Colombia and the Netherlands have announced plans to co-host the world’s first international conference focused exclusively on transitioning away from fossil fuels. The landmark summit will take place April 28-29, 2026, in Santa Marta, Colombia’s major coal export port. This groundbreaking initiative emerges as COP30 negotiations stall over fossil-fuel commitments, demonstrating growing international momentum for coordinated climate action beyond traditional UN frameworks.
Twenty-four nations support Colombia’s fossil fuels transition plan
This conference call comes as the “Belém Declaration on the Just Transition Away from Fossil Fuels” launches, which involves the support of 24 nations, including fossil fuel leaders such as Australia and Mexico. This wide range of nations with the common interest of ending fossil fuels includes various EU states and LA nations, as well as Pacific island nations, which represent an unprecedented collaborative global effort. This Declaration sets the minimum ambition threshold for transition planning.
Countries that back the scheme are Austria, Belgium, Cambodia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Fiji, Finland, Ireland, Jamaica, Kenya, Luxembourg, the Marshall Islands, Mexico, Micronesia, Nepal, the Netherlands, Panama, Spain, Slovenia, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. The involvement of Australia makes history, as it signals the first time that any major fossil fuel producer acknowledges that the production, licensing, subsidizing, and consumption are of global concern.
The location of Santa Marta carries an important symbolic message
The fact that the conference would be held in Santa Marta, an important coal export port for Colombia, and the fact that it would be staged in the world’s fifth-largest coal producer, highlight the significant symbolism inherent in choosing the venue for the conference. Countries that are dependent on fossil fuels are making a point that they intend to break the cycle of dependence by cooperating on fair and equitable terms.
Conference aims to complement existing UN climate negotiations
The international conference also intends to run concurrently with the UN climate regime, where the 198 states that are signatories are required to come to decisions by consent. This strategy seeks to remedy the delay experienced in making fossil fuel deals during the COP meetings, where the draft texts that were produced lacked any mention of fossil fuels and the transition map.
Vanuatu Climate Minister, Ralph Regenvanu, clarified that the Colombia leadership-backed coalition would pursue the transition talks no matter the outcome of COP30. He expressed, “This conference, I am sure, will strengthen the process here next time we meet in Turkey” during COP31. This new process leverages the successes that already exist, and that worked well for Ottawa’s landmine conference, the Oslo Conference for cluster bombs, as well as the nuclear weapons ban treaty processes.
“We must preserve the momentum, lead boldly, seize the challenge, and construct a coalition of the willing,” Colombia’s Environment Minister, Irene Vélez Torres, stated during the announcement of the conference during the COP30 talks.
Pacific nations agree to follow-up regional summit
The Pacific island nations are committed to holding an additional conference later, helping to keep the conference going after the first one that took place in Colombia. Tuvalu Climate Minister Maina Talia expressed regret that there wasn’t an action plan, specifically one for the “survival map” for the withdrawal from fossil fuels, during the COP 30 conference.
Conference key objectives:
- Formulate Roadmaps for Phasing Out Fossil Fuels
- Relate to workers and community transitions
- Obtain international financial and technical assistance
- Encourage economic diversification policies
- Enhance legal frameworks for climate action
Colombia’s efforts are an important turning point for climate diplomacy, proving that there are willing partners for effective and ambitious climate policy that go beyond the UN’s traditional approach. Hopefully, the success of such meetings could create new ways for the global community to work together on the transition to fossil fuels, thus speeding up the process of maintaining the 1.5°C trajectory for global warming.
