Analysis-Brazil environment minister, climate summit star, faces political struggle at home

FILE PHOTO: Brazil's Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Marina Silva speaks to the media ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP30), in Belem, Brazil, November 7, 2025. REUTERS/Anderson Coelho/File Photo

BELEM, Brazil (Reuters) -Brazilian Environment Minister Marina Silva fought back tears as global diplomats applauded her for several minutes on Saturday in the closing plenary of the COP30 global climate summit.

"We've made progress, albeit modestly," she told delegates gathered in the Amazon rainforest city of Belem, before raising a fist over her head defiantly. "The courage to confront the climate crisis comes from persistence and collective effort."