PARLIAMENTARIANS@COP31 Newsletter | 26 January 2026, Volume 6 Issue 1

Welcome to this January issue of our multilingual Parliamentarians@COP31 newsletter, prepared by GLOBE Legislators serving as the UNFCCC Focal Point for the world’s parliamentary constituency. Our work supports legislators to deliver on their Paris Agreement (and related) climate commitments, and to prepare for and engage effectively at COP31.
 
The newsletters are available in English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish.
 
We are proud to have worked closely with the COP28-COP29-COP30 Presidencies, brought together as the first such Troika, to better coordinate across the Presidencies and support Mission 1.5C. This year, we look forward to working with the COP31
Co-Presidencies of Türkiye and Australia and look forward to engaging with their parliamentarians.
 
Our focus is on ensuring that the global parliamentary constituency is well-informed and supported to engage in the UNFCCC process, the annual COPs and related international fora. Tune in for in-depth updates at our monthly Webinars for the Parliamentary constituency (details below) and our bi-monthly newsletters.
 
Contents
1.     UN/COP31 Presidency Updates
2.     Global updates
3.     Tracking Parliamentary Climate Actions
4.     Parliamentary network reports
5.     Have your say/Support us/Contact us

Resource: At COP28 and COP29 GLOBE hosted the first Parliamentary Pavilions at COP.

Murat Kurum Announced as
COP31 President-designate

Türkiye has named Murat Kurum, its Minister of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change, as the President-designate of COP31. COP31 will take place in Antalya in November this year. The announcement was made on 26 December, 2025 following an agreement reached with Australia, at COP30, where Türkiye hosts the conference and coordinates preparations, while Australia serves as the President of Negotiations, guiding the drafting and negotiation outcomes. More here.

COP31: Australia to Lobby Petrostates for
Fossil Fuel Phaseout

US Decision on IPCC and UNFCCC
Will Harm it – Stiell

Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Mr Simon Stiell, has stated that the decision by the Trump administration to withdraw the United States of America from the UNFCCC and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), will undermine its own economic interest, energy security and global leadership. He stressed that stepping back from climate cooperation risks leaving the US less competitive and more exposed to worsening climate impacts. More here.

COP31 High-level Champion Announced

COP31 host, Türkiye, has appointed Samed Ağırbaş as COP31 Climate High-Level Champion. The appointment was made by COP31 President-Designate, Murat Kurum, on 24 January, 2026.  Ağırbaş is currently the chairman of the Zero Waste Foundation in Türkiye and president of the Zero Waste Forum. More here

Sustainable COP31 Framework Developed

As preparations for COP31 gather speed, a Turkish Non-Governmental Organisation, Zero Waste Foundation, which has the First Lady of Türkiye, Emine Erdogan, as its Honorary President, has developed a framework for a successful COP31. Named "Sustainable COP31 Framework, the framework "offers an internationally aligned roadmap, covering zero-waste management protocols, carbon-reduction and offsetting strategies, sustainable logistics and transport planning, environmental standards for venues, and mechanisms for stakeholder engagement and transparency." More here

US Officially Withdraws from the UNFCCC

The United States has officially withdrawn from a large number of international organisations, conventions and treatises. A Presidential Memorandum dated 7January 2026 has directed the US to withdraw from 66 international organisations and treatise that the Trump administration says no longer aligns with the interests of the US. This decision follows a 2025 Executive Order and State Department review which affects bodies across the United Nations system and beyond, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). More here.

Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week Takes Place

The 2026 Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) took place from 11-15 January 2026, convening global leaders in the United Arab Emirates to accelerate sustainability actions across interconnected systems. Held under the theme “The Nexus of Next: All Systems Go,” ADSW 2026 attracted over 60,0000 participants including 15 heads of state and over 400 ministers, to discuss energy transformation, climate resilience, and the role of technology and investment in achieving real world outcomes. More here.

World Leaders Gather in Abu Dhabi for IRENA16

IRENA Legislators Assembly Held in Abu Dhabi

As part of the larger 16th Session of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Assembly, the IRENA Legislators Forum took place on 10 January, 2026, in Abu Dhabi. The event brought together Members of Parliament and regulators from across the world for conversations on frameworks for renewable energy transition. This year’s Forum took place at the St. Regis Hotel, Abu Dhabi, under the theme: “Rethinking the Framework: Powering the Renewable Energy Transition.

