On earth, in society, between people and nature, should reign harmony and consent, otherwise humanity will destroy itself
Message conveyed through the poems of XII-century world-renowned Azerbaijani poet and philosopher Nizami Ganjavi
Dear colleagues,
In the first letter to Parties and Constituencies, I wrote to you to present the two pillars of the COP29 Presidency’s vision to enhance ambition and enable action, which included our top priorities for the upcoming negotiations and mandated activities.
In this letter I want to set out how the COP29 Action Agenda supports our vision, provide further details on individual Presidency-led initiatives and envisaged outcomes, and clarify how we are calling on a wider group of stakeholders to contribute to global climate action at COP29.
In recent years, ever more actors have realised that they have a common interest and duty to play their part and offer their solutions to confront the climate crisis. Successive COP Presidencies have supplemented their mandated programmes with non-negotiated action agendas, bringing together state and non-state actors, civil society, Indigenous Peoples, youth, and private and philanthropic organisations to achieve ambitious outcomes.
These agendas have utilised the convening power of COP and the hosts’ respective national capabilities to form coalitions and drive progress. They have confronted the most pressing problems, shone a light on forgotten priorities, and offered unique solutions based on the experiences and perspectives of the host.
COP29 will be the first hosted in the Caucasus, and we are honoured to represent our region to the world. Climate change affects everyone differently: We face extreme heat, water scarcity, and declining water levels in the Caspian Sea that have a direct impact on our lives and livelihoods. But we are also a source of solutions and opportunities, such as our abundant wind and solar potential, which can play an important role in the renewable energy landscape, supporting transition to low-emissions and climate resilient development not only at the national, but also at the regional and global level, and we are determined to lead by example.
We have built an agenda that seeks to work in harmony across multiple cross-cutting dimensions. We have developed initiatives to address all climate pillars, involve global, regional, national and subnational groups, take a holistic view of sustainable development, and include all demographics within an inclusive process that delivers inclusive outcomes. These activities will be guided by the principles, objectives, and goals of the Convention and the Paris Agreement.
To enhance our ambition, we are launching the COP29 Presidency Initiatives for all stakeholders to raise their levels of commitment, while envisaged outcomes of these initiates will enable action, empowering us to achieve our ambitions. All these Presidency Initiatives and their envisaged outcomes in the form of pledges, declarations, partnerships and platforms are summarised in the annexes to this letter. We will also run further regional and national initiatives which we will communicate directly to the relevant stakeholders in due course.
As more actors contribute to climate action in an increasingly global effort, coherence amongst initiatives is a growing imperative. To ensure interoperability with existing international frameworks, we have partnered with UN and international agencies in the development and delivery of the COP29 Action Agenda, which we hope will help ensure continuity and COP-to-COP legacies.
We are launching multiple platforms to bring otherwise disparate stakeholders together and develop efficiencies and synergies. We have sought to build on previous achievements, and many initiatives have been informed by the first Global Stocktake, amongst other milestone agreements, as we look to fill gaps and take the next steps towards implementation.
We are still consulting on the COP29 Action Agenda, and we will continue to seek the inputs of partners as we finalise specific elements. We have appointed the COP29 UN High-Level Champion, Ms. Nigar Arpadarai, to engage with non-Party stakeholders and the private sector on the COP29 Presidency’s Action Agenda. Between now and COP29 we will engage with relevant stakeholders on the Action Agenda initiatives and outcomes at key milestone events, including on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, during Baku Climate Action Week, and at Pre-COP, amongst others.
For the COP29 Initiatives and the respective pledges and declarations, we will publish working drafts on the COP29 website [on 17 September] and request feedback by [25 September]. The relevant link will be provided by the UNFCCC Secretariat to the focal points of Parties and Constituencies. We will then finalise the texts and republish them on the COP29 website in due course. After final publications, all stakeholders can support the pledges and declaration through any official communications, note verbale, letter or email to the focal point as per Annex 1.
As detailed in the COP29 Presidency’s first letter to Parties and Constituencies, when we welcome the world to Baku in November, we want delegates to focus on thematic issues that we have highlighted in Annex 2. All thematic days will be frameworks for individual initiatives, outcomes and campaigns, and be opportunities to convene stakeholders to agree on next steps for collaborative action. These also include the first thematic days at a COP to address digitalisation and tourism, and we will integrate cross-sectoral programming on climate finance, investment and trade, as well as on human development. Gender equality and youth empowerment will be considered as elements across all thematic days and initiatives, with the support of the COP29 Youth Climate Champion, Ms. Leyla Hasanova.
The COP29 action agenda has been a collective global effort, and we would like to thank everyone who has contributed to its development. This includes the line ministries of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the private sector, academia, NGOs, the UN Task Force for COP29, international organisations, and all Parties, Constituencies, and non-party stakeholders who have provided feedback, and ongoing support.
Azerbaijan is just one country and we cannot solve the climate crisis alone. But we never underestimate the value of an individual contribution or the power of example. If we cannot mobilise every actor, then at least we seek to inspire them and demonstrate what is possible with commitment and determination. We hope to remind everyone that even in the face of such an enormous challenge, every action matters because every fraction of a degree matters.
Climate action is a common commitment that requires action and leadership from everyone. Through the COP29 Action Agenda we wish to give everyone an opportunity to sign up, speak up and step up. This is how we seek to build momentum to enhance ambition and enable action and move forward in solidarity for a green world.
H.E. Mukhtar Babayev
COP29 President-Designate
Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources
Republic of Azerbaijan
Annex 1: Summary of the COP29 Presidency Initiatives and Outcomes
Climate Finance Action Fund (CFAF)
The Fund, capitalised with voluntary contributions from fossil fuel producing countries and companies will catalyse the public and private sectors across mitigation, adaptation, and research and development. The Fund will also have special facilities for highly concessional and grant-based funding to rapidly address the consequences of natural disasters in the developing countries in need.
