G'day COP31!
G'day COP31 is a podcast for those who want to know more about the ‘COP31’ (almost) being hosted in Australia in 2026.
Your hosts are Heidi Dumesich and Jack Whelan.
Jack is a boomer and started his career in sustainability before it was considered 'cool'. His experience stretches from the earliest COPs - across business and industry, government, development agencies, NGOs, and the UN. He worked with the International Chamber of Commerce and World Business Council on Sustainable Development, in the AsiaPac region with the Pacific Region Infrastructure Facility and the major donor agencies like the Asian Development Bank and World Bank. Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade nominated him to the design team which established the IRIS initiative to promote climate and disaster resilient infrastructure in the Small Island Developing States..
Heidi Dumesich is a millennial with a degree in Environmental Science focusing on implementing practical solutions. Heidi is the seasoned podcaster with her sustainability focused podcast called Life on Planet A. She is currently working as a Sustainability Manager at Ventia, leading a road project’s Infrastructure Sustainability Council rating.
The aim of this podcast is to dive into the ins and outs of what really happens at a COP — from all of the different stakeholders and planning to the politics, people, and purpose behind it all. Through candid conversations with stakeholders across government, industry, civil society, and community groups, we unpack how everyone is impacted, involved, and inspired by climate diplomacy at this scale.
Whether you're a policymaker, business leader, activist, or just COP-curious, this is your space to learn how to get the most out of any COP — wherever it’s held.
Tune in, get engaged, and say G’day COP31!
G'day COP31!
Episode ‘I’ for Ipswich: COP31 on the brink with Mara Bún
In this episode ‘I’ for Ipswich, on G’day COP31! (or will it be renamed ‘I’ for Istanbul?) we are joined by Mara Bún from the Australia-Brazil Chamber of Commerce, refreshed after a rest day at the start of the second week of COP30 in Belém, Brazil. Among all the important issues being addressed is the BIG question that hangs in the balance - the choice of Türkiye or Australia as the host country for COP31 in 2026? Mara Bún navigates us through the labyrinth in the COP, sharing her insights and personal encounters from the heart of the Blue (Bluey?) and Green Zones in crowded, hot, steamy Belém.
Mara helped to set up an extraordinary impromptu press conference, right at the nexus between the Turkish and Australian pavilions, when representatives of Australian First Nations, businesses, civil society, youth and investors expressed their support for the Adelaide COP31 bid. With a steady hand holding the camera, Mara posted on Linked In “Cometh the hour, cometh the people” - which resulted in the story being covered in the Australian Financial Review, Bloomberg, Carbon Pulse, CNBC Brazil, Politico, AP and Reneweconomy - https://lnkd.in/gSc8HvBU
Richie Merzian, head of the Clean Energy Investor Group – moderated the line up of speakers from Australia, including Professor Anne Poelina, Larissa Baldwin-Roberts, Tennant Reed and we include some edited highlights – so listen to the end of the episode! You can listen to the full press conference here.
Thanks Mara for the chat on Episode ‘I’ for Ipswich – from Belém on G’day COP31!
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
04:40 COP31 update
14:04 Inside COP30
19:48 Unilateral trade measures debate
25:24 Press conference about COP31
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