Belém Communiqué on Extreme Heat
We, the Ministers and representatives of 72 signatory countries, together with the heads and representatives of partner Signatories to the Global Cooling Pledge, gathered at the Thirtieth Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change:
• Recognize that extreme heat is one of the deadliest and most urgent signals of the climate crisis. It is a global emergency that is already amplifying inequality, threatening lives and health, exacerbating food insecurity, and undermining livelihoods, with the vulnerable populations bearing the greatest burden.
• Note that over 1 billion people are already at high risk due to lack of access to safe cooling for health, food, and work. Further, between May 2024 and May 2025, 4 billion people experienced at least 30 additional days of extreme heat, and in 195 countries and territories, the number of extreme heat days doubled or more, because of human-induced climate change. Over 70% of the global workforce- 2.4 billion people -already face high heat stress risks.
• Acknowledge the UN Secretary-General’s Call to Action on Extreme Heat for urgent global action to protect lives and livelihoods, stressing that climate mitigation and adaptation must advance together. We support his call to increase equitable access to and scale up low carbon cooling – including the triple strategy of passive cooling, improved energy efficiency and faster phase-down of climate warming gases used in cooling equipment.
• Welcome the findings of UNEP’s Global Cooling Watch 2025 report, which shows that a “Sustainable Cooling Pathway” can protect people from rising heat risks while sharply cutting emissions from the cooling sector. Updated modelling—accounting for the growing impact of extreme heat—finds that a combination of passive cooling, low-energy and hybrid systems (both new to this edition), rapid deployment of high-efficiency technologies, and a faster HFC phase-down, together with power-sector decarbonisation, could reduce cooling-related emissions by 68 per cent by 2050 compared to 2022 levels, while expanding access to sustainable cooling for 3 billion people. This pathway is projected to deliver cumulative economic benefits of up to USD 43 trillion through 2050 from electricity savings and avoided investments in new generation and grid infrastructure. Passive cooling strategies are shown to be among the most cost-effective solutions, capable of lowering indoor temperatures by up to 8°C, reducing cooling energy demand by 15–55 per cent, and, in some cases, eliminating the need for mechanical cooling altogether.
• Highlight the Global Cooling Pledge as a roadmap for collective action, uniting national and local commitments to cut cooling-related emissions, double energy efficiency, while delivering access to sustainable cooling for all as critical to action on extreme heat. Over 70 countries have already endorsed it and we encourage continued implementation.
• Support Beat the Heat / Mutirão contra o Calor Extremo as an implementation drive for the Global Cooling Pledge, and join the Brazilian COP30 Presidency, the UNEP Cool Coalition, and partners in advocating for and strengthening actions on urban resilience to extreme heat through sustainable and equitable cooling. This collective effort will help map urban heat risks, expand green and blue infrastructure, embed passive cooling in building codes, and use public procurement to drive markets toward efficient, low-GWP technologies, while deploying rapid-impact measures such as cool roofs, improved ventilation design, and insulation.
As national signatories to the Global Cooling Pledge, we reaffirm our support for sub-national and urban action in four areas:
1. Heat Action Plans – Mapping local heat risks and solutions and integrating long-term heat mitigation into urban plans and disaster planning, as well as related funding mechanisms.
2. Passive Cooling – Expanding nature-based solutions, heat-resilient urban design, and passive design for cooler buildings.
3. Public Procurement – Leveraging and promoting efficient, low-GWP , and hybrid cooling technologies.
4. Protecting the Vulnerable– Strengthening health systems, workplaces, schools, and community infrastructure to safeguard lives and livelihoods.
We call upon all governments, international organizations, financial institutions, the private sector, and civil society to join forces in implementing the Global Cooling Pledge and the Beat the Heat implementation drive, to enhance resilience through sustainable and affordable cooling solutions for those most vulnerable to extreme heat.