All against a backdrop of temperatures continuing to rise, soon to pass 1.5°C. cen.acs.org/policy/COP30...

And, of course, there was everything happening on the sidelines, including greater attention to what might be the hardest-to-abate sector of all: chemicals. cen.acs.org/environment/...

As for countries' actual work, it's split. There's the official, consensus-based track making incremental progress on adaptation but not stopping emissions at their sources (fossil fuels, deforestation). And now there's an unofficial, more ambitious "coalition of the willing" led by Colombia.

But clearing or converting land to grow biofuels could have unintended consequences. The carbon accounting is controversial, with some saying biofuels could in fact increase GHG emissions. And Indigenous people's land rights, particularly in the Amazon, have been a huge topic of contention at COP30.

Biobased chemical companies took the stage at multiple panels. And biofuels as alternatives to fossil fuels rose to the top of the conversation. Brazil, the host country, is a big player in the industry, with the COP30 presidency announcing a global initiative to quadruple alternative fuels by 2035.

P.S. If you want to hear about where I looked for data during the course of my reporting, I'm giving a presentation tomorrow alongside Saroj Pathirana, who investigated one of the largest-ever plastic spills in the ocean for the BBC: pulitzercenter.org/event/how-os...