Update: Link to join the live stream of the inaugural meeting of the Group of Friends is here.
Nearly 1,500 organisations and individuals have signed the Global Call to Put Cultural Heritage, Arts and Creative Sectors at the Heart of Climate Action. We are delighted to announce the political commitment of State Parties advocating for this critical step toward responding to the Global Stocktake and supporting the implementation of the Paris Agreement.
It is official. At COP28 the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Brazil have announced the launch of the Group of Friends of Culture-Based Climate Action at the UNFCCC (GFCBCA), an international coalition of UN Member States aimed at building political momentum for the recognition of culture as a uniquely powerful force in climate change policy.
The Group of Friends of Culture-based Climate Action will be launched at a High Level Ministerial Dialogue scheduled for 8 December which will be live streamed at 12.00pm (GST). Please register here to watch and be a part of this historic step towards putting culture at the heart of climate action. Co-chaired by Ministers of Culture Salem bin Khalid Al Qassimi (UAE), and Margareth Menezes, (Brazil), this timely event will host over 20 Ministers from all regions of the world, committed to placing culture as a critical vector of climate action and aligned to the Global Call to Action.
In response, cultural voices drawn from the signatories of the Global Call have issued a “Statement of Support for the Launch at COP28 of the new Group of Friends of Culture-Based Climate Action.” Please read the full statement here and consider amplifying its contents in your own messaging about COP and the future of climate action.
About the Global Call to Action for Culture-Based Climate Policy
Cultural voices from all over the world and all cultural sectors represented in the Global Call are urging climate negotiators to embrace culture-based solutions to the climate crisis. The Global Campaign calls for the adoption at COP29 next year of a “Joint Work Decision on Culture and Climate Action” that would lead to the adoption at COP30 in Brazil of a groundbreaking work plan on culture for the UN.
The launch of the Group of Friends with co-chairs UAE and Brazil, hosts of COP28 and COP30, will be invaluable aid to that ambition. As representatives of the cultural community we appreciate the commitment of the Group of Friends, and pledge to support their endeavours, amplify and celebrate this landmark moment for climate action.
This campaign is part of an initiative funded by the UAE Ministry of Culture in partnership with the ALIPH Foundation