CFAF@cop29.az
The Baku Initiative for Climate Finance, Investment and Trade (BICFIT)
The Initiative to focus on the nexus of climate finance, investment and trade, with a platform to promote investment into green diversification, support policy development, and share expertise through dialogue.
BICFIT@cop29.az
Green Energy Zones and Corridors
The outcome Pledge will commit to green energy zones and corridors, including targets to promote investment, stimulate economic growth, develop, modernise and expand infrastructure, and foster regional cooperation.
zonesandcorridors@cop29.az
Energy Storage and Grids
The outcome Pledge will aim to increase global energy storage capacity six times above 2022 levels, reaching 1,500 gigawatts by 2030. To enhance energy grids, endorsers will also commit to considerably scaling up investments in grids as part of global efforts to add or refurbish more than 80 million kilometres by 2040.
storageandgrids@cop29.az
Hydrogen Action
The outcome Declaration will unlock the potential of a global market for clean hydrogen and its derivatives with guiding principles and priorities, to address regulatory, technological, financing, and standardisation barriers.
hydrogen@cop29.az
COP Truce Appeal
The appeal for a COP Truce, modelled on the Olympic Truce, will highlight the importance of peace and climate action. It will aim to remind all nations of the interplay between conflict and climate change and emphasise the imperative of finding collective solutions to protect the most vulnerable. There will be a separate COP29 Climate and Peace Initiative co-led with partners, that envisages to deliver tangible outcomes such as establishing a centre of excellence hub to match the needs of the most vulnerable with existing resources and foster further action for the operationalisation of various initiatives on the peace and climate nexus.
coptruce@cop29.az
Green Digital Action
The outcome Declaration aims to accelerate climate-positive digitalisation and emission reductions in the Information and Communication Technology sector and enhance accessibility of green digital technologies.
digitalisation@cop29.az
The Baku Initiative on Human Development for Climate Resilience
The Initiative will deliver various outcomes on human development, including catalysing investment in education, skills, health, and well-being, in particular for children and youth, establishing COP-to-COP continuity, and enhancing environmental literacy through education standards.
humandevelopment@cop29.az
The Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers
The initiative will serve as an aggregator, bringing together initiatives, coalitions, and networks to share experiences, identify synergies and gaps, facilitate finance, and foster collaboration on agriculture, food and water, including by empowering local communities and women in rural areas.
harmoniya@cop29.az
Methane Reduction from Organic Waste
The outcome Declaration will streamline work towards 1.5-aligned waste sector commitments in national climate policy documents with quantified targets to reduce methane in waste and food systems.
methane@cop29.az
Multisectoral Actions Pathways (MAP) for Resilient and Healthy Cities
The outcome Declaration will seek to enhance multisectoral cooperation to address climate challenges in cities and an initiative to create coherence in all urban climate efforts and catalyse urban climate finance.
MAP@cop29.az
Enhanced Climate Action in Tourism
The outcome Declaration will include sectoral targets for tourism in NDCs and promote sustainable practices by reducing emissions and increasing resilience in the sector. A further initiative with outcomes to enhance transparency in the sector and provide frameworks for sustainable food systems in tourism.
tourism@cop29.az
Water for Climate Action
The outcome Declaration will call upon stakeholders to take integrated approaches when combating the causes and impacts of climate change on water basins and water-related ecosystems, strengthen regional and international cooperation, integrated water-related mitigation and adaptation measures in national climate policies. The Declaration will launch the Baku Dialogue on Water for Climate Action to enhance COP-to-COP continuity and coherence in the field.
water@cop29.az
The Baku Global Climate Transparency Platform (BTP)
The platform will support developing country Parties in the preparation and submission of Biennial Transparency Reports, promote collaboration and knowledge exchange amongst all Parties on the full spectrum of the Enhanced Transparency Framework, and better mobilise capacity-building resources where they are needed.
BTP@cop29.az
Annex 2: COP29 Two-Week Agenda and Thematic Days
The following is a non-exhaustive list of high-level events at the ministerial level hosted by the COP29 Presidency- during the two-week agenda as it relates to thematic days and Action Agenda initiatives. The COP29 Presidency will host further events and announce details in due course.
November 11 COP29 Opening
Azerbaijan formally assumes the COP Presidency and the 61st meeting of the Subsidiary Bodies begins, chaired by the SBI and SBSTA chairs.
November 12-13 World Leaders Climate Action Summit
Focus: World leaders will convene and make national statements to demonstrate how they are advancing the Paris Agreement. During this Summit, we will seek to build consensus and momentum around the two pillars of the COP29 Plan to enhance ambition and enable action and demonstrate to all stakeholders that there is clear political will to deliver.
Key moments: We will host leader-level dialogues that will address key topics, including raising ambition for mitigation and adaptation through NDCs, NAPs, and long-term low greenhouse gas emission development strategies, enabling action with the NCQG and other means of implementation and support, as well as addressing Loss and Damage and fully operationalising the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage. We will also co-host a methane and non-CO 2 Greenhouse Gas summit with the US and China.
November 14 Finance, Investment and Trade
Focus: To meet our climate goals, we need to collectively scale up climate finance whilst 'greening trade' - promoting environmental goods and low-carbon technologies. This can create sustainable jobs and ensure that Global South countries have access to the investment and technologies needed to implement long-term climate goals.
Key moments: We will host a high-level meeting on the Baku Initiative for Climate Finance, Investment and Trade (BICFIT), a high-level event to launch the Climate Finance Action Fund, the second Business, Investment and Philanthropy Platform, and a high-level dialogue on catalysing investment for the just transition, including on jobs and skills.
