UN climate summits like the annual Conference of the Parties (COPs) have historically laid predominant emphasis on reducing carbon emissions, increasing the capacities for renewable energy, and establishing finance mechanisms. But in recent years, there is growing recognition that climate change is experienced primarily through water. This increased acknowledgement of water as a primary issue was seen during the COP 28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which highlighted water as a significant cross-cutting issue. During COP 28, over 50 countries signed the Dubai Water Declaration, endorsing the integration of water and climate policies.

By incorporating water resilience into the official Action Agenda, COP 30 further leverages and consolidates this momentum. The focus on water has grown stronger as the world gets ready for COP 30, the 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference that will be held in Belém, Brazil. The nexus between water, energy, food, ecosystems, human health, and climate change highlights the fact that water is part of both the climate crisis and the solutions. The critical importance of the water sector is evident and unmistakable. Fundamentally, the efforts to adapt to and mitigate climate change are linked with the hydrological cycle, which is being disrupted by rising temperatures, deforestation, and pollution.

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To systematically address water resilience across various geographic, sectoral, and political scales, we need to implement integrated water resource management (IWRM). Climate security without water security is unattainable for any nation and therefore warrants concerted efforts to tackle both issues cohesively. The official COP 30 Action Agenda delineates six major thematic pillars that will help the world accelerate the global response to climate change. The thematic pillars of the COP 30 Action Agenda are designed to create a framework that supports stakeholder mobilisation and accelerates the implementation of agreements reached from the first Global Stocktake (GST-1). They are as follows:

1. Transitioning Energy, Industry and Transport.

2. Stewarding Forests, Oceans and Biodiversity.

3. Transforming Agriculture and Food Systems.

4. Building Resilience for Cities, Infrastructure and Water.

5. Fostering Human and Social Development.

Unleashing Enablers and Accelerators—Including Financing, Technology and Capacity-Building. The thematic focus on Building Resilience for Cities, Infrastructure and Water acknowledges that the management of water resources, from river basins to urban drainage systems, is crucial for adaptation, biodiversity preservation, and sustainable development. Additionally, water is essential for agriculture, the developing bioeconomy, and the resilience of infrastructure. By taking a cohesive and comprehensive approach, we will potentially transcend the perception of water as a mere victim of climate change but rather see it as a catalyst for change and the cornerstone of a fair transition. Resilience thinking is increasingly becoming a fundamental tenet of the management, funding, and governance of water. This human aspect emphasises the need for water to remain a key component of climate action. It establishes a connection between global goals and the realities encountered by communities and ecosystems. This element serves as a reminder to decision-makers that resilience ultimately manifests in lives and livelihoods. Even though problems with water quantity, such as droughts and floods, are often in the news, water pollution is an equally urgent but under-represented dimension of the climate crisis. It is anticipated that COP 30’s agenda will integrate pollution within the broader framework of adaptation, linking water quality, public health, and climate resilience. The discussions may focus on: Pollution-driven carbon and methane emissions from degraded water bodies. Nature-based solutions (wetlands, mangroves) for filtering and storing water. International financing for pollution control and wastewater management. While there have been several discourses on flood and drought mitigation, a lot needs to be done on the aspect of water pollution control, especially chemical and micropollutant contamination, which impacts public health the most. In this context, it is crucial to identify solutions and formulate strategies and action plans for tackling both point and non-point sources of pollution, including contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) that encompass a range of substances from pharmaceuticals and personal care products to industrial chemicals. The next level of systems thinking needs to include these pollutants, which are being found more often in surface and groundwater as well as other parts of the environment, but are not properly controlled, creating complicated risks for human health and the environment. International collaboration can drive knowledge and technology transfer, as in the case of the India-Norway Cooperation Project on Capacity Building for Reducing Plastic and Chemical Pollution in India (INOPOL), which focuses on land-based plastic pollution and Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) impacting the marine ecosystem. The fact that COP 30 takes place in Brazil, which holds the majority of the Amazonian rainforests, gives it both symbolic and practical significance. This region is characterised by the critical role of water in sustaining life while simultaneously facing challenges such as floods, droughts, and pollution, which illustrate the pressures of a changing climate. The Amazon rainforest highlights the critical nexus between forests, rainfall, and river systems. Brazil intends to leverage COP 30 to demonstrate Amazon stewardship as a global model for water and climate, integrating indigenous knowledge, scientific advancements, and low-carbon development within the largest watershed on the planet. COP 30 presents an unparalleled opportunity to incorporate water security and water quality into climate finance, planning, and governance frameworks. As negotiators gather in Belém, the message is clear: “There is no climate resilience without water resilience.” COP 30 presents an opportunity to transition from acknowledgement to tangible outcomes, moving beyond symbolic pledges to quantifiable, enduring transformations. As Retno L.P. Marsudi, UN Special Envoy on Water, aptly put it, “There’s no need to reinvent the wheel, only to get the wheels moving.” The goals of the Paris Agreement will remain unattainable without resilient water systems. Water drives mitigation, underpins adaptation, and sustains resilience. There can be no green energy transition, food security, or sustainable cities without it. Belém must become the pivotal moment when the world overcomes fragmentation and achieves integration across sectors, including water pollution control and climate resilience, to function as a unified system. Only then can water move from the margins of the climate agenda to its foundation, the system through which every commitment must flow. Climate High-Level Champions are appointed for each COP Presidency to mobilise action beyond governments, linking negotiations with businesses, cities, and civil society to accelerate real-world implementation. The speakers at World Water Week 2025 in Stockholm, Sweden, emphasised that inclusion and justice are central to credibility. Indigenous leaders, in particular, called for their knowledge to guide decision-making on water and climate. By the time of the next Global Stocktake in 2028, the goal is for water (pollution control and mitigation) to be fully integrated into national adaptation plans and nationally determined contributions (NDCs). Ensuring that this understanding translates into concrete commitments, from pollution control to monitoring of CECs and watershed restoration, will determine whether COP 30 becomes a true “watershed moment” in global climate diplomacy. There are several action points for India, such as to strengthen water governance through coordinated reforms at both central and state levels, ensuring effective policy alignment and implementation. River-basin management authorities should be empowered to integrate water quantity, quality, and pollution control under one framework. Expanding circular-water use in industries, nature-based wastewater treatment, and rural water-quality surveillance can improve resilience. The Government of India’s flagship programmes, such as the Jal Jeevan Mission, Swachh Bharat Mission, AMRUT, Per Drop More Crop, etc., should embed climate adaptation and pollution mitigation targets. Coordination councils that connect central and state authorities, partnerships that link science and policy, and specialised financing mechanisms are essential for enhancing innovation and ensuring accountability. Integrating these measures into national and state climate frameworks will establish India as a regional authority in sustainable water resilience.

(The writers are, respectively, Managing Director, Mu Gamma Consultants (MGC), and Distinguished Fellow and Senior Advisor, Natural Resource & Climate, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI).)