The BRICS bloc approved its first coordinated climate finance framework on May 30, marking the group’s first unified policy to fund climate action and setting the foundation for a shared position ahead of the COP30 meeting due to be held in Brazil.

The nonbinding document, adopted during a high-level meeting on climate change and sustainable development, outlines key priorities including reform of multilateral development banks, scaling up concessional finance, and mobilising private capital to support the Global South, S&P Global reports. The framework will be submitted to BRICS heads of state at their upcoming summit in July.

“For the first time, there will be a document that guides a common and collective BRICS action in the area of climate finance – involving, for example, reforms of multilateral banks, more concessional finance, and also the mobilisation of private capital and regulatory matters to ensure that flows can reach developing countries,” said Tatiana Rosito, international affairs secretary at Brazil’s finance ministry, S&P Global reports.

The Climate Crisis is accelerating faster than scientists predicted and a countdown to disaster has begun that will see the world reach the upper limit 2C increase in temperatures above the pre-industrial benchmark in around 2037 that could have cataclysmic consequences. With the cost of things like solar panels down by as much as 90% over the last decade, Emerging Markets are increasingly embracing green tech energy solutions simply as they have become the cheapest source of energy. China in particular has become the global green energy champion. However, the developed world has largely ignored their obligations under the 2015 Paris Agreement, blown through their carbon budget and the US under the Trump administration has withdrawn from the agreement completely.

The Brazilian presidency said in a statement that the bloc’s latest effort reflected a shift from defensive posturing to proactive coordination in global climate negotiations. Although the BRICS – comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – has informally coordinated on climate policy for years, this represents its first formal framework in the area.

The group’s climate diplomacy traces back to the 1990s through the Basic group, which jointly defended the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities”. Its climate ambition was notably expanded in the 2024 Kazan Declaration, which positioned the Paris Agreement at the core of the bloc’s strategy and rejected unilateral environmental trade measures.

The framework feeds into Brazil’s flagship COP30 initiative, the “Road Map Baku-Belem”, which seeks to mobilise $1.3 trillion in climate finance for developing countries by 2035. Though the BRICS document will not be part of formal UN climate negotiations, officials believe it could help break longstanding deadlocks.

Financing was one of the central issues at the failed COP29 meeting and will be again for COP30. Emerging Markets were asking for $1 trillion in aid from Developed World countries to pay for their green transition but eventually were pledged only $250bn.

Among the proposals is Brazil’s planned Tropical Forests Forever Fund, a financing model designed under its G20 presidency and expected to launch at COP30. The initiative seeks to attract private investment in forest conservation by offering returns instead of requiring direct contributions.

The BRICS meeting also produced agreements to facilitate the use of climate-related patents, establish a joint research and development platform, and create a new laboratory to assess the impact of international climate policies on member economies.