November 15 Energy / Peace, Relief and Recovery
Focus: Energy is the largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and is a top priority for global climate action. Building on the outcomes of the first Global Stocktake and moving towards implementation, COP29 will provide a space for stakeholders to gather and make collective progress. Climate and peace are deeply inter-connected, as climate events and conflicts can cause human insecurity and forced migration, affecting mostly the vulnerable groups in developing and lower-income countries.
Key moments: We will host a high-level meeting on Green Energy Zones and Corridors, Energy Storage and Grids, and Hydrogen, and launch the associated COP29 Pledges and Declarations. We will host a high-level event for the COP29 Climate and Peace Initiative, alongside others, with the co-leads group to deliver a joint call on the urgency of climate action for peace.
November 16 Science, Technology and Innovation / Digitalisation
Focus: Digital technologies have a key role to support climate action but can also contribute to energy consumption and e-waste. The first-ever Digitalisation Day will promote joint action for a sustainable digital transformation that reaps the benefits of technologies while mitigating their environmental impacts.
Key moments: We will host a high-level roundtable on the role of digitalisation for climate action and launch the associated Declaration.
November 17 Rest Day; No Thematic Programming
The 61st meeting of the Subsidiary Bodies will have concluded and the Azerbaijan COP29 Presidency will be preparing to chair the 6th Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 6).
November 18 Human Development / Children and Youth / Health / Education
Focus: Climate change will require a whole-of-society approach, supported by healthier, better educated, and adequately skilled individuals, in particular youth. The first-ever Human Development Day will take a holistic view of climate change that treats human development, youth, health and education as inter-related issues to be supported, while also addressing each thematic issue as a standalone priority.
Key moments: We will host a series of high-level meetings and events on investing in human development, health and jobs, where we will launch the Baku Initiative on Human Development for Climate Resilience.
November 19 Food, Water and Agriculture
Focus: Global warming disrupts the water cycle and threatens food security for people worldwide. At COP29, all stakeholders can come together to build on momentum and commit to coherent and collective action on climate and agriculture issues.
Key moments: We will host series of high-level meetings and events to launch the Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers, and a high-level meeting on reducing methane from organic waste, at which we will launch the associated Declaration.
November 20 Urbanisation / Transport / Tourism
Focus: Addressing the challenges of climate change in urban environments requires greater engagement across all sectors and levels, from the local to the regional and global. Additionally, the role of transportation in climate agenda will be addressed as a related priority. We will also host the first Tourism Day at a COP to increase attention on how the sector is affected and can contribute.
Key moments: We will host a high-level meeting on urbanisation and high-level roundtables on green construction, transport and infrastructure, nature, health and resilience in cities, and financing urban climate action and will launch the COP29 MAP Declaration for Resilient and Healthy Cities. We will also host a high-level meeting on tourism and launch the COP29 Declaration on Enhanced Action in Tourism.
November 21 Indigenous Peoples / Gender Equality / Nature and Biodiversity / Oceans and Coastal Zones
Focus: Indigenous Peoples preserve 80% of the world's biodiversity and 36% of intact forest landscapes, whilst women-led climate action and nature-based solutions represent transformative pathways for climate mitigation and adaptation. Water is also essential to the well-being of both human societies and nature and biodiversity.
Key moments: We will host a high-level event on gender in transparency, a high-level meeting on water to launch the COP29 Declaration on Water for Climate Action.
November 22 Final Negotiations
No thematic programming to allow Parties to focus on the final stages of the negotiations.
Annex 3: Climate Finance Action Fund
As outlined in the Global Stocktake, finance is a critical enabler of action. To address the scale and urgency of the crisis, we will need to deliver multiples, with substantial increases in contributions for both mitigation and adaptation finance.
As according to the direction provided by the President of Azerbaijan, H.E. Mr. Ilham Aliyev, we believe that countries rich in natural resources should be at the forefront of those addressing climate change.
Outcome: COP29 is launching the Climate Finance Action Fund (CFAF) which will be capitalised with voluntary contributions from fossil fuel producing countries and companies across oil, gas and coal, with Azerbaijan as a founding contributor. Members will commit to transfer annual contributions as a fixed-sum or based on volume of production.
CFAF will be a catalytic public-private partnership fund, mobilising the private sector and de-risking investment. The fund will also contain special facilities with concessional and grant-based support to rapidly address the consequences of natural disasters in the developing countries in need.
CFAF will provide off-take agreement guarantees for small and medium-sized renewable energy producers and first-loss capital for green industrial projects. The fund will also have a focus on the food and agriculture sector as a priority to protect livelihoods and achieve net zero.
CFAF will become operational after the initial fundraising round, which seeks to capitalise the fund with $1 billion, and when 10 contributing countries are committed as shareholders.
Fifty percent of the capital will be directed towards climate projects in developing countries that rely on support, across mitigation, adaptation, and research and development. These will promote the adoption of clean energy technologies, improve energy efficiency, strengthen climate resilience of vulnerable populations, and facilitate the development of cutting-edge technologies.
Fifty percent of contributions will be allocated to help meet members' next generation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to keep the 1.5C target within reach.
Twenty percent of the revenues generated from investments will be deposited in a Rapid Response Funding Facility (2R2F) providing highly concessional and grant-based support. This facility will offer immediately accessible funding to address the consequences of natural disasters in Small Island Developing States, Least Developed Countries, and to other vulnerable developing communities as needed.
The fund will be headquartered with its secretariat in Baku, Azerbaijan. Its board of directors will include representatives from contributors, shareholders will collectively make decisions, and an independent audit committee will publish quarterly data including financial reports and project evaluations. The COP29 Presidency established a Working Group with participation of international financial experts, which works on further developing the management model and funding mechanism.
Call to action: Enable action with fossil fuel producing countries and companies joining the Climate Finance Action Fund.
