Volunteer-powered, free & inclusive grassroots climate conference showcased local innovations and action
AlterCOP 30 Australia has concluded after four powerful days of community-led climate action, bringing together more than 1,400 registered participants across 42 events nationwide.
Running in parallel to the UN COP30 summit in Brazil, AlterCOP 30 Australia offered a platform for inclusive, locally grounded conversations on climate change, biodiversity, sustainable cities, health, and community resilience, fostering hope, connection and tangible pathways to action.
Audrey Barucchi, CEO and Co-Founder of Australian charitable social enterprise, People For Nature, commented
“AlterCOP 30 Australia has shown what’s possible when citizens are empowered to lead.
This wasn’t just a climate conference, it was a nationwide movement demonstrating that climate action is happening now, led by everyday people who care deeply about the future of our planet.
The energy we witnessed in Brisbane and across our satellite events was extraordinary. From packed workshops to meaningful conversations and new collaborations, AlterCOP 30 Australia has strengthened Australia’s grassroots climate ecosystem and proven that people-powered solutions are essential to driving real change.
We know there were close to 500 Australian delegates at COP30 in Brazil, carryinga considerable logistical and carbon-footprint burden. On the flipside, our citizen-powered events brought together 1,400 people locally with near to no budget and a minimal environmental footprint.
As a local extension of the Green Zone (without the heavy footprint), we enabled everyday Australians to engage with climate dialogue and innovation without having to travel across the world.“
In partnership with AlterCOP
AlterCOP was co-founded in 2024 by The Matcha Initiative and The Transmutation Principle in Singapore, as an accessible alternative to the United Nations COP, making climate action discussions available to communities, professionals, and youth. This year, the summit expanded to 12 new countries, including Australia, highlighting the enthusiasm around the region for inclusive, locally grounded climate dialogue.
Anne Langourieux and Thibaut Meurgue-Guyard, co-founders of AlterCOP, commented: “It’s amazing and exciting to see AlterCOP grow. It proves that a global, community-led movement for climate action is not just possible, it’s thriving. We’re committed to our mission of making climate dialogue accessible to regional communities without air travel while raising awareness of the official COP summit. We look forward to growing the movement to be even bigger next year.”
Audrey Barucchi concluded:
“People For Nature is proud to have helped activate a community-powered space that builds engagement, showcases real solutions, and connects Australians to the global climate conversation.
“Australia may have lost the opportunity to host COP31, but this hasn’t diminished our ambition. Instead, we’re planning to grow AlterCOP next year. Our vision is to include more cities, more local communities, and deeper citizen-led climate engagement across Australia. in 2026 and beyond”
Powered by volunteers, grounded in community, and radiating active hope for Australia’s climate and nature movement, AlterCOP showed what happens when citizens lead with purpose and imagination.
AlterCOP 30 Australia — By the Numbers
📍 42 events nationwide
🌅 10+ Sunrise Actions
👥 1,400+ participants registered
A main 4-day gathering in Brisbane, with major satellite events in Sydney and Melbourne, and additional events in Huon Valley (TAS), Bright (VIC), Wollongong, Newcastle, and Narara (NSW)
🤝 33 on-site volunteers in Brisbane, and 37+ more supporting events across the country.
💡 A core team of 15 volunteers driving the entire program across Brisbane and the satellite cities.
🌏 A Giant Climate Fresk reaching at least 200 participants across 8 locations in Australia and New Zealand — supported by 25+ facilitators.
🎤 85 speakers in Brisbane alone, and well over 100 nationally
🏛️ 49 organisations backing this movement — 15 partners and an ecosystem of 34 collaborations.
How We Shaped The Program in 2025
Our work was structured around five core working groups:
🌡 Climate
🌿 Biodiversity
🏙 Sustainable Cities
🧠 Health
🧒 Youth
Through strong collaborations with organisations and communities across the country, these working groups didn’t just shape the main Brisbane program — they also enabled satellite events nationwide, all running in parallel with the same overarching agenda.
Each local hub explored the same themes through its own community lens, grounding the discussions in local realities, challenges, and opportunities. This meant that whether people gathered in Sydney, Melbourne, Huon Valley, Bright, Wollongong, Newcastle, or Narara, they contributed to a unified national conversation while elevating the unique stories and solutions of their region.
These groups didn’t just curate sessions — they embedded the values that make AlterCOP what it is: collaborative, community-led, and rooted in both science and lived experience.
Why we loved delivering the first AlterCOP in Australia?
- Inclusive: ensured First Nations perspectives and Youth voices were present on every panel.
- Citizen-powered: designed, led, and delivered entirely by volunteers.
- Events that walk the talk: no flights, no waste, and only vegetarian catering
- Free and independent: open to all, without corporate influence or paywalls.
- A local extension of the Green Zone: including live interviews and videos with delegates who are on the ground at COPs to share insights on the proceedings.
- Positive and solutions-focused: grounded in science, driven by active hope, and inspired by community action.
A big thank you to the people and organisations who believed in AlterCOP from day one — especially our partners who supported us with the simple, practical logistics that make an event like this actually work. Your trust and collaboration truly mattered.
For all media enquiries, please email Aye Verckens (aye@blog.peoplefornature.org.au).
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