Santa Marta: Key outcomes from first summit on ‘transitioning away’ from fossil fuels
Why this matters: environmental and climate reporting with long-term consequences.
Countries attending a first-of-its-kind summit have walked away with plans to develop national roadmaps away from fossil fuels, along with new tools to address harmful subsidies and carbon-intensive trade. The first conference on “transitioning away” from fossil fuels held in Santa Marta, Colombia, from 24-29 April saw 57 countries – representing one-third of the world’s economy – debate practical ways to move away from coal, oil and gas. Against a backdrop of war, a global oil crisis and worsening extreme weather events, ministers and envoys from across the world sat side-by-side in small meeting rooms to have open and frank conversations about the barriers they face in transitioning from fossil fuels to clean energy. This new format – devised by co-hosts Colombia and the Netherlands – was described as “refreshing”, “highly successful” and “groundbreaking” by countries attending the talks. The event also featured a “science pre-conference” attended by 400 global academics, which included the launch of a new science panel that will aim to provide agile and bespoke analysis to nations wanting to accelerate their transition away from fossil fuels. At the summit’s conclusion, Tuvalu and Ireland were announced as the co-hosts of the second transitioning away from fossil fuels summit, which will take place in the Pacific island nation in 2027. Below, Carbon Brief outlines all of the key takeaways from the talks. Colombia and Netherlands leadership High-level segment National statements and pledges Closed-door discussions Final outcomes Academic meeting Science panel for global energy transition Action insights report Colombia’s fossil-fuel roadmap Indigenous and civil society participation Colombia and Netherlands leadership The idea for a specific fossil-fuel transition conference hosted in Colombia first emerged during tense end-game negotiations at the COP30 climate summit in Belém, Brazil. Amid a push by a group of around 80 nations to refer to a “roadmap