Annex 4: The Baku Initiative for Climate Finance, Investment and Trade (BICFIT)
International investment and trade are key drivers of global growth and raising living standards around the world. But to meet our climate ambitions, we need to move beyond business-as-usual and promote climate- and development-positive investment and trade. In particular, we need to ensure that the developing world, through participation in the supply and value chains of green products, contributes to and benefits from global decarbonisation while capturing co-benefits and minimising trade-offs with the sustainable development goals.
BICFIT will be co-led by the COP29 Presidency together with UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and UN Development Programme (UNDP), in close collaboration with other partners, international organisations, multilateral development banks and climate funds, the private sector, philanthropic organisations, civil society and academia. BICFIT will work with multilateral development banks and climate funds, philanthropic organisations and development partners to better integrate climate finance with trade and investment and channel public and private climate finance to developing countries.
Outcome: The Baku Initiative for Climate Finance, Investment and Trade (BICFIT) will set a new partnership that seeks to enhance coherence by integrating the climate finance, investment, trade and overall sustainable development agendas. BICFIT will provide a global platform to support policy development, share knowledge and expertise, promote climate investment, and co-create solutions through dialogue. BICFIT will support parties and build their capacity to ensure that climate finance, investment and trade are fully embedded in national climate policies and development plans.
BICFIT will also explore how to strengthen the capacity of investment promotion institutions to attract climate-positive investments. It will encourage the establishment of national, regional and sub-regional platforms to enhance the climate finance, investment and trade nexus. These platforms will support the design, structuring and preparation of concrete, bankable climate projects, to align climate action with development objectives at a more targeted and local level.
To foster collaboration and help find shared solutions, there will be regular BICFIT Dialogues as a part of the biannual UN Trade and Development World Investment Forum and other global platforms. The first BICFIT Dialogue will be held at the 9th World Investment Forum in 2025.
Call to action: Enable action with UN agencies, international organisations, development partners, governments, multilateral development banks and climate funds, the private sector, philanthropic organisations, civil society and academia registering their interest to participate and be implementation partners.
Annex 5: Green Energy Zones and Corridors
To help reduce emissions and limit global warming to 1.5C, the first Global Stocktake called on Parties to contribute in a nationally determined manner to tripling renewable energy capacity and doubling the global average annual rate of energy efficiency globally by 2030. This is an ambitious target that is achievable with concerted action and policy support.
Moving towards implementation, various enabling conditions will be necessary to support Parties to contribute to this target. One of the main challenges is that renewable energy supply is often situated in locations far from demand.
First, green energy zones are needed to act as centralised hubs where sustainable energy generation is maximised. Secondly, green energy corridors are needed to allow for cost-effective transmission over large distances and across borders.
As a leading player in global energy markets with plans to utilise its abundant renewable energy potential and increase renewable energy exports, Azerbaijan already has experience with the challenges and solutions of the energy transition, and we have set green energy zones and corridors as key priorities for our national development and climate strategies.
Outcome: in partnership with UNECE and UNIDO the Presidency developed COP29 Green Energy Zones and Corridors Pledge that will be open for endorsement by various stakeholders.
The Pledge will bring governments together around a series of principles, commitments, and targets. To expand green energy zones, one component will advocate for policies and incentives that attract capital, make sustainable energy projects financially viable, and send the right market signals to stimulate investment.
To enable green energy corridors, another component will recognise the importance of regional collaboration and seek to expand or establish multilateral platforms for collaboration, a common methodology for feasibility studies, and harmonisation of grid codes.
Call to action: Enhance ambition with governments and other stakeholders endorsing the COP29 Green Energy Zones and Corridors Pledge.
Annex 6: Global Energy Storage and Grids
Increasing energy storage will be essential to addressing the variability of renewables and ensure the stability and resilience of energy grids. Furthermore, energy grids need modernisation to accommodate increasing shares of renewable energy that are variable and are sourced from more dispersed areas than traditional fossil fuel power generation. This will also be crucial to implementing and operationalising the outcomes of the Global Stocktake as part of a just energy transition.
Throughout the COP29-IEA High Level Energy Dialogues, participants have frequently raised the lack of energy storage solutions and the need for upgraded grids as a constraint on their ability to increase the share of renewable energy in their power generation. This is particularly important for developing countries that are seeking to expand electrification and ensure that hospitals, schools, and businesses have consistent access to affordable, sustainable and reliable power.
Azerbaijan has identified storage as a key priority to enable us to expand our renewable power generation and we have set a national target for energy storage capacity of 250 MW. However, no single country can develop the global battery industry alone and to mobilise global supply chains, develop the necessary technologies, and lower costs, we need greater collaboration to send stronger market signals.
Outcome: in partnership with UNECE and UNIDO the Presidency developed the COP29 Global Energy Storage and Grids Pledge that will set a global target to increase installed energy storage capacity to 1,500 GW by 2030, six times the 2022 level, for Parties to contribute towards in a nationally determined manner. Furthermore, to facilitate the development of green energy grids, endorsers of the Pledge will commit to enhance grid capacity through a global grid deployment goal of adding or refurbishing over 80 million kilometres of grids by 2040.
Endorsing stakeholders will also commit within their respective competences to guiding principles for critical enablers, such as finance, regulatory frameworks, technology development, supply chains, standardisation, collaboration, inclusivity, and reviewing progress, amongst others.
The COP29 Global Energy Storage and Grids Pledge will be open to a range of endorsers from governments, the private sector, civil society, UN agencies, and international organisations, in recognition of the range of actors that will have a role to play in supporting the expansion of global storage capacity and grid development.
Call to action: Enhance ambition with governments, private sector, civil society, UN agencies, and international organisations endorsing the COP29 Global Energy Storage and Grids Pledge.
