Climate change and the Amazon: the run-up to COP 30 Belém—and beyond—while amplifying local voices

The Amazon stands as a central theme in journalistic coverage of biodiversity and climate change. As Brazil seeks leadership in this area, the city of Belém, located in Pará within the Brazilian Amazon, will host COP 30 in November 2025. To understand local dynamics, the paradoxes between natural wealth and population poverty, and to identify critical points in official discourses and commitments, a deeper connection with local scientists and leaders, including Indigenous peoples and traditional communities, is essential. Amplifying these voices through the media also plays a crucial role in fostering public policies and combating climate misinformation, especially following the launch of the Global Initiative for Climate Information Integrity in late 2024 by UNESCO, the UN, and the Brazilian government.

To provide an overview of these topics and what journalists can expect from Belém, as well as to introduce the Amazônia Vox platform—which builds a database of Amazonian sources and freelancers—journalist and Amazônia Vox founder Daniel Nardin will lead this panel on local voices and climate coverage in the Amazon.

This presentation is crucial for journalists covering or interested in the Amazon or preparing to cover COP 30 in Belém, where Daniel is based. Daniel is a 2024–2025 ICFJ Knight Fellow, a member of the Oxford Climate Journalism Network, an instructor for the Solutions Journalism Network in Brazil, and a 2024 Changemaker by the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

The panel will also feature Marina Dias, from Agência Pública, the first nonprofit investigative journalism outlet in Brazil.

For the past 14 years, the newsroom has covered issues such as human rights violations, always from the perspective of the affected communities. Its Amazon coverage highlights challenges faced by local populations — including land conflicts, rural violence, and increasing deforestation driven by mining and agribusiness.

The stories show how Amazonian peoples resist and find solutions. In addition to covering COP negotiations, Agência Pública will also produce in-depth reporting on topics discussed at the conference that directly impact local communities.