The 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30), a pivotal event in the global fight against climate change, will be held in the heart of the Amazon rainforest in 2025. This historic decision underscores the urgency of addressing environmental issues directly within one of the world's most vital ecosystems. The Amazon will provide a fitting backdrop for international leaders to convene and formulate strategies aimed at mitigating and adapting to climate change and promoting sustainable development.
Deforestation is a major problem in the Amazon region as a whole, and in Brazil in particular. To date, nearly 800,000km² of Brazil’s original 4 million km² of Amazon forest has been depleted due to a variety of economic activities. These include uncontrolled logging, large-scale farming, mining, large road construction project and dams, among others. Together, these activities have raised serious concerns about the stability of the Amazon rainforests, some of which has already been converted into drier savannahs known as cerrado.
There is a need to discuss not only the causes but also the possible solutions to the problems the Amazon region is facing today, and to identify sustainable solutions. Against this backdrop, and as COP30 offers a unique opportunity to bring global attention to the Amazon's challenges, the 2nd Symposium Amazon 2030 – Sustainability Issues in the World's Largest Rainforest Region is being organized by the Inter-University Sustainable Development Programme (IUSDRP), the International Climate Change Information and Research Programme (ICCIRP), Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (Germany), Manchester Metropolitan University (UK) and the University Nilton Lins (Brazil), in collaboration with various organisations, including the Pontifical Catholic University of Parana (PUCPR). The event is also organized by the German-Brazilian Science and Technology Network (GERBRAS-SCIENCENET).
The first edition of this Symposium was held at the Federal University of Western Pará (UFOPA), Santarém, Brazil, on 4-5 September 2023. This event, the “2nd Symposium Amazon 2030 – Sustainability Issues in the World's Largest Rainforest Region”, will be held in the University Nilton Lins, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil, on 6-7 November 2025. The dates make it convenient for delegates interested in joining COP30 (10-21 November) after the Symposium.
