Simon Lewis
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simonlewis.bsky.social
Simon Lewis
@simonlewis.bsky.social
They say I’m outspoken. Professor of Global Change Science at UCL and University of Leeds. Author, The Human Planet. Trying to understand the world and change it too.
Indigenous protected areas have much lower deforestation rates than other areas, so lowering emissions from deforestation (second largest cause climate change after fossil fuel emissions).
November 22, 2025 at 11:12 PM
Fucked/not fucked is not a binary, many shades here. There is no global ‘we’.

Eg 14 new indigenous territories to be demarcated, announced during COP, as a result of indigenous organization/ protest /international spotlight/ Lula gov. These indigenous cultures ‘less fucked’ now + going forward.
November 22, 2025 at 8:42 PM
This is just a weird take. There is a palpable lack of optimism here — literally not one person applauded the gaveling of the cover text today — more like keeping a focus on climate and a focus on multilateralism alive. It’s all deeply flawed, but we both know that.
November 22, 2025 at 6:38 PM
Global CO2 emissions increased 18.4% in the 10 yrs prior to the Paris Agreement, and 1.2% in the 10 years after. The graph is clear, there is an inflection point, see in this doc. ca1-eci.edcdn.com/reports/10-Y.... Today’s deal is really poor. But international agreement on climate do have impacts.
November 22, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Pre Paris emissions lead to 4C warming by 2100. Today, 2.5 C. Not nothing.
November 21, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Agree on changing strategies as the world changes, of course.
November 21, 2025 at 3:09 PM
Given fascism and authoritarianism are on the rise. Why do you focus on the climate talks — multilateralism — as a key problem. Seems odd to me.
November 21, 2025 at 3:09 PM
There is so little hope here. Just a grim determination to make some progress and not hand a victory to Trump and his allies by showing multilateralism to be failing.
November 21, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Because a world where only might is right is fundamentally worse.
November 21, 2025 at 2:53 PM
Likely a fairly weak agreement but the process and multilateralism survives another day. No small thing these days. But needs something on fossil fuels to retain credibility. Needs to tackle the actual problem.
November 21, 2025 at 2:05 PM
Then the president can trade these off to craft an agreement that Brazil can sell as ambitious (compared to today), and countries can say they got something (compared to today).
November 21, 2025 at 2:05 PM
COP30 President determined to keep all negotiations private. Ministers+1 only meeting now.
November 21, 2025 at 1:55 PM