Press release
COP31: Action Against Hunger calls for a Just Transition that puts food systems, agroecology and the right to food at the heart of climate action
As communities around the world continue to face the impacts of El Niño and other climate shocks, Action Against Hunger urges world leaders at COP31 in Türkiye to turn climate commitments into concrete action for the millions of people already facing the devastating impacts of climate change, hunger and inequality. With food systems accounting for around one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions while supporting the livelihoods of 3.8 billion people worldwide, COP31 must ensure that the transition to a climate-resilient future is both just and inclusive.
Climate change and hunger: a growing global emergency
The summer of 2026 was marked by an unprecedented heat wave. Just in European cities, there were 50,000 heat-related deaths during that period, surpassing the figures from 2003 and 2022.1 Globally, the Lancet Countdown report indicates that climate change had already caused nearly 3 million heat-related deaths between 2016 and 2023.
While the presidency of COP31 (Türkiye and Australia) has made electrification its top priority, ACF points out that the climate shocks are increasingly driving hunger, displacement, and humanitarian crises across the globe. In 2025, 645 million people experienced chronic hunger, while extreme weather events continue to undermine food production and livelihoods. With extreme heat threatening the livelihoods of billions people dependent on agriculture, and a historic El Niño set to deepen food insecurity in 2027, the need for climate action has never been more urgent. It seems increasingly important for Action Against Hunger to sound the alarm, given that a just transition in food systems and agroecology are not among the top priorities of the climate negotiations in COP31.
At the same time, international aid is declining sharply despite rising humanitarian needs. Against this backdrop, COP31 must deliver solutions that address both climate adaptation and food security.
Putting food systems at the heart of a just transition
One of the major outcomes of COP30 was the agreement to establish the Belém-Antalya Mechanism (BAM) on Just Transition. The BAM must be a UN climate mechanism designed to enhance international cooperation and support the implementation of socially just climate action across sectors of the economy.
COP31 must now turn that commitment into action by making the mechanism fully operational and accessible to countries and communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Action against Hunger calls for a robust Belém-Antalya Mechanism for Just Transition that places small-scale food producers, rural communities and vulnerable populations at its core. Peasant farmers, Indigenous Peoples, women and young people must be recognised not only as those most affected by climate change, but as key actors in shaping climate solutions. The mechanism must guarantee their participation, uphold the right to food and other human rights, and protect decision-making from undue corporate influence.
Agroecology as the pathway forward
Action against Hunger urges COP31 negotiators to recognise agroecology as the cornerstone of a just transition for food systems. By reducing dependency on imported inputs including chemical fertilisers, restoring ecosystems and strengthening resilience to climate shocks, agroecology delivers environmental, social and economic benefits while supporting food sovereignty and local livelihoods.
For example : in Somalia, Action Against Hunger supports agroecological approaches that help farming communities adapt to recurrent droughts, restore soil health and improve food security. These locally led solutions demonstrate how agroecology can deliver both climate resilience and a just transition for vulnerable populations.
“The solutions already exist. What is missing in the climate puzzle is the funding. COP31 must bring the missing piece: grants-based climate finance that reaches communities implementing agroecological solutions on the frontlines of the climate crisis.” Marie Cosquer, Head of advocacy on food systems and climate, Action against Hunger France.
Climate finance for frontline communities
Climate finance must be provided at scale and become more accessible, predictable, and support locally-led approaches, particularly in fragile and conflict-affected contexts. Despite a call to triple adaptation finance by 2035, the delivery of non-debt creating finance for those who need it the most still fails to materialize, and the needs continue to increase.
Action against Hunger calls for increased investment in locally driven adaptation, nutrition, water and sanitation services, and resilient food systems, including through direct funding for small-scale producers organizations, to ensure that communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis can adapt and thrive.
1. According to a study published on 23 October in Nature Health by researchers from Imperial College London and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, including Garyfallos Konstantinoudis and Pierre Masselot, …