(Left to right) Catherine Wolfram, Ken Larson, Andre Zollinger, Bethany Patten, and Evan Lieberman debrief COP30 during a panel discussion.
On December 1, 2025, MIT’s Center for International Studies (CIS) and the MIT Climate Policy Center (CPC) co-hosted a CIS Global Research & Policy Seminar debriefing COP30 in Belém, Brazil, and exploring the future of global climate action. CIS Director Evan Lieberman opened the seminar by explaining the tradition of bringing together MIT delegates who attended COP to share their insights and experiences from this major international event. He then introduced Evelyn Wang, MIT Vice President for Energy and Climate, who reflected on COP30 in the context of the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement, examining both the progress made and the ongoing challenges facing global climate action.
MIT’s COP30 delegates shared firsthand observations from the conference. Bethany Patten (CPC) described how MIT engages at COP and has influenced policymaking. Kent Larson (Media Lab) highlighted the City Science group’s activities and provided perspectives on Amazonian cultural and urban dynamics. Catherine Wolfram (Sloan) discussed the importance of carbon pricing and her efforts to create a new climate coalition. Andre Zollinger (J-PAL) described poverty-reduction opportunities his lab is pursuing with foreign governments to advance evidence-informed policymaking. While COPs are complex and often contested events, the panelists emphasized COP30’s importance as a milestone for assessing progress and strengthening the relationships that can accelerate climate action.
More details on the COP30 seminar and its speakers can be found here.
