TALENT ALERT: COP30 -- WWF and Oceania First Voices Leaders available in Belém
WWF-Australia
The UN climate change conference, COP30, kicks off today (10-21 November) in Belém, Brazil.
It has been a decade since the Paris Agreement, which set a goal of keeping average warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Since then, we’ve had the hottest 10 years in human history. Blistering heatwaves, raging wildfires and catastrophic storms and floods have been devastating lives, economies and ecosystems.
COP30 is being held in the Brazilian Amazon – so it’s the perfect opportunity to ramp up action to end deforestation, a critical component of tackling the climate crisis. Many countries, including Australia, committed to ending deforestation by 2030 at COP26, but so far progress has been slow.
The host of COP31 may also be announced in Belém, with Australia among the contenders to host the climate summit in 2026, in partnership with the Pacific.
Spokespeople from WWF-Australia and an Oceania First Voices delegation will be available throughout COP30 to offer expert insights, analysis and comments:
Takesa Frank, Aboriginal Environmental Activist and Advocate
In Belém 17-21 November
Takesa Frank, 23, is a proud Aboriginal woman living on Yuin Country on the NSW South Coast and one of Australia’s most compelling young voices for conservation.
Raised in the Shoalhaven among pristine forests and rivers, Takesa’s childhood instilled a profound respect for nature. The 2019–20 bushfires, which came within a kilometre of her family home, transformed her passion into purpose. She fought to protect bushland and later campaigned against logging in native forests devastated by fire. In 2023, she gained national attention through a tree-sit protest halting logging operations, highlighting the urgency of protecting native forests. Her courage and impact were recognised when she was named Young Environmentalist of the Year by the Bob Brown Foundation in 2023.
Takesa champions Indigenous knowledge in conservation and believes young voices must be heard in climate decision-making.
Takesa is an official spokesperson for WWF Asia & Pacific at COP30. Her areas of expertise include forest advocacy, youth environmental action, community action on climate justice, climate anxiety and eco grief and the intersection of these matters at the frontline of activism.
Kabay Tamu, Warraber Traditional Owner & Torres Strait Climate Justice Advocate
In Belém 17-21 November
Kabay Tamu is a sixth-generation Warraberalgal Traditional Owner, living on Warraber Island in the Torres Strait. He is a Torres Strait 8 claimant in the landmark human rights complaint to the United Nations over climate change.
The Torres Strait 8 are a collective of eight Traditional Owners from the Torres Strait who took a complaint against the Australian Government to the United Nations for failing to protect the Torres Strait from climate damage. Kabay attracted international headlines when he asked then Prime Minister Scott Morrison to visit Warraber during the 2019 UN climate summit in New York. The Prime Minister declined Kabay's invitation to see climate impacts in the Torres Strait.
In 2022 Kabay and the Torres Strait 8 won their case setting international precedents for loss and damage. Kabay is an advocate for Torres Strait's fight for climate justice through the 'Our Islands Our Home' campaign.
Kesaya Baba, Senior Manager for COP31 Strategy and Partnerships, WWF-Australia
In Belém 17-21 November
Kesaya is focused on building community and momentum among non-state actors in preparation for COP31, with justice and nature at the core. Kesaya is Fijian and Australian with experience in climate diplomacy and international development in the Pacific and Southeast Asia.
Kesaya can speak to civil society preparation for COP31 in Australia and the Pacific, WWF expectations for COP30 and reactions to outcomes and the intersections of climate, nature, Indigenous leadership and gender.
Dermot O’Gorman, CEO, WWF-Australia
In Belém 9-13 November
With over 23 years as a CEO at WWF, Dermot has worked across Australia, Europe, China, Asia, the US, LAC and the Pacific region as a leader in innovative solutions for nature, climate and communities. His work focuses on uniting civil society, First Nations, philanthropists, investors, businesses and governments in building a regenerative future.
Dermot has worked on strategies for climate COPs and their intersection with nature and communities since COP8. Since 2022 he has been advocating globally for a whole-of-society approach to an Australian Pacific-hosted COP31 and highlighting the opportunities for nature and industrialised decarbonisation.
Contact details:
For more information or to arrange an interview please contact Paul Fahy on 0455 528 161 or [email protected]