Interlinkages between carbon markets and other Paris Agreement items are being leveraged to smooth discussions in some rooms, but hit a nerve in others, according to civil society observers.

COP30 negotiations on the four main issues on the table – including how to plug gaps in climate finance and national commitments – are progressing well but need more time, the Brazilian presidency said on Wednesday evening, pushing the next plenary to Saturday.

Brazil is straddling a thin line between climate champion and fossil fuel producer, as the second fastest-growing oil supplier in the world over the past decade, but with slipping greenhouse gas emissions, according to Carbon Pulse analysis.

Host countries of Article 6 carbon projects say they need an army of experts to help them establish market frameworks and projects amid a looming capacity shortage, a COP30 side event heard on Wednesday.

The newly launched Tropical Forest Forever Facility is creating a multi-billion dollar investment stream for tropical forest protection with a guaranteed share for Indigenous and local communities, even as conservation groups warn that emerging Article 6.4 rules risk sidelining nature-based solutions by imposing permanence requirements that could effectively exclude forests, soils, and blue carbon from the forthcoming global carbon market.

Enabling social inclusion - The World Bank’s 2025 EnABLE initiative has published its annual report, which details progress in advancing social inclusion within results-based climate finance across 14 countries. In FY25, new programmes were launched in Ghana, Lao PDR, and Mozambique, with additional projects in the DRC and Guatemala to enhance participation of Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and civil society, the project said. The report introduces the Social Inclusion Framework and a companion good practices guide developed with CIFOR-ICRAF, alongside new partnerships, training initiatives, and communications platforms. EnABLE also strengthened collaboration with the World Bank’s SCALE program to integrate equity and inclusion across all climate finance operations.

Oman on Wednesday at COP30 officially launched its National GHG Inventory Platform in support of its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), Biennial Transparency Report (BTR), and Article 6 engagement.

Singapore’s National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS), together with Gold Standard and Verra, has published its final Article 6.2 Crediting Protocol, establishing a framework for governments to use existing, independent carbon crediting programmes to meet their national climate goals.

A group of countries led by Colombia are working on a declaration specifically addressing transitioning away from fossil fuels, according to a draft text seen by Carbon Pulse.

The EU does not have an official preference for credits generated under Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement for use towards its 2040 climate goals, despite some expectations this would be the case, officials told a COP30 event this week, adding that the bloc remains open to using other standards.

California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) at COP30 signed a series of agreements with international partners, seeking to reassure the global community of US commitment to addressing climate amid the absence of a federal presence in Belem.

A UN-supported initiative last week invited developers to submit project ideas that could generate international carbon credits under the Paris Agreement’s Article 6 mechanism in Thailand.

The development of carbon border adjustment mechanisms (CBAMs) could foster international industrial partnerships to help close financing gaps for decarbonisation, proponents said on a side event at the UN climate summit in Brazil.

European Union countries have agreed on a mandate to start negotiations with the UK on linking their respective carbon markets, the Council of EU member states said on Wednesday.

Governments increasingly putting domestic priorities first can still find powerful incentives for international cooperation on climate change, according to a new discussion paper unveiled Wednesday at COP30, though action must be taken soon to avoid a $26 trillion finance shortfall by 2036.

The UK's upper parliamentary chamber, the House of Lords, has called on the government to clarify how disputes would be resolved if a link is established between the UK’s Emissions Trading System (ETS) with that of the EU, particularly regarding the role of the EU Court of Justice in such matters.

Half of the global target to mobilise $1.3 trillion of public and private climate finance could be financed by private investors, and may be raised via carbon markets, according to an independent UN advisory group. 

Djibouti wants to raise carbon finance using both Article 6.2 and 6.4 of the Paris Agreement to meet its new 2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC).

At least 2 billion people live within five kilometres of fossil fuel infrastructure and face increased health and livelihood risks from pollution, land degradation and ecosystem loss, according to a report published Wednesday by two global advocacy groups.

Day 3 at COP30 in Belem. Heavy rain and a big clash between protesters and UNFCCC security on Tuesday have somewhat dampened initial optimism for the summit, as crunch presidency updates are now expected on Wednesday that should signal where talks are likely to land over the coming days.

Pacific Islands' representatives have offered to join the negotiations over next year’s COP hosting, to see if their Talanoa spirit can settle the dispute between Turkiye and Australia.

Turning marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) into a reliable source of carbon credits will require far more rigorous science and costly monitoring, scientists said Tuesday.

A nation-wide project aiming to install 80 million clean cookstoves in the West African country, financed solely by credits from the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism (PACM), is conducting a small-scale “proof of concept” while waiting for an approved methodology by the UNFCCC, its developer told Carbon Pulse.

Even though no Article 6 negotiations are slated for COP30, "difficult discussions" about a recently approved permanence standard dog implementation of the new Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism (PACM) – with some countries reportedly threatening to reopen agreed texts to try and cement a stronger role for nature-based projects in the new market.