ECOWAS Parliament Targets Renewables to
Close Energy Gap

Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament, Memounatou Ibrahima, has stated that raising the renewables to 48% of the region's energy mix will help address the energy challenges faced by West Africa. Ibrahima stated this while speaking to the region's energy access and transition plans at the IRENA Legislators and Regulators Forum in Abu Dhabi on 10 January, 2026. She stressed that the ECOWAS Parliament will work hard to strengthen its ability in "monitoring energy policies, reviewing implementation and reflecting citizens’ concerns". More here.

Parliamentary Leaders to Gather for
GLOBE’s 35th Anniversary

Focal Point of the UNFCCC’s Parliamentary Group, GLOBE Legislators, will be bringing together Members of Parliament, staff of parliamentary networks, development leaders, etc., in London on 24 June, 2026, for the 35th anniversary of GLOBE Legislators. The event which will take place at the UK Parliament during London Climate Action Week will also double as the official inauguration of the new Board of GLOBE Legislators. More here.

DanChurchAid, CVF, GLOBE to Convene Multi-country Post-COP30 Parliamentary Dialogue

As a follow up to the event “Legislating Resilience: Parliamentary Dialogue on Adaptation and Loss & Damage” which was convened by the three organisations at COP30, DanChurchAid (DCA), the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF), and GLOBE Legislators is bringing together Members of Parliament from select countries from the global North and South for a post-COP30 dialogue. The virtual dialogue seeks to build on the outcome of the COP30 event to expand conversations on how MPs from both the North and South can help drive sustainable climate action especially as it concerns Loss and Damage, and climate finance. The dialogue will take place on 19 March, 2026.

New Climate Leadership Appointed in South Africa

In line with the provisions of Section 10(4)(a) of the South African Climate Change Act as enacted by the South African Parliament, twenty-five Commissioners have been appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa. The Commissioners are representative of broad sectors of South Africa including “business, labour, civil society, traditional leadership, youth and South African Local Government Association. More here

Parliamentary Network Reports

Survey: Parliamentary Engagement in
Disaster Risk Reduction

The United Nations Office on Disaster Risk Reduction is conducting a survey measuring the extent of parliamentary engagement in Disaster Risk Reduction. Please spare five minutes to complete the survey. Deadline is 30 January, 2026.

Access the survey here

Trump’s Actions Isolating the US – SEEC

The Sustainability, Energy, and Environment Coalition (SEEC) has issued a press release stating that the US administration’s withdrawal from multiple international organisations and treatise, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and other global bodies, will not halt global action on climate change, but would rather isolate the US and undermine its influence. SEEC emphasised that climate change is real, and other nations and relevant organisations will continue to advance climate solutions and clean energy transitions. More here.

Parliamentarians@COP31 Webinars and Newsletters

Dates for the monthly webinars of the Parliamentary Group in preparation for COP31 have been fixed. The webinars, will as is the tradition, take place on the last Wednesday of every month apart from in June and December due to the London Climate Action Week and Christmas holidays respectively. There will be morning and afternoon sessions in order to accommodate the different time zones. The January edition took place on 22 January as an extraordinary session. 
To register, please email <focalpoint@globelegislators.org>.

In the same vein, the calendar for the multi-lingual Parliamentarians@COP31 newsletter has been released. The newsletter– one of GLOBE’s resources for the Parliamentary Group– will be published bi-monthly until September when it will be published monthly.

GLOBE tracks parliamentary engagements in the UNFCCC process on an ongoing basis. We would like to hear from you on your parliamentary engagement on climate change. Please contact <focalpoint@globelegislators.org>

GLOBE Legislators is an international charity registered in Belgium. We work in a cross-party and non-partisan manner to ensure that elected representatives are aware of and engaged in key international processes such as the United Nations conference of parties (COPs) on climate change, biodiversity and desertification.  Since 2021, GLOBE has served as the UNFCCC Focal Point for the Parliamentary Group, providing a range of services to help inform and organise the global parliamentary constituency. We seek to do the same for the other Rio Conventions and key international institutions and processes.  As a non-profit organisation our work relies on public support and donations. If you would like to support our work, kindly Donate using our Paypal account: the beneficiary is <secretariat@globelegislators.org>

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