COP31 timeline: How the world got here and what's at stake in Türkiye

COP31 and the road ahead

The 31st Conference of the Parties (COP 31) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will take place from November 9 to November 20, 2026 in Antalya, Turkey. Turkey will host the summit and lead the presidency's action agenda, while Australia, as co-president, will lead the negotiations.

At COP31, the Belém Mission will present its report on putting national climate plans into action. The new leadership has also pledged to bring Pacific island nations into focus.

Several key issues will be up for negotiation, including adaptation, mitigation, just transition and climate finance.

The presidency's action agenda also includes several priorities, notably a proposed global electrification target of 35 per cent by 2035.

Key moments in history of climate summits

Here are some major milestones in the history of international climate negotiations.

The formation of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 1988 was a significant milestone.

In 1990, the IPCC published its first assessment report. It concluded that global temperatures had risen by 0.3–0.6°C over the previous century and called for an international treaty to address greenhouse gas emissions.

This was followed by the adoption of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1992, aimed at tackling greenhouse gas emissions and addressing climate change.

In 1995, parties to the UNFCCC held the first Conference of the Parties (COP1) in Berlin. The meeting produced the Berlin Mandate, which called for negotiations on stronger emissions commitments.

In 1997, COP3 marked a historic milestone with the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol, the first international treaty to set legally binding greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets for developed countries.

The agreement reflected the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, under which developed countries were expected to take the lead because of their greater historical contribution to greenhouse gas emissions.

In 2001, at the resumed sixth climate summit in Bonn, governments reached a broad political agreement on the rules for implementing the Kyoto Protocol.

On February 16, 2005, the Kyoto Protocol entered into force without the United States, one of the world's largest historical emitters. The treaty had met the requirement for ratification by at least 55 countries, including industrialised countries accounting for at least 55 per cent of their combined 1990 carbon dioxide emissions.

In 2009, at COP15 in Copenhagen, the United States, European Union and BASIC countries sought to advance an international climate agreement based on national pledges rather than legally binding emissions reduction targets. The talks exposed deep divisions between developed and developing countries.

In 2010, COP16 in Cancún failed to establish new binding emissions targets but agreed to establish the Green Climate Fund. The fund was intended to help developing countries reduce emissions and adapt to climate change.

In 2013, at COP19 in Warsaw, delegates from developing countries walked out of discussions over the lack of progress on loss and damage caused by climate change. A compromise agreement eventually established the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage.

By 2015, global average temperatures had risen to around 1°C above pre-industrial levels.

That year, COP21 delivered the Paris Agreement, a landmark global climate treaty.

It required developed and developing countries to submit increasingly ambitious climate plans, known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

Countries also agreed to hold the rise in global average temperatures to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursue efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C.

In 2018, young climate activists, including Greta Thunberg, drew global attention to climate change through protests and demonstrations.

In 2020, the annual climate summit was postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The United States formally withdrew from the Paris Agreement under then-President Donald Trump.

In 2021, at COP26, the Glasgow Climate Pact called for a phasedown of unabated coal power and finalised rules for international carbon trading under the Paris Agreement.

The United States also rejoined the Paris Agreement under President Joe Biden.

In 2022, COP27 in Egypt delivered a historic agreement to establish a loss and damage fund to help vulnerable countries deal with the consequences of climate-related disasters.

In 2023, COP28 in Dubai operationalised the loss and damage fund and laid the groundwork for negotiations on a new collective quantified goal on climate finance.

COP30 outcomes in Brazil

In November 2025, countries gathered in Belém, Brazil, for COP30.

Brazil described it as the implementation COP, but negotiations were marked by disagreements over finance, trade and emissions reductions. Several decisions remained unresolved until the final stages.

One of the biggest disappointments concerned fossil fuels.

More than 80 countries, rising to 88 by the end of the summit, supported a roadmap for transitioning away from fossil fuels.

However, the final agreement did not explicitly mention fossil fuels.

Instead, Brazil announced separate roadmaps on fossil fuels and deforestation outside the formal negotiations.

There were some other outcomes.

A new two-year programme on climate finance was established to maintain pressure on developed countries to deliver the funding promised at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan.

That agreement included a goal of mobilising at least $300 billion annually for developing countries by 2035, alongside a broader ambition to scale climate finance to $1.3 trillion a year.

Countries also agreed to triple adaptation finance by 2035. However, developing countries had sought a 2030 deadline, and the baseline for calculating the increase remained unclear.

A set of 59 indicators was adopted to track global progress on adaptation, although last-minute changes weakened the outcome.

Countries also agreed to establish a just transition mechanism, a key demand from civil society organisations, and adopted a new gender action plan.

Two initiatives were launched in Belém: the Belém Mission to 1.5°C and the Global Implementation Accelerator.

Both aim to help countries translate their climate commitments into action.

Whether governments deliver on those promises at home remains to be seen.