Martin Durbin
President, Global Energy Institute, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Senior Vice President, Policy, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Published
October 31, 2024
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will lead an official business delegation, certified by the Department of Commerce, to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Baku, Azerbaijan. The theme for COP29, held November 11-22 is “In Solidarity for a Green World.”
Where We Stand
The Chamber believes it is critical for the U.S. government to actively participate in the U.N. process to demonstrate continued leadership on a topic of such global significance and to ensure the business community is part of the discussion. We must reduce emissions at the pace of innovation through policies that are realistic, durable, and reinforce U.S. economic competitiveness. Our theme, “Business Delivers Solutions,” highlights that the private sector is taking action by financing, developing, and deploying the technology needed for the clean energy transition, and that government policy can and must be an enabler for that action.
What We’ve Accomplished
At COP28 in Dubai, the Chamber brought the largest-ever U.S. business delegation to a U.N. Climate Conference, where we convened more than 20 events with businesses, governments, and international partners. In Baku, the Chamber will ensure that private-sector solutions are front and center.
Since 2022, more than 130 companies, from start-ups to large multinationals, have joined U.S. Chamber-led GreenTech Business Delegations to Egypt, the UAE, Turkiye and Brazil. These missions, on which we partner with multiple U.S. government agencies and finance organizations, have explored investment opportunities and created pathways for cooperation supporting the energy transition on issues ranging from renewables to hydrogen, biofuels, industrial decarbonization, carbon capture, and food and water security.
In preparation for Baku, the Chamber has hosted several discussions with top COP29 officials, including a roundtable last week with COP29 Chief Negotiator H.E. Yalchin Rafiyev, who serves as Azerbaijan’s Deputy Foreign Minister. The Chamber also hosted Diane Farrell, Deputy Under Secretary for International Trade, Annie Hills, Senior Advisor at the Office of the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, and Eric Haxthausen, Senior Advisor for Climate, Partnerships and Innovation at the U.S. Trade and Development Agency for a webinar with the U.S. business community to discuss U.S. climate priorities for COP29 and beyond.
What We’re Expecting at COP29
In Baku, a primary focus for negotiators will be a new goal for international climate finance—known as the New Collective Quantified Goal—that truly responds to the needs of developing countries. In addition, participants will document progress and seek to build on prior commitments. The Azeri host government has a wide-ranging set of declarations and pledges that it aims to pursue during the two-week conference, which will be organized around thematic days on topics such as AI, infrastructure, tourism, human capital, clean energy and climate finance. As U.N. Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell has stated, COP29 is “the stand-and-deliver COP.”
Looking Ahead
While there remain significant challenges for governments around the world to reach the ambitious goals of the Paris Agreement, the business community will advance practical solutions and drive the innovation necessary to ensure progress continues. Businesses are working every day to deliver climate solutions, tackling challenges and finding opportunities.
The Chamber will highlight the work that businesses are doing to advance climate solutions and continue our engagement next year at COP30 in Brazil. In fact, at COP28 last year, the Chamber signed an MOU with Brazil's Confederation of National Industries to coordinate in preparation for COP30 in Brazil. The MOU provides the foundation to exchange information and regulatory best practices to leverage the rich natural resources of our nations to develop and deploy clean energy, critical minerals, nature-based solutions, and climate-smart agriculture. With that in mind, the Chamber has hosted several Brazilian officials this fall for discussions about carrying forward momentum from COP28 and COP29 to COP30, including Minister Marina Silva from Brazil’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change and Ambassador André Aranha Corrêa do Lago, Brazil’s Secretary for Climate, Energy, and Environment, Ministry. At COP30, Brazil will be focused on the implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC’s)--each country’s contributions to emissions reductions.
Stay Tuned
To stay updated on our work, follow @globalenergy and @COP29_AZ on X.
About the authors
Matt Letourneau
Matt Letourneau is a managing director of communications at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's communication team. He coordinates external communications and strategy and serves as a spokesman to media on energy and environmental issues for the Chamber.
Martin Durbin
Martin (Marty) Durbin is president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Energy Institute (GEI). Durbin leads GEI’s efforts to build support for meaningful energy action through policy development, education, and advocacy, making it a go-to voice for commonsense energy solutions.