Annex 7: Hydrogen Action
The Global Stocktake called on Parties to contribute towards global efforts to accelerate zero- and low- emission technologies, including low-carbon hydrogen. Hydrogen will be particularly important to decarbonise hard-to-abate industrial sectors like steel, aluminium and heavy transportation, and it can also serve as a storage solution, as surplus renewable energy can be used to produce green hydrogen.
However, the international trade of clean hydrogen is at a very nascent stage and there are multiple regulatory, technological, and financial barriers to the development of hydrogen markets. There is an urgent need to harmonise international frameworks, regulations and standards to create viable business models for the end-to-end value chain for hydrogen and the COP 29 Presidency will build on the COP28 Declaration of Intent on mutual recognition of certification schemes
Outcome: in partnership with UNECE and UNIDO, the Presidency will launch a COP29 Hydrogen Declaration to support the harmonisation and development of hydrogen markets.
In the COP29 Hydrogen Declaration, endorsing stakeholders will commit to accelerate decarbonisation of hydrogen production, and facilitate energy transition, scaling up demand for clean hydrogen, such as by establishing targets, incentives, mandates, public procurement initiatives and public-private partnerships. Where appropriate, they will integrate hydrogen into national climate and energy plans. They will also commit to accelerating global standards and mutual recognition of certification schemes, amongst other priorities.
During a high-level roundtable at COP29, stakeholders will consider country level announcements, stocktakes of previous initiatives, funding for clean hydrogen projects, amongst other outcomes.
Building on the Hydrogen Breakthrough launched at COP26, the Hydrogen Breakthrough: Priority International Actions 2025 will be launched at COP29 to set the framework and roadmap for prioritisation and collaborative action ahead of COP30.
Call to action: Enhance ambition with governments and other stakeholders endorsing the COP29 Hydrogen Declaration and enable action through registering interest to support the flagship activities.
Annex 8: COP Truce Appeal
The destructive nexus between climate change, conflict and fragility is a threat to communities around the world. Climate change could displace up to 1.2 billion people by 2050 and fragile populations facing intense humanitarian challenges have the least capacity to adapt to climate change.
Outcome: The COP29 Presidency will launch the COP Truce Appeal, modelled on the Olympic Truce hoping to build positive momentum that can lead to collaboration, climate action, and even peace between nations.
The Appeal will call upon all nations and parties to observe the truce from the seventh day before the opening of each COP to the seventh day following its closing. This will aim to remind all nations of the interplay between conflict and climate change and emphasise the imperative of finding collective solutions to protect the most vulnerable.
The COP Truce Appeal will be open to a range of endorsers from governments, the private sector, civil society, UN agencies, and international organisations, in recognition of the range of actors that will have a role to play in promoting peace and reconciliation.
Building on the work of previous COPs and following the COP28 Declaration on Climate, Relief, Recovery and Peace, COP29 will seek to maintain a focus on the importance of both preventing conflict and supporting some of the most vulnerable populations. On 15 November COP29 will host Peace, Relief and Recovery Day with high-level events to maintain a focus on the interplay between peace and climate and provide avenues for scaling up climate finance and support for the most vulnerable. The Day will provide a space for the voices of the most affected countries, prioritising women and youth perspectives.
The COP29 Presidency also launched a separate COP29 Peace and Climate Initiative co-led by the governments of Azerbaijan, Egypt, Germany, Italy, Uganda, the United Kingdom, as outlined in the Joint Communique of their first meeting on 27 July 2024. The overall objective of the initiative is to deepen dialogue and understanding and match the needs of the most vulnerable with existing resources. Alongside UN agencies, Multilateral Development Banks and other relevant stakeholders, the initiative will work towards establishing partnerships to share best practice and develop implementation mechanisms, such as establishing a centre of excellence hub.
Calls to action: Enhance ambition with all stakeholders supporting the COP Truce Appeal. Enable action with countries, multilateral development banks, UN agencies and relevant stakeholders expressing interest to participating in the COP29 Climate and Peace Initiative.
Annex 9: Green Digital Action
Digital technologies have a huge potential to play a supporting role in climate action by increasing energy efficiency across multiple sectors and providing monitoring and early warnings. Meanwhile, the growing uptake of digital tools also has the potential to increase emissions through energy consumption of data centres, material usage, and e-waste.
The COP29 Presidency believes that proactive and determined steps from both public and private stakeholders is required to ensure that digitalisation contributes to climate action. Furthermore, Azerbaijan is committed to leading by example and is seizing the opportunities through the development of green smart villages and ensuring that climate-conscious digitalisation is a priority in our national plans for socio-economic development.
At COP28, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and 40 partners from the public and private sector launched Green Digital Action initiative. To build on this work, COP29 will host the first Digitalisation Day at a COP to shine a spotlight on the growing opportunities and challenges posed by increasing digitalisation. This will include the first high-level meeting on digitalisation at a COP, to ensure that the public sector focuses and leads on this critical issue. In this effort, the COP29 Presidency has been closely collaborating with the ITU and the UNFCCC Technology Mechanism.
Outcome: On digitalisation day, the COP29 Presidency will launch the COP29 Green Digital Action Declaration. The Declaration will commit endorsers to pursuing leveraging digital tools for climate action, incorporating climate resiliencies into digital infrastructure, mitigating the environmental impact of digitalisation, enhancing data-driven decision making, promoting digital inclusion and equity, accelerating sustainable innovation and research, and encouraging sustainable consumer practices.
The Declaration includes a focus on increasing accessibility to climate-conscious digitalisation, committing to ensuring that digital solutions are accessible to all, particularly to LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS. Declaration endorsers will work to increase the role of multilateral development banks (MDBs) in mobilising climate finance towards these outcomes.
The Declaration will also draw attention to critical mechanisms that deserve further support, including the UNFCCC Technology Mechanism.
