Who’s Who Inside Negotiating Rooms at the COP30 Climate Summit

Signage outside the Parque da Cidade, the main venue for the COP30 summit, in Belém, Pará state, Brazil, on Nov. 7, 2025. Photo by Dado Galdieri /Photographer: Dado Galdeiri/Bloo

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(Bloomberg) — Delegates from nearly 200 countries have gathered in Belém in the Brazilian Amazon for the United Nations’ COP30 climate conference, running through Nov. 21. 

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The COP process gives all countries, from the smallest island states to superpowers, an equal vote and lets any of them effectively veto proposals. But that doesn’t mean they all have the same influence. Seasoned climate diplomats, especially those from key countries or blocs, can drive momentum and build coalitions around favored outcomes. 

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Deliberations at COPs generally fall into two halves: During the first week, chief negotiators steeped in technical policy hash out prospective deals. In week two, when politics come to the fore, high-ranking government ministers assume a more prominent role. 

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Here are some of the likely central players. Notably missing is anyone from the US, after the Trump administration declined to send high-level officials to Brazil. The vacuum created by the absence of the world’s largest economy and second-biggest emitter could affect dynamics in unpredictable ways. 

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Brazil: Mauricio Lyrio, Liliam Chagas

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Mauricio Lyrio serves as secretary for climate, energy and environment at Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and leads the country’s delegation to COP30. A career diplomat and former ambassador to Australia and Mexico, he brings deep experience in trade, finance and multilateral diplomacy, including as a so-called sherpa for Brazil — the personal representative of the head of state — in the G20 and BRICS forums. 

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Director of the climate department at Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Chagas has been the country’s chief climate negotiator since COP28 in Dubai. In the runup to COP30, she has guided Brazil’s positions on mitigation, adaptation, finance, forests, equity and gender, and has emphasized that Belém should be a launchpad for the next decade of action. 

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China: Li Gao

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Born in 1969, Li Gao has two decades of experience in global climate change talks. Although long regarded as the backbone of China’s team, the fluent English–speaking graduate of Tsinghua and Yale universities will be the public face of the country’s delegation for the first time at COP30.

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Li, a key architect of China’s carbon credit program, was promoted earlier this year to vice minister at the Ministry of Ecology and Environment. He led the Chinese delegation at the pre-COP meeting in Brazil last month, where China — both the world’s biggest emitter and the biggest manufacturer of green technologies and equipment — called on the international community to resist rising unilateralism and protectionism, factors that threaten to drive up the cost of the clean energy transition. 

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For years, China’s climate efforts were defined by Xie Zhenhua. Widely respected for his relentless work ethic and dedication, Xie retired in early 2024. 

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EU: Wopke Hoekstra 

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This will be Hoekstra’s third COP as the EU’s climate chief, and he’ll go into COP30 relieved that the 27-member bloc submitted its updated emissions-cutting pledge with just days to spare.