The Pacific is in a powerful position ahead of COP31 despite bungled Australian bid

High expectations were dashed at COP30 last week with an outcome no one is celebrating. It was weak, vague, and failed to deliver the climate action frontline communities need. And to make matters worse, Australia’s long-running bid to host COP31 ended in a chastening loss to Türkiye.

The Albanese Government bungled the bid, but to focus solely on failure misses the bigger picture. The last-minute compromise still gives the Pacific real power that can help shape a stronger, more just global climate agenda than an Australian-hosted COP ever could. The Pacific’s influence is now built into the heart of COP31, not as a guest, but as a co-architect of its agenda.