The First Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels has concluded in Colombia, an event that saw representatives from close to 60 countries come together to address ways to wind down fossil fuel production.
The conference, which took place in Santa Marta, and was co-hosted with The Netherlands, builds on a landmark agreement reached at COP28, where governments committed for the first time to transitioning away from fossil fuels.
A second conference, to build on the progress made in Colombia over the past week, has been announced, with Ireland and Tuvalu set to co-host in 2027.
Ahead of the conference, Climate Action Network (CAN International) organised a parallel gathering known as the People’s Summit for a Fossil-Free Future, which brought together civil society groups, including trade unions, Indigenous representatives, and community organisations. At this event, some 1,000 organisations agreed on a shared declaration that was presented during the conference discussions.
Here are some key takeaways from attendees at the Santa Marta conference this past week.
Fernanda Carvalho, Head of Policy for Climate and Energy, WWF International
“In this pivotal year for the transition away from fossil fuels, shaped both by the current geopolitical landscape and the momentum since COP30, Santa Marta is a key milestone. The conference shows that international cooperation efforts can be catalyzed even in the most challenging contexts. It is here that the seeds of a new, implementation-focused initiative have been planted.
“In times of an exhaustion of multilateral processes and a gap in delivering the systemic change we need, what is emerging offers a different approach. If improved, this could be a real bottom-up process that centers the voices of communities most affected by fossil fuel extraction and consumption. The outcomes of Santa Marta should reinforce and complement both the UNFCCC climate negotiations and the COP30 Presidency Roadmap, helping to bridge the gap between ambition and action.”
Kumi Naidoo, President, Fossil Fuel Treaty Initiative
“From Santa Marta to the Pacific, a new reality is taking shape: this is no longer a one-off moment, but the foundation of an ongoing international process dedicated to phasing out fossil fuels. The agreement to continue under Pacific leadership, with Ireland and Tuvalu co-hosting the second conference now confirmed, marks a decisive shift from stalled negotiations to sustained political direction.
“What is emerging is a process that can finally match climate diplomacy to the scale of the crisis – moving beyond voluntary pledges toward a coordinated, equitable and binding framework to phase out oil, gas and coal extraction. The Pacific has helped turn a historic opening into a standing process, and the task now is to ensure it delivers the legal and political architecture for a just and rapid transition.”
Candy Ofime, Researcher and Legal Advisor on Climate Justice, Amnesty International
“This conference, which emerged as idea among a growing group of countries engaged in the Fossil Fuel Treaty Initiative, happened because existing multilateral processes are not delivering. For 30 years, COPs have failed to confront the root causes of the climate crisis head on. Santa Marta showed there is political appetite for states to defossilize the global economy and embark in just transitions, but that momentum must now translate into concrete action rooted in human rights.”
Chiara Martinelli, Director, CAN Europe
“Santa Marta shows that momentum for a fossil fuel phase-out is no longer an abstract concept, it is now politically and socially unavoidable. The political space is expanding rapidly given current geopolitical events, but governments must now translate this into time-bound, science-aligned action to end the fossil fuel era, without delay.
“If the EU is serious about aligning with science, it must now move beyond general commitments and establish clear, binding fossil fuel phase-out dates and pathways to achieve those.”
Irene Burga, Climate Justice and Clean Air Director, GreenLatinos
“The Santa Marta conference, with more than 50 countries participating, marks an important step in creating a global space to advance a fossil fuel phaseout beyond the UNFCCC, where progress has been too slow. At the same time, the absence of the U.S. government is telling. Instead of leading, it continues to expand fossil fuels and uphold systems that fuel conflict, militarization, and harm.
“Frontline communities were clear: we need a just transition rooted in rights, reparations, and real accountability. That means moving beyond voluntary commitments toward a legally binding, fully funded pathway to phase out fossil fuels. GreenLatinos stands in solidarity with that call.”
Friederike Strub, Advisor, Recourse
“A just transition away from fossil fuels cannot happen without a paradigm shift in our financial system, putting finance and macroeconomics at the service of people and the planet. That means Global North countries paying the climate debt they owe to Southern countries, overturning a financial architecture that only serves creditors and wealthy elites, and cancelling illegitimate debt while working towards a UN debt resolution.
“It means challenging the role of institutions like the IMF and multilateral development banks that continue to lock in a fossil-fuelled system through debt-based climate finance, loan conditionalities, investments in harmful energy projects or false solutions, and a private-finance-first development paradigm.”
Teresa Anderson, Global Lead on Climate Justice, ActionAid International
“So many governments expressed real hunger to be free from the economic and climate harm of fossil fuel dependence. This was a watershed moment in which the collective mind became truly focused on the common cause of ending the fossil fuel era.
“What set this conference apart was the willingness to dive into and address the complex challenges of our fossil-fuelled world. The debt crisis, which keeps so many countries trapped on the fossil fuel treadmill against their will, came up repeatedly. Phasing out fossil fuels is not only a matter of energy transition, but also economic transformation, requiring just transitions and climate finance.”
