Food and Agriculture Day at the 2025 UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP 30) took place on 19 November, with multiple events addressing related issues.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN’s (FAO) FAST Partnership and Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) convened a ministerial event on ‘Scaling Up Practical Solutions for Resilient Agri-Food Systems’ to discuss how to increase the quality and quantity of, and access to, the climate finance necessary for reducing agricultural super-pollutants and restoring land. Speakers highlighted: the Belém Declaration on Fertilisers; the Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers; the CCAC’s new 2026-2028 global flagship Farmer’s Initiative for Resilient and Sustainable Transformations (FIRST); the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel (TEAP) and its role in sharing knowledge with countries about how to scale up mitigation of short-lived climate pollutants (SLCP); and FAO’s report on ‘Climate-Related Development Finance to Agrifood Systems.’ 

Germany drew attention to a project on integrating food and agriculture into nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs). Egypt noted how the FAST Partnership, launched at COP 27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, is helping to embed food and agriculture more firmly into the climate agenda. Brazil mentioned the launch of the Global Carbon Harvest Coalition, which will gather data on how to improve sequestration of carbon in soils. Togo and the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF) said they were joining the FAST Partnership. Other interventions were made by New Zealand, Senegal, the Dominican Republic, Japan, Togo, Viet Nam, Nigeria, Cambodia, The Gambia, Australia, Canada, the World Bank, the World Rural Forum, CGIAR, the NDC Partnership, CAF, and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). The event was organized by FAO, the FAST Partnership, and the CCAC.

Another ministerial event saw the launch of the Resilient Agriculture Investment for Net-Zero Land Degradation (RAIZ), which seeks to accelerate investment in land restoration and resilient agriculture while supporting the objectives of the Rio Conventions by providing finance-ready approaches that link national priorities with investable solutions and capital flows. RAIZ will provide four categories of services: mapping degraded landscapes; identifying investable solutions; designing suitable investment mechanisms; and strengthening collaboration. 

Carlos Fávaro, Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, Brazil, described: the creation of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation – a state-owned enterprise that focuses on agricultural research and innovation for modern, sustainable tropical agriculture; and the Caminho Verde Brasil (Green Way Programme), which was launched in 2023, restored three million hectares, and led Brazil to a record harvest in 2025. Ministers from the UK, Norway, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Australia, and Japan spoke during a panel on restoration and the relevance of RAIZ. They mentioned, among others: the Tropical Forest Forever Facility, launched at COP 30 to secure the future of tropical forests via an innovative financing mechanism; and the Riyadh Global Drought Resilience Partnership, which links 64 countries and has mobilized more than US 2.2 billion. 

A fireside chat on financing farmland restoration highlighted, among others: Brazil’s Eco Invest mechanism as an example of co-investment between private and public actors that channels international funding through domestic banks; the COP 28 Action Agenda on Regenerative Landscapes, which mobilized USD 9 billion dollars in corporate commitments; and the Landscape Accelerator Brazil (LAB), which could support an area comparable in size to France and generate US 28 billion in annual value for Brazil.  The event was organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock of Brazil, FAO, Food and Land Use Coalition, and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). 

An event on the contribution of sustainable wood, forests, and livelihoods to climate change mitigation and adaptation, co-organized by the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) and the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute (FFPRI), highlighted practical climate-smart initiatives that improve livelihoods through sustainable forest management, and explored lessons and approaches to guide wider application of these efforts across the tropics. Two FFPRI projects were mentioned – a forest-based disaster risk reduction (DRR) project in Viet Nam and an integrated forest management model for the Andes Amazon region in Peru. Speakers also mentioned, among others: the Sustainable Wood for Cities toolkit, which guides cities in using sustainable timber within their climate strategies; and the African Women’s Network for Community Management of Forests (REFACOF) – a platform made up of 20 African countries that advocates for the rights of women to land tenure and is implementing ITTO land restoration projects in Cameroon, Benin, and Togo.

During another side event, organized by the Delta Electronics Foundation, experts: shared their experiences studying the climate mitigation power of the ocean, such as harnessing it for renewable energy projects; and emphasized that ocean management must deliver on adaptation goals, which requires marine planning and policymaking to reduce vulnerability. Wim Chang, Chief Executive Officer, Delta Electronics Foundation, walked participants through the Foundation’s project to harness the power of robots and artificial intelligence (AI) to identify coral species and restore coral reefs. The project trains volunteers and plans to build a coral observation center. 

Speakers also highlighted, among others:

  • Climate-smart work among multiple actors in the “coral triangle” region around Indonesia;
  • A blue bond issued by BNP Paribas to support sustainable management;
  • Remaining challenges in providing financial support for blue projects, including fragmented stakeholders, limited metrics, and misalignments between investor and project timelines;
  • Coral bleaching events, which have affected 54% of the world’s coral reefs in the past two years;
  • How digital mapping, AI, and traditional ecological knowledge can help fill gaps in understanding coral reef health; and
  • The upcoming launch of the South Atlantic Digital Twin initiative to help with coastal and marine risk management and capacity building. 

The Digital Demand-Driven Electricity Networks (3DEN) Initiative was the focus of an event titled, ‘Implementing Tomorrow’s Smart Systems Today,’ during which the event organizers, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Energy Agency (IEA), and the Ministry of Environment and Energy Security of Italy (MASE), announced Phase II of 3DEN, which brings 14 additional projects to Africa and Brazil. An institutional segment emphasized that 3DEN translates the themes of digitalization and resource efficiency into concrete projects that generate real benefits for communities and the private sector. Across four pilots, 3DEN reached 340,000 people, added 26 MW of clean power, mobilized US 9.2 million, and reduced more than 5,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2). Phase II will introduce 14 new projects worth US 28.6 million, including new work on agriculture and rural productivity.

Phase II projects, with eight focused on agrifood systems and six on urban energy will, among others:

  • Strengthen São Paulo’s grid through AI and machine learning;
  • Introduce a digital layer for dairy processing plants that can reduce long standing inefficiencies, lower emissions, and support companies in Tunisia; and 
  • Help utilities recover revenue and improve service reliability for 250,000 consumers in Nasarawa State, Nigeria, through the use of smart meters, a new data backbone, and a pay-as-you-save model.