A record number of fossil fuel lobbyists are at the COP30 climate summit in Belém, Brazil, according to new analysis by Kick Big Polluters Out. The group says there are 12% more fossil fuel representatives than at last year’s talks in Baku. This increase comes as a major study from Imperial College confirms that climate change, caused by fossil fuel emissions, made the deadly typhoons Fung-Wong and Kalmaegi worse, leading to destruction in the Philippines and Vietnam.
Human Cost of Inaction
The report shows that 1,600 fossil fuel lobbyists at COP30 outnumber the official Philippine delegation by nearly 50 to 1. Fossil fuel lobbyists have also received two-thirds more passes than all the delegates from the 10 most climate-vulnerable countries combined. The Philippines, which produces less than 0.4% of global emissions, still faces some of the worst effects of climate change.
“We demand nothing less than an ambitious COP30 outcome that will ensure big polluters pay their climate debt –not just so we can rebuild our lives, but so we can build resilience and protect future generations from harm,” notes Norly Mercado, Asia Regional Director at 350.org
“We are outraged that the same climate wreckers and denialists who have profited from our misery have been invited to the negotiating table while we continue to wait for crumbs,” he further calls.
Mercado emphasizes the personal toll of the crisis, stressing that, “it’s not a coincidence—we’ve faced back-to-back typhoons at the start of COP for two years now. It’s science,” Mercado said. Fung-Wong, he added, struck near his hometown in Isabela province. “Just kilometers away, people were clinging to their roofs or living in shelters as floods washed away their homes. We have suffered incalculable losses due to greed and climate inaction.”
Typhoons Made Worse by Climate Change
Typhoon Fung-Wong, one of the biggest storms in the region, forced more than a million people from their homes and left 27 dead in the Philippines, with rescue efforts still underway. The storm also affected Taiwan, where thousands had to evacuate. The Imperial College study found that climate change made Fung-Wong’s top wind speed 5% higher, increased rainfall by 10.5%, and raised economic losses in the Philippines by 42%.
A week before, Typhoon Kalmaegi hit, killing more than 200 people in the Philippines and forcing thousands to leave their homes in Vietnam. The study found that climate change made Kalmaegi 33% more likely, increased its wind speed by 3%, rainfall by 8.6%, and economic damage in Vietnam by 9%.
Calls for Justice and Accountability
Civil society groups, led by Indigenous leaders, are gathering at COP30 to call for a quick end to fossil fuels and a fair transition that includes climate funding and compensation for loss and damage. In July, the International Court of Justice ruled that governments could be held responsible for expanding and using fossil fuels.
As civil society confronts the growing influence of the fossil fuel industry at COP30, campaigners insist on a clear roadmap for phasing out oil, gas, and coal, as well as climate finance delivered as grants to countries most severely affected by climate change. “Despite the presence of climate wreckers whose interests include making profits for the wealthy minority while wreaking havoc on our planet, it is essential to safeguard the integrity and legitimacy of these negotiations in the name of the global majority,” said Mercado.