Bronwen Tucker, Public Finance Lead, Oil Change International
“In Santa Marta, a line is being drawn – momentum to move beyond fossil fuels is growing and cannot be ignored. Fossil fuel dependence drives economic instability, conflict, and debt, keeping Global South countries locked into a system shaped by Global North financial rules. The leaders here have been clear that a shift away requires planned, government-led national roadmaps and new forms of international cooperation. But this momentum is not yet enough to deliver the needed breakthrough.
“The richest polluting countries must take immediate action to accelerate their transitions at home and show up with meaningful international economic cooperation. A just transition requires breaking the structural barriers – through debt cancellation, scaled-up public finance, and rejecting false solutions – so governments can deliver a transition that works for people, not profit, because the human cost of delay is already being paid every day.”
Shereen Talaat, Founder/Director, MENAFem Movement for Economic, Ecological Justice and Development, and CAN Arab World
“The Santa Marta conference, with more than 50 countries participating, opens an important global space for a transition away from fossil fuels. For us in Southwest Asia and North Africa, this transition is not only about energy. It is about dismantling a system rooted in extraction, colonial control, and imposed economic dependency.
“Fossil fuel economies in our region are tied to militarism, occupation, and external control over resources. These are not separate crises. They are structurally linked.This is why voluntary pathways are not enough. We need a legally binding, rights-based, and fully funded treaty with no new oil, gas, or coal expansion.”
Dr. Neil Tangri, Senior Director of Science and Policy, GAIA
“Santa Marta represents a critical juncture in our ability to tackle global problems. For too long, international efforts have been stymied by a handful of petrostates, determined to profit from the destruction of communities, ecosystems, and climate stability.
“Now, freed from their interference, a ‘coalition of the willing’ is taking the first steps toward a new world order. The absence of the petrostates is crucial to future progress. Our job is to ensure that the future is not only fossil-free, but just.”
Rodrigo Estrada, Senior Climate Advisor, Greenpeace International
“Amid a tense geopolitical context and worsening climate extremes, Santa Marta helped spark a feeling of renewed energy, but delegates must now follow through to deliver action, not just words.
“While households struggle with rising costs as the US-Israel war on Iran drives oil and gas profits higher, 57 nations in Santa Marta have also been looking for ways to finance a just transition. That solution starts with permanently taxing the profits, not just windfalls, of fossil fuel majors and replacing this system with renewable energy.”
Mariana Paoli, Global Climate Policy and Advocacy Lead, Oxfam
“The fact that over 50 countries came together to start developing a path to transition away from fossil fuels must be celebrated. The People’s Summit demonstrated that there is no shortage of concrete proposals for how to implement a just transition.
“Wealthy governments have still not stepped up in providing climate financing that is sufficient for poorer countries, which face the brunt of the impacts of the climate crisis, to transition away from fossil fuels. Rich countries, which hold disproportionate historical responsibility for the climate crisis, must not only move first and faster but also provide finance at scale for others to follow suit.”
Kathy Mulvey, Climate Accountability Campaign Director, Union of Concerned Scientists
“The conference in Santa Marta was a long-awaited and historic step toward creating a global roadmap for a fair, fast, and funded phaseout of fossil fuels that science shows us is necessary. In a space free from the pernicious influence of the profit-seeking fossil fuel industry and even as the Trump administration is trying to upend climate and clean energy progress, more than 50 nations showed up. So did representatives of civil society, frontline communities, Indigenous peoples, Afro descendants, social movements, and scientists.
“We must all nurture the seeds planted here to boost ambition and accelerate action – through the continuation of this process in next year’s conference cohosted by Tuvalu and Ireland, and within the UN FCCC negotiations – toward a healthier, safer, more just world.”
Dr Ketakandriana Rafitoson, Executive Director, Resource Justice Network
“Santa Marta has set something important in motion, and the People’s Declaration we brought there is a reminder that ambition must be grounded in the realities and needs of those who cannot wait: frontline communities, Indigenous Peoples, workers and women in countries most dependent on fossil fuels.
“The new workstreams are a chance to turn political momentum into the reforms that actually matter: debt cancellation, an end to ISDS, and trade, finance and intellectual property rules that give Global South countries real technology access and policy space. That means not just importing affordable clean technologies, but building the energy systems, jobs, skills and local industries that improve people’s lives on the ground: from affordable power to decent work and stronger public services. The ambition is there. Now governments must build the political will, and the delivery architecture, to make it real.”
Susann Scherbarth, Head of Climate Justice, BUND e.V. (Friends of the Earth Germany)
“This conference marks a historic moment: A determined coalition of the willing is now jointly and proactively driving the phase-out of all fossil fuels – backed by science, civil society, and affected communities. A fossil-free future strengthens energy security and can only be achieved through a just global energy transition. […] Now is the time to leave those behind who block the transition away from fossil fuels.”
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