This press release was originally posted by The Mangrove Breakthrough.
4 November 2025, Rio de Janeiro – Ahead of COP30, the Mangrove Breakthrough secured key endorsements from Brazilian state governments of Pará, Pernambuco, and Sergipe, and the local government of Aracaju, with their leadership spotlighted at the COP30 Local Leaders Forum, co-hosted by the COP30 Presidency and Bloomberg Philanthropies—generating significant momentum in the days leading up to Belém.
These governments join dozens of national and subnational leaders who have already endorsed the bold vision of the Mangrove Breakthrough to mobilize USD 4 billion to protect and restore 15 million hectares of mangroves by 2030. The national government of Brazil endorsed the Breakthrough in June 2025 at the United Nations Ocean Conference. The state of Pará, host of COP30, followed in July 2025. By endorsing the Mangrove Breakthrough, national, subnational, and local governments commit to implementing actions to protect mangroves and integrating mangroves into local policies and strategies.
“By endorsing the Mangrove Breakthrough, Pará reinforces its leadership in protecting a section of the world’s largest continuous mangrove belt—approximately 3,900 km² in Pará alone, part of an even larger protected formation along our coast,” said Helder Barbalho, Governor of the State of Pará. “This commitment reflects our vision to ensure that mangroves are properly valued, financed, and protected as vital ecosystems for people, climate, and biodiversity.”
The endorsements from the states of Pará, Pernambuco, and Sergipe and the city of Aracaju safeguard the world’s largest contiguous mangrove area under protection in Brazil, marking a major demonstration of political will and leadership in mangrove conservation and restoration. They join Rio de Janeiro, which became the first subnational government in the world to endorse the Mangrove Breakthrough.
“This group of leaders shares a common commitment to place mangroves at the heart of global and local climate action,” said Monique Galvão, Vice President of Rare Brazil. “Their future depends on the people who live with and care for them every day — the true guardians of the mangroves — and on our collective ability to value, protect, and restore these vital ecosystems for a resilient future.”
These commitments demonstrate the importance of coherent, multilevel governance, where national vision, state leadership, and local action reinforce one another. Local leaders are driving the implementation on the ground, ensuring that mangrove protection efforts are responsive to community needs while aligned with broader policy frameworks.
“The leadership shown by these governments is a landmark of states and cities recognizing the importance of mangroves in their strategies in Brazil, the second largest country in mangrove area, and it offers a blueprint for other countries seeking to align mangrove-positive policies across all levels of governance,” said Nátali Piccolo, Marine and Coastal Program Director at Conservation International Brazil. “True leadership begins locally but depends on strong support at the local and national levels to deliver action and achieve impact at scale.”
Coastal 500 Mayors Lead Implementation at the Local Level
To help translate these commitments into tangible action, the Mangrove Breakthrough is engaging with Coastal 500, a global network of mayors and local government leaders committed to building thriving and resilient coastal communities. Coastal 500 mayors represent local governments from countries with some of the world’s largest mangrove forests, including Brazil, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Mozambique. Along Brazil’s Amazon coast, Coastal 500 mayors are advancing a mangrove protection and coastal resilience agenda, and aligning local policies for more effective governance. Coastal 500 was a 2023 finalist for the Earthshot Prize.
“Amazonian coastal communities are the guardians of our territory. We are the ones who take care of the rivers, the mangroves, and the biodiversity. Supporting these communities means guaranteeing the preservation of the Amazon for the whole world,” said Hamilton Brito, Mayor of Curuçá, Pará, Brazil, and a member of Coastal 500.
The political leadership demonstrated by Brazil at the municipal, state, and national levels illustrates how governments at all levels can play a transformative role in reaching the Breakthrough’s global targets.
About the Mangrove Breakthrough
The Mangrove Breakthrough is pioneering how we, as a global network, protect nature to build resilient communities. It is a global movement to value, finance, and safeguard mangroves. The ambition is to mobilize USD 4 billion to protect and restore 15 million hectares of mangroves by 2030, fostering radical collaboration, advancing science-based financial and regulatory decisions, and investing in local leadership.
The Breakthrough’s Secretariat (“the Hub”) drives this mission by sustaining multistakeholder partnerships and building the infrastructure for lasting impact. The Hub is legally hosted at the Chilean NGO Ambition Loop.
For Media Inquiries
Sam Goodman
Communications Director,
Mangrove Breakthrough
sam.goodman@ambitionloop.earth
+57 310 481 5586
Connor Nickerson Wheatley
Communications Manager, Climate and Ocean
Global Mangrove Alliance
connor.wheatley@tnc.org
Photo: Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil