Pacific political climate champions must turn the region’s priorities into concrete outcomes at COP31, Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General Baron Waqa says.
Speaking at the Political Climate Champions and Pacific COP31 Climate Envoys briefing on Friday, Waqa said the Pacific had an opportunity to strengthen its influence in global climate negotiations, with Australia serving as COP31 President of Negotiations and Pacific climate envoys supporting the process.
“The challenge before us is therefore one of translating those priorities into effective international advocacy, that drives real outcomes for our countries and our communities,” Waqa said.
He said the Pacific Pre-COP had allowed the international climate community to witness the region’s climate realities and better understand the leadership and solutions Pacific countries were bringing to the global agenda.
The four thematic priorities established under the Australia-Pacific COP31 Partnership had featured prominently throughout the Pre-COP programme, demonstrating the region’s ability to influence global climate discussions through collective action, he said.
Waqa urged political champions to carry that momentum into COP31 and ensure the region’s priorities were reflected in the negotiations.
“Your task now, as our Champions, is to carry that momentum forward to COP31,” he said.
He said Forum leaders had made clear the urgency of the climate crisis and the outcomes Pacific countries needed, adding that political champions must understand their roles, the status of negotiations and where their interventions could have the greatest impact.
Waqa encouraged participants to ask difficult questions about Pacific negotiating positions, why they mattered and where political pressure could help move stalled negotiations forward.
He said some champions could also be called on to take leadership roles within the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), helping advance key issues when negotiations reached an impasse.
Waqa said political champions carried more than responsibility for individual portfolios or thematic issues when entering COP negotiation rooms.
“You carry the collective voice and moral authority of the Blue Pacific,” he said.
He said the success of the champions and envoys should be measured by their ability to influence COP31 decisions in ways that advanced Pacific priorities.
“Ultimately, your success will be measured on a very clear objective: influencing COP outcomes that reflect and champion Pacific priorities,” Waqa said.
He assured political champions, Pacific COP31 climate envoys and Pacific small island developing states negotiators that the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat would work alongside the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme and the wider Council of Regional Organisations in the Pacific to support their efforts.
COP31 will be held in Türkiye in November 2026, with Australia leading the negotiations under the arrangements agreed with Türkiye as host.
