COP30 is about to begin. Where do we stand ahead of the conference? What are the key issues to watch, and how might the complex geopolitical context influence the discussions in Belém?

To find out, Anna is joined by three Chatham House colleagues: Ana Yang (Director of the Environment and Society Centre), Bernice Lee (Distinguished Fellow and Senior Advisor) and Nick Bridge (Associate Fellow at Chatham House and former UK Special Representative for Climate change).

For additional analysis, please see:

• The expert comment 'What can COP30 achieve, following US withdrawal and underwhelming climate plans', available here.
• The explainer 'What is COP30 and why does it matter for the climate?, available here.
• The expert comment 'The UN climate process remains indispensable', available here.

The incoming COP30 host, Brazil, has signalled it wants COP30 to mark the moment the UNFCCC transitions to a 'post-negotiation' phase, and that efforts should focus on action and implementation going forward. As part of its work to make this a reality, Brazil is reforming the UNFCCC's 'Action Agenda', a process bringing together cities, regions, businesses, investors, civil society and governments to implement the Paris Agreement.

To find out more about Brazil's vision for the Action Agenda, co-hosts Anna and Bhargabi speak to Dan Ioschpe, Brazil's Climate High-Level Champion for COP30.

In the introduction to the episode, Anna and her colleague Chris Aylett (Research Fellow at Chatham House) discuss the EU's commitment to phase out Russian energy imports by 2028 and US efforts to block a plan for decarbonizing international shipping.

The multilateral development banks (MDBs) play a critical role in addressing climate change and have a key role to play in delivering on the 'New Collective Quantified Goal' on climate finance, agreed at COP29. This Climate Briefing episode focuses on the newest of the MDBs: the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), launched in 2016. What are the similarities and differences between the AIIB and the other MDBs? What is the AIIB doing to address climate change?

To find out, Anna and Bhargabi speak to Kim-See Lim (Chief Investment Officer, Public Sector (Region 1) & Financial Institutions and Funds (Global) Clients at the AIIB) and Hans Peter Lankes (Managing Director and Deputy Chief Executive at the Overseas Development Institute; Visiting Professor in Practice at the LSE Grantham Research Institute; and a Senior Fellow at the LSE/Oxford International Growth Centre).

In the introduction to the episode, Anna and Bhargabi speak about growth trends in global renewable energy generation, climate politics in the UK, the US-China trade spat and the ratification of the High Seas Treaty.