Calls to action: Enhance ambition with governments and the private sector joining the COP29 Green Digital Action Declaration.
Annex 10: Baku Initiative on Human Development for Climate Resilience
Education, skills, health and well-being are essential to ensuring that people can contribute to addressing the climate crisis. The capacities of individuals are vital to our collective efforts across both mitigation and adaptation, as we seek to innovate and implement climate-positive solutions in communities worldwide, while coping with a warming planet. The human development required to meet our climate objectives is also a critical component of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDGs 3, 4, 8 and 13. Evidence indicates that investment in the capacity and resilience of children from the earliest age is both cost-effective and critical for strengthening human development more broadly.
Several COPs have addressed issues related to climate change and various elements of human development, including health, education, jobs, skills, children and youth. At COP29 we will host the first holistic Human Development Day and launch the Baku Initiative on Human Development for Climate Resilience, that brings together these inter-related issues to be supported by commensurate financing and multi-faceted policy approaches.
Outcome: The Initiative will establish a strategic global collaboration on human development and climate change, bringing together international organisations, multilateral development banks and other stakeholders in the fields of education, health, social protection, jobs and skills, children and youth, and gender. This collaboration seeks to establish cooperation, coherence, and continuity between agencies as they address climate and human development. It will serve as a permanent platform for dialogue, catalyse investment in human development by matching needs with funds, and identify gaps and opportunities.
On health, the Initiative will establish the Baku COP Presidencies Continuity Coalition for Climate and Health, where past, current and future COP presidencies, along with the WHO, will be founding members. By inviting future Presidencies to join, the coalition will promote the permanent integration of health into the climate action agenda. COP29 will be a milestone in fully operationalising and enhancing the climate focus of the Health Impact Investment Platform and will support partnerships to collectively analyse and address climate and health investment needs.
On education, the Initiative will enhance global cooperation on greening education by establishing global minimum standards for greening schools, curriculum, teacher training and education systems’ capacities and communities through the UNESCO’s Greening Education Partnership. To ensure that environmental literacy becomes an essential objective of every child’s education the COP29 Presidency will support the development of a new PISA metric on environmental literacy. This metric will integrate evidence from relevant tasks across all PISA domains, highlighting the connection between core subjects and environmental skills and issues. PISA can monitor the progress of education systems in providing quality environmental education through robust evidence on students’ learning outcomes and data on school-level practices. If the initiative gains the necessary support, baseline data will be collected from all PISA participating countries in 2029 and subsequently every four years.
For jobs and skills, the Initiative will seek to strengthen efforts to scale up investment in skilling, reskilling and upskilling the current and future workforce and support a just transition. On children and youth, the Initiative will elevate attention to child-responsive climate policies, action and finance as a cross-cutting priority to create resilient societies and showcase best-practices.
The COP29 Presidency will host a high-level event that takes a holistic approach to climate change, viewing human development, jobs, skills, education, youth, children and health as interconnected issues. This will allow stakeholders to build synergies across their respective fields. This high-level event will seek to issue the Baku Principles on Human Development for Climate Resilience. The COP29 Presidency will then supplement these sessions with individual roundtables to address each thematic issues as a standalone priority.
Calls to action: Enable action with international organisations and multilateral development banks joining the strategic global collaboration on human development and climate change. Enhance ambition with all stakeholders supporting greening education.
Annex 11: Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers
The impacts of climate change on agriculture are threatening food and water security for people around the globe. Climate action in agriculture has the potential to address multiple challenges across adaptation, mitigation, ensuring food security, combating land degradation and water scarcity, as well as supporting the Sustainable Development Goals.
This is a challenge that Azerbaijan understands well, as a large part of our labour force is employed in agriculture, while water scarcity, desertification, and soil degradation exacerbated by climate change all threaten to reduce the yields of crops and impact economic development.
Over successive COPs there has been an increasing emphasis on agriculture, and at COP28, enhancing climate-resilient food and agriculture production, supply and distribution was a key sector prioritised in the UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience. There are now more than 90 relevant global or regional initiatives, networks and partnerships focusing on policy, capacity building, or access to finance. Given the multitude of initiatives, there is a need for coherence, alignment and sharing of lessons learned to deliver greater impact.
Outcome: In partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the COP29 Presidency will launch the Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers.
Firstly, the Initiative will serve as an aggregator to improve coherence in the field, bringing together disparate initiatives to empower farmers, villages and rural communities. It will launch a portal to clarify the landscape of programmes to foster more efficient collaboration and knowledge sharing. It will also seek to identify gaps and opportunities to guide future policy making and resource allocation.
Secondly, it will help catalyse investment in climate-resilient agrifood systems by matching needs with available funds. It will also seek to address the gap between Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) and national agricultural Public Development Banks (PDBs) by facilitating collaboration between the two groups and developing synergies.
And thirdly, the initiative will seek to empower farmers, in particular women and youth, to help build climate-resilient agricultural communities. The COP29 Presidency and the FAO are consulting with MDBs on producing accessible guidelines for farmers and agricultural organisations and how they can apply for funds. The COP29 Presidency is also working with FAST to identify further resources and climate funding opportunities to empower farmers and rural communities to develop skills and accelerate access to new digital technologies. The Initiative will also actively engage with farmers’ organisations and relevant UNFCCC Constituencies to ensure that communities are heard, and their interests represented.
As host of COP29, Azerbaijan is currently co-chairing the board of the Food and Agriculture for Sustainable Transformation (FAST) Partnership within the FAO, and the FAST secretariat will support the Harmoniya Initiative.
Calls to action: Enable action with governments, MDBs, national agricultural PDBs, the private sector, philanthropy, international organisations and other stakeholders preparing to engage with the Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers when it is launched.
