’s financial obligations is entirely missing? What does “implementation” actually mean if public finance simply isn’t flowing? Is it magic? Hope? A really heartfelt LinkedIn post?
Neither formal tracks nor parallel initiatives will survive on empty promises. You cannot phase out fossil fuels, deliver a robust Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA), and meet the new adaptation finance tripling target by 2023, or make the Just Transition real without the most important ingredient: public, grant-based finance from developed countries. Not crumbs. Not loans. Not recycled pledges.
After the NCQG trainwreck (someone has to mention it, so ECO will), developing countries demanded a real space to discuss public provision under Article 9.1.
You remember Article 9.1? The one that says developed countries have an obligation to provide public finance? Instead of a targeted mechanism to discuss, assess, and monitor these obligations, we got a two-year work programme so broad you could lose the Paris Agreement in it. We cannot keep scraping every corner of the finance kitchen sink while the needs and gaps pile up like dirty dishes.
So here’s the memo for these two weeks of negotiations: only dedicated discussions on public provision get us out of the broken-promise loop and into accountability, responsibility, and, dare we say it, actual implementation.
Implementation without resources is a lie. ECO is done pretending otherwise. Are you?
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Building the Big, Bold BAM the World Needs
At COP30, in the rooms, in the corridors, in the march, a whisper became a collective chant – bam.. Bam… BAM. What civil society groups, including unions, feminist groups, youth and social movements, have been asking for started to materialise: ensuring that the rights and needs of workers and communities are at the centre of how we do climate action. Parties came together and delivered what ECO can only describe as a breakthrough decision: establishing key principles, calling for financing to underpin Just Transition strategies, and agreeing to develop a Just Transition Mechanism, marking a significant step toward anchoring Just Transition in rights, inclusion and international cooperation within the Paris Agreement.
We all celebrated, but we also know that Just Transition and the BAM cannot merely remain a chant – it has to become a reality. And for that, we will need to think outside the box. We don’t need just any Just Transition mechanism; what we need is an innovative and ambitious BAM that is equipped to concretely support those building the Just Transition on the ground. And ECO knows that the hard part starts now; that there are a lot of technicalities to go through. But we invite Parties not to lose sight of the opportunity at hand: sending the signal that multilateralism can deliver for the people. Whether addressing transformation in transitioning away from fossil fuels, advancing agriculture and food systems transitions, transforming industrial processes, deploying renewable energies, managing demand for transition minerals, addressing climate impacts, the BAM can provide the coherent, ambitious and actionable building blocks needed to turn political commitments into practical support.
ECO hopes that we all show up to the venue fully caffeinated and ready to work and put forward the most ambitious and innovative ideas. As usual, ECO and friends are full of ideas and ready to engage to build the BAM together, constructing a home for just transition where we will all come together as one to really make just transition a reality. And for all those wondering, we did a little rebranding and BAM now stands for Belem-Antalya Mechanism. It’s so close now, we can hear it breathe.
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Asking the Means of Implementation genie to grant three wishes for agriculture
Today the workshop on Means of Implementation for Agriculture under the Sharm el Sheikh joint work on agriculture (SSJW) begins. With millions still facing chronic malnutrition and small-scale food producers remaining chronically underfunded while coping with climate change, ECO invites you to consider a thought experiment: imagine if a genie were to grant (not loan!) you three wishes for the workshop. What would they be?
ECO knows what ours would be.
Our first wish is to prioritise the very real magic of sustainable agriculture: Agroecology. ECO knows from the learnings and science-backed evidence of last year’s workshop, as well as the experience of local communities, that Agroecology must be the priority target for Means of Implementation. Don’t waste any of your wishes on AI and other wishy-washy unproven, false solutions for agriculture.
The second wish is for grants-based financing, aligned with CBDR-RC and delivered at scale to support a Just Transition in food systems. Climate finance, ending harmful subsidies, taxing the profits of fossil fuel companies, debt cancellation and moving money from military spending are all great ways to summon up the financial power for this wish. Don’t waste your breath on fancy and complicated private finance, loans and blended finance. Wishing for approaches that push small-scale food producers into debt and depriving countries of the public funds needed to invest in climate action and the right to food for all would not just be wasteful, but actively harmful.
Our third wish is practical: more direct financing to local organisations, please! Community-access windows are the way to support producers’ organisations, Indigenous Peoples, women, youth or People of African descent, who are already sustaining food sovereignty, agroecology and fighting climate change. This is the way for climate justice.
Now breathe, think of the people who grow your food everyday, and see you this afternoon to turn wishes into action.
