Intergenerational climate governance: lessons from six young negotiators at COP30

The annual Climate Conference of Parties (COP) is the main space where agreements guiding global climate policy and action are defined. A decade after the Paris Agreement, COP30 – held in the Brazilian Amazon – represented a critical moment for ambition, as climate impacts intensify in frequency and scale, disproportionately affecting regions and sectors and making urgent the need for agreements that enable climate-resilient societies.

Younger generations are already facing climate impacts and intersecting planetary crises that will shape their futures. Meaningful youth participation – particularly as young negotiators – is essential to effective and inclusive climate governance. Young negotiators are young people from diverse professional and disciplinary backgrounds who integrate national delegations, though not necessarily employed by government institutions, to engage directly in negotiation spaces. Their roles range from supportive functions to leadership responsibilities within delegations and across negotiation tracks, varying widely across countries according to national approaches to intergenerational participation.

Drawing on perspectives from six young negotiators across regions (Costa Rica, Palau, Panama, Sudan, Uzbekistán and Zimbabwe), this article discusses who young negotiators are, how their roles materialized during COP30, and which priorities and pathways they identify as essential to strengthening resilience and legitimacy in global climate governance.

Young negotiators’ role prior to and during COP30

The role of young negotiators at the COP is an ongoing process that extends beyond the official two weeks of the event. It begins prior to the COP through preparatory work alongside governments to define national positions, priorities, and modalities of participation within delegations. When young negotiators join national  delegations with clear institutional support, they often contribute meaningfully to these processes by participating in coordination meetings across negotiation groups, developing briefing notes, and position summaries. In cases where young negotiators are not part of the government, the absence of clear mandates and objectives within delegations frequently results in the assignment of secondary or support tasks. 

Adequate funding and early engagement are critical enablers of effective participation, as they allow young negotiators to attend key in-person preparatory meetings to gain an understanding of the positions of other negotiating groups and build working relationships with counterparts from other countries.

During the COP, young negotiators’ contributions vary depending on delegation structures and levels of institutional trust. In some delegations, young negotiators work closely alongside non-youth negotiators throughout the negotiation process, attending contact groups, informal consultations, and internal coordination meetings. In these contexts, they provide technical inputs and formulate concrete recommendations that support delegation positions. In fewer cases, young negotiators are also entrusted with delivering statements or making direct interventions in formal negotiation settings. 

Across all modalities of engagement, working alongside more experienced negotiators allows young negotiators to benefit from institutional knowledge and negotiation experience, strengthening their ability to navigate the complexity of the UNFCCC process to make more effective contributions.

COP30 results under the intergenerational lens

The young negotiators consulted expressed converging yet not uniform perspectives on COP30 outcomes related to adaptation and loss and damage. While COP30 was conceived as an implementation-oriented COP, particularly focused on adaptation, there was a shared perception that the outcomes fell short of responding to the scale of the climate emergency and the expectations of younger generations.

Regarding the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA), negotiators acknowledged advances in defining indicators, including those related to means of implementation. However, its non-binding nature was widely perceived as a limitation, as implementation will remain highly dependent on national capacities. These dynamic risks deepening existing asymmetries between countries and constraining the ability of vulnerable states to protect present and future generations through effective adaptation.

The call to triple adaptation finance by 2035 under the Mutirão decision was recognized as an important political signal. However, negotiators emphasized that in many developing countries, adaptation finance continues to rely heavily on debt-generating instruments. This approach entrenches long-term fiscal constraints, reducing the future capacity of younger generations to respond effectively to climate risks. 

On loss and damage, COP30 strengthened the institutional landscape through continued work under the Warsaw International Mechanism, its Executive Committee, and the Santiago Network. The inclusion of language recognizing women, children, youth, Indigenous peoples, and local communities as key actors was seen as a step forward. The launch of the Loss and Damage Response Fund, despite its limited resources, was viewed as opening pathways for more direct access to local and subnational financing—an outcome with particular relevance for youth-led and community-based responses.

Overall, negotiators agreed that adaptation outcomes remained broad and weakly operationalized, reinforcing youth concerns—especially in highly vulnerable countries—about the persistent gap between political ambition and tangible action.

What comes after COP30

Some of the young negotiators interviewed recognized that, despite sustained efforts to advance adaptation, COP30 once again exposed the structural limitations of a multilateral process that remains slow and highly complex relative to the urgency of climate impacts. They emphasized that strengthening global adaptation requires not only improved negotiated outcomes, but also a rethinking of how negotiation processes incorporate the voices of those already experiencing climate impacts, particularly youth from vulnerable territories.

Political initiatives such as the Belém 1.5 Mission and the Global Implementation Accelerator were identified as potential catalysts to accelerate Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plan implementation. However, the negotiators emphasized that these initiatives must be complemented by greater recognition of local and Indigenous adaptation practices, ensuring that action is not solely dependent on international finance and can build on existing territorial capacities. 