Annex 12: Reducing Methane from Organic Waste
In recognition of the need for deep, rapid and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in line with 1.5-aligned pathways, the Global Stocktake called upon Parties to accelerate and substantially reduce non-CO2 emissions globally, including, in particular methane emissions, by 2030. Methane has more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide and rapid action can moderate future temperature rises.
Azerbaijan has signed the Global Methane Pledge to contribute to the global target of reducing methane emissions by at least 30% below 2020 levels by 2030, in line with the IPCC’s 1.5C pathway.
As countries look to effectively implement the Global Methane Pledge, it is critical to draw attention to the growing problem of methane from organic waste. Global waste has increased at an alarming pace over recent years, and in 2022, food waste generated up to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, nearly five times that of the aviation sector. This has major costs for economies, human health, and the environment.
Addressing the methane emissions from the waste sector will be an important contribution to global action on methane and the overall reduction of greenhouse gases. There are also co-benefits for achieving Sustainable Development Goals, in particular Goal 2 (Zero Hunger) and Goal 12 (Sustainable Consumption and Production).
Outcome: The COP29 Presidency will launch the COP29 Declaration on Reducing Methane from Organic Waste to supplement the Global Methane Pledge (GMP). The Declaration is being developed with the GMP Secretariat and UNEP’s Climate and Clean Air Coalition.
Endorsers will declare their commitment to set sectoral targets to reducing methane from organic waste within future NDCs. They will also work towards developing and implementing subnational policies, roadmaps, and action plans, and mobilising financial resources from both public and private sources, improving transparency and data-driven policy making, and developing innovative partnerships for collaborative action.
Calls to action: Enhance ambition with more governments signing the Global Methane Pledge and with governments endorsing the COP29 Declaration on Reducing Methane from Organic Waste to work towards targeted commitments in the waste sector.
Annex 13: Multisectoral Actions Pathways (MAP) for Resilient and Healthy Cities
Cities, covering less than 2% of Earth's surface, contribute to over two-thirds of global CO2 emissions, putting them at the cornerstone of the fight against climate change. Beyond being a major contributor to climate change, cities are also highly vulnerable to its effects, with the most vulnerable hit the hardest. This necessitates increased financing for urban resilience and adaptation to protect over a billion people from extreme climate events.
Sustainable and climate resilient urbanisation is a key priority for Azerbaijan’s national development, and the country has invested heavily in and building green cities and addressing urban climate challenges. Baku will also host the World Urban Forum and World Environment Day in 2026 providing a global platform for enhanced urban solutions.
Outcome: On 20 November COP29 will host Urbanisation Day and launch the COP29 Multisectoral Actions Pathways (MAP) Declaration for Resilient and Healthy Cities at the high-level meeting on Climate and Urbanisation. The high-level meeting on urbanisation will be followed by high-level roundtables, that will bring together stakeholders from across society to drive progress and collaboration on green construction, transport and infrastructure, nature, health and resilience in cities, and financing urban climate action.
Endorsers of the MAP Declaration will intend to work on multisectoral approaches to climate action and planning in urban areas. This will build on previous COP initiatives introducing new areas of focus, including nature and health, urban agriculture, and disaster resilience and early warning and digital technologies and solutions. Endorsers will also showcase their intention to facilitate participation by subnational authorities and cities in the NDC development process.
Furthermore, the MAP Declaration will encourage stronger links between critical international platforms for sustainable urbanisation, including World Urban Forums, UNFCCC COPs and World Environment Days. All World Urban Forum host governments, starting with Azerbaijan in 2026, will be encouraged to appoint a Special Envoy for Urban Climate Action to spearhead this work to strengthen cooperation and enhance coherence and continuity between platforms. The MAP Declaration will also call for stronger partnerships and collaboration between UN agencies and intergovernmental organisations, MDBs, MCFs, philanthropic organisations, bilateral donors and their implementing agencies for strong ambition and actions on urban climate finance.
At COP29 we will also launch the Baku Continuity Coalition for Urban Climate Action between past, current and future COP Presidencies and with the facilitation of UN-Habitat and in collaboration with LGMA to enhance continuity and coherences between each COPs and their relevant urban initiatives.
Calls to action: Enhance ambition with governments, cities and subnational authorities, parliamentarians, UN agencies, international organisations, multilateral development banks, multilateral climate funds and philanthropies joining the COP29 MAP Declaration for Resilient and Healthy Cities, establishing a Coalition between COPs to prioritise climate urban issues in climate agenda, and supporting the appointment of the Special Envoy for Urban Climate Action.
Annex 14: Enhanced Climate Action in Tourism
Tourism is a major driver of economic growth and development, providing direct and indirect livelihoods for hundreds of millions of people. However, the sector is a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions and is itself threatened by the effects of climate change. Tourism's cross-cutting nature and a transformative role presents both a critical necessity and opportunity for enhanced climate action. Sustainability is an important feature of Azerbaijan’s national tourism strategy and as the COP29 Presidency we are committed to bringing countries and stakeholders together to promote holistic climate solutions in the tourism sector.
The COP26 Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism was a major milestone in raising the profile of tourism within climate action. COP29 seeks to build on this achievement by hosting the first dedicated Tourism Day on 20 November. In partnership with UN Tourism, the COP29 shall be a turning point and the right moment to build a strong dialogue with the overall objective to enhance the positioning of tourism climate action globally as a sectoral policy supporting national climate goals.
Outcome: Tourism Day will feature a high-level meeting and the launch of the COP29 Declaration on Enhanced Action in Tourism.
The COP29 Declaration on Enhanced Action in Tourism emphasises the urgent need for accelerated climate action in the tourism sector and will commit endorser to promoting sustainable tourism practices by reducing emissions and increasing resilience in the sector. In particular, governments endorsing the Declaration will work towards positioning tourism as a key component of climate solutions by integrating tourism into national climate policy documents.
