As thousands marched through Antalya to demand greater climate action, the first week of the UN summit COP31 has again exposed the lack of urgency among leaders to accelerate the end of fossil fuels despite the escalating climate crisis.
At the mid-point of the conference, the COP31 Presidency released a summary of reflections on the proposed cover decision, providing a smorgasbord of options for the COP31 outcome, including proposals to advance the transition away from fossil fuels, recognition of the critical role of forests and oceans and a response to the urgency of the 1.5°C overshoot.
Jasper Inventor, Head of COP31 Greenpeace Delegation, said: "It's still far from enough. The first week of COP31 was heavy on rhetoric but painfully short on ambition. World leaders admit we are heading beyond 1.5°C, but their negotiators remain divided over how to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels, protect ecosystems and deliver the climate finance needed to make it happen and support communities to adapt.
"We are seeing familiar dynamics play out. Governments are largely repeating entrenched positions rather than finding ways to bridge their differences. Discussions are getting bogged down in procedural disputes and disagreements over what should even be on the negotiating table, instead of focusing on the urgent decisions needed to confront the climate crisis.
"The contradiction is striking. Governments recognise the scale of the crisis but remain unwilling to take the decisions necessary to confront it. The gap between what leaders say on stage and what their negotiators are prepared to deliver remains deeply concerning."
To close out the first week of the conference, more than 100 civil society organisations, political parties and workers associations marched through Antalya in support of urgent climate action. Greenpeace joined the demonstration. The march will be followed by a Peoples' Climate Summit that will start on Sunday.
Berkan Özyer, Director of Greenpeace Türkiye, said: "Across Türkiye and around the world, people are standing up for their future against the destructive impacts of fossil fuels. As world leaders gather at COP31, we are marching alongside civil society representatives and climate activists from across the world to make sure people's voices cannot be ignored.
"Climate action must be shaped by the people most affected by the crisis, not dictated by the interests of those who profit from it. We need real commitments to move away from fossil fuels and deliver a just transition to a clean, renewable energy future. The people are ready for change, now governments must show they are too.
"The second week of this COP must be about listening to the people. That means breaking the political deadlock, not negotiating the weakest agreement everyone can live with. The measure of success at COP31 must not be whether governments reach an agreement, but whether that agreement is strong enough to make a difference in the real world."