In the context of loss and damage, post-COP30 priorities include accelerating implementation in countries with existing capacities while continuing to strengthen those that require further support. Youth were identified as key actors in this phase—not only as advocates, but as knowledge brokers and adopters of technical tools, contributing to more effective national implementation. Nonetheless, progress remains constrained by insufficient funding and geopolitical tensions, underscoring the need for more responsive governance arrangements within the UNFCCC. 

How to improve youth participation in negotiations

The young negotiators identified several opportunities to strengthen intergenerational participation within the multilateral negotiation system. 

1. Sustaining intensive capacity-building programmes that enable effective youth participation within national delegations. Initiatives such as the Climate Youth Negotiators Programme (CYNP) by the Youth Negotiators Academy (YNA) have contributed to expanding the capacities of both young negotiators and delegations, facilitating their structured integration with substantive roles. Such programmes help strengthen technical knowledge of UNFCCC processes, negotiation texts and procedures, as well as competencies for strategic engagement in delegation-level decision-making. 
2. Ensure young negotiators can remain engaged in youth-led national processes—such as Local Conferences of Youth (LCOYs). These initiatives can strengthen young negotiators’ understanding of national context and policy frameworks, enabling the development of relevant contributions that align with youth needs and demands.
3. Strengthening formal and institutional processes that go beyond short-term or ad hoc participation, allowing intergenerational integration over time and ensuring continuity as youth benefit from the guidance and institutional memory of more experienced negotiators.
4. Agreeing on global guidelines defining the role of young negotiators within delegations. Developing an international reference guide or framework could help establish minimum quality standards, ensure young negotiators have a clear mandate and reduce heterogeneity between countries.
5. Expanding opportunities for leadership and mentorship, as the struggle for “a seat at the table” has been prolonged, particularly in transitioning from support roles to decision-making spaces. They also highlight the strategic role youth can play as bridges between official delegations, civil society, and other stakeholders, helping to strengthen the implementation of international commitments at the national level.
6. Continuing to promote a cultural shift within the multilateral system to recognize the value of generational diversity and the range of profiles and disciplines that young people bring to climate negotiations. Insufficient funding and limited institutional recognition of youth contributions contribute to burnout; therefore, youth leadership should be adequately resourced, and their professional work recognized on fair and sustainable terms.

Negotiators consulted:

This article was written by Melchorita Tatiana Castro Gutierrez, through consultation with the following young negotiators:

Shahnoza Rakhmanova
Country: Uzbekistán
Region: Asia
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sasha-rakhmanova/
Role: Young Climate Negotiator on adaptation

About: Shahnoza Rakhmanova is an inclusive climate policy activist and the youngest negotiator of the Uzbekistan delegation at COP29 and COP30, following the adaptation negotiations. Starting on the path of climate education integration at the age of 16, she has since worked on organizing the first-ever LCOY Uzbekistan, contributed to writing the National Youth Statement, led the creation of climate negotiation simulations for hundreds of youth, and engaged in the development of the NDC 3.0.

María Cecilia Quaglino
Country: Palau
Region: The Pacific
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maceciliaquaglino/
Role: Project Manager on Palau’s National Adaptation Plan and negotiator on NAPs

About: María Cecilia Quaglino is a climate and environmental policy professional with over a decade of experience in climate adaptation, international negotiations, and sustainable development. She currently leads Palau’s National Adaptation Plan as Project Manager and represents Palau at UNFCCC processes, bridging science, policy, and multi-stakeholder engagement to drive resilient and equitable climate solutions.

Karina García
Country: Panama
Region: Latin America
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karina-garc%C3%ADa-m-9b3a28205/
Role: Young Climate Negotiator on loss & damage 

About: Karina García is an early academic in climate and sustainability, member of the delegation of Panama in COP29 and COP30. She followed negotiations on Adaptation; and led the national representation on Loss and Damage, and Technology Transfer and Capacity building.

Mariluz Quirós
Country: Costa Rica
Region: Latin America
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariluz-quir%C3%B3s-l%C3%B3pez-279ab061/
Role: Young Climate Negotiator on adaptation 

About: Mariluz Quirós López holds a degree in Environmental Health from the University of Costa Rica. She is a specialist in Accreditation, Conformity Assessment, and Climate Change. She currently works at the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) as a Project Manager, providing support on technical matters related to accreditation and sustainability.

Abutalib Ahmed
Country: Sudan
Region: Africa
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abutalib-ahmed-aa2824217/
Role: Young Climate Negotiator on adaptation

About: Abutalib Ahmed is a Water Resources Engineer and local climate leader from Sudan. He is currently focused on climate action that highlights the role of local and Indigenous communities in climate recovery. At COP 30, he participated for the first time as a Party negotiator for Sudan on adaptation and as part of the Young Negotiators Academy.

Kudzai Sharon Kandemiri
Country: Zimbabwe
Region: Africa
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharon-kandemiri-7a6502147/
Role: Young Climate Negotiator on adaptation

About: Kudzai Sharon Kandemiri is a biotechnology professional passionate about climate action and disability inclusion. As a climate negotiator, she advocates for accessible climate solutions and amplifies the voices of persons with disabilities in climate decision-making, ensuring that no one is left behind.