Further to the Declaration, Tourism Day will serve as a platform for deep-dive discussions on implementation of harmonised and science-based GHG emissions measurement in tourism that remains a significant challenge and represents a barrier for accelerated decarbonisation. The COP29 Presidency aims to foster global cooperation and coherence among key tourism stakeholders, ensuring effective synergy in measurement methodologies.
Tourism stakeholders will also be given a platform for thorough examination of ecosystem resilience, regeneration and financial strategies, thereby fostering a comprehensive and informed discourse on the role of tourism in addressing climate change.
Calls to action: Enhance ambition by stimulating policy change and integrating tourism into climate action, while fostering stronger partnerships with governments and national tourism administrations endorsing the COP29 Declaration on Enhanced Action in Tourism and engaging the private sector to support this initiative through collaborative efforts.
Annex 15: Water for Climate Action
Water is at the heart of climate change. Disruptions in the water cycle are some of the most direct ways that people experience climate change, with billions now facing severe droughts, floods, sea-level rise, shrinking of inland waters and water pollution, which also impacts water-related ecosystems and biodiversity. Azerbaijan is directly impacted by the shrinking of the Caspian Sea – an integral part of our national identity and livelihoods – affecting local coastal zones and their unique ecosystems and biodiversity and increasing threats of water scarcity to our population.
Recent COPs have increasingly discussed water, and water was identified as a priority in the COP28 UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience. This Framework urged parties to work towards significantly reducing climate-induced water scarcity and enhancing climate resilience to water-related hazards. Furthermore, achieving the Framework’s other targets will also require action on water and related ecosystems. Water-climate interlinkages were also a main priority at the 2023 United Nations Water Conference. The COP29 Presidency seeks to continue this focus, enhance coherence amongst initiatives, and ensure continuity on water to future COPs.
Outcome: At a high-level event during COP29, participants will be invited to endorse the COP29 Declaration on Water for Climate Action, which is being developed with support from the UNEP, UNECE, and WMO, with contributions from other UN-Water members. The Declaration calls upon stakeholders to take integrated approaches when combating the causes and impacts of climate change on water basins and water-related ecosystems, strengthen regional and international cooperation, integrate water-related mitigation and adaptation measures in national climate policies, including NDCs and NAPs.
The Declaration will launch the Baku Dialogue on Water for Climate Action to serve as a consistent and regular dialogue platform on water and its interplay with climate change, biodiversity loss, desertification, and pollution. The dialogue platform will convene each year during COP to enhance COP-to-COP continuity and coherence and follow up on progress. The platform’s leadership will be drawn from champion countries, COP Presidencies, and UN entities, and it will invite the active engagement of NGOs, financial actors, and academia, amongst others.
The Baku Dialogue will also encourage establishing and reinforcing partnerships on shared water basin that will bring together ministries and relevant stakeholders to facilitate the development and implementation of regional climate policies and plans. These partnerships will be supported by establishment of knowledge hubs or by leveraging existing platforms for sharing best practices, exchanging local and regional data and organising joint research aimed at assisting governments on integrating their climate policies.
The Declaration will establish the position of the Water for Climate Ambassador and encourage COP Presidencies to appoint an ambassador who will work with the dialogue platform, advocate for integrated water and climate policy. The Ambassador will complement the work of the UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy on Water' by focusing on the water and climate nexus.
Calls to action: Enhance ambition with stakeholders endorsing the COP29 Declaration on Water for Climate Action. Enable action with ministries and other stakeholders participating in the Baku Dialogue on Water for Climate Action.
Annex 16: The Baku Global Climate Transparency Platform (BTP)
Transparency is essential to tracking progress, building trust, and identifying areas where further action and support is needed. The COP29 Presidency also believes that transparent reporting is an important element of reaffirming commitment to the principles, goals, and objectives of the Convention and the Paris Agreement.
To lead by example, Azerbaijan is currently working on submitting its Biennial Transparency Report (BTR) in advance of COP29, and we encourage all Parties to make such early BTR submissions. However, we understand that measuring and reporting data can be challenging, and there is a clear need for capacity building, particularly for many developing country Parties. This is especially important as Parties prepare to implement the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF) beyond 2024.
Outcome: The COP29 Presidency is raising the profile of transparency and has launched the Baku Global Climate Transparency Platform (BTP). The BTP’s goal is to unite stakeholders committed to supporting developing country Parties in the preparation and submission of BTRs, promote collaboration and knowledge exchange amongst all Parties on the full spectrum of the ETF, and better mobilise capacity-building resources where they are needed.
In collaboration with the UNFCCC and other UN Agencies and partners, the Platform is holding workshops for developing countries on their upcoming BTR submissions, and we will host further regional workshops across Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus, Central Asia, Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean.
Beyond BTRs, the Platform will work to broaden participation in the ETF, provide targeted support, capacity building, and exchanging experiences on lessons learned. The Platform will complement existing transparency initiatives, including the #Together4Transparency initiative.
To increase political awareness, the COP29 Presidency, the UNFCCC and partner agencies will convene the High-Level Dialogue on Global Climate Transparency during the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on 25 September. This follows the first ever appointment of a high-level pair for transparency, Ms. Zulfiya Suleimenova, Advisor to the President of Kazakhstan and Special Representative for International Environmental Cooperation, and Mr. Francesco Corvaro, Italy’s Special Envoy for Climate Change.
Call to action: Enhance ambition with all stakeholders supporting the Baku Global Climate Transparency Platform, participating in the Platform’s BTR workshops, joining the High-Level Dialogue on Global Climate Transparency, making early submissions in advance of COP29. Enable action with partners focused on transparency supporting the BTP’s capacity building programmes for Parties.