The war between the United States and Iran, which has inflamed the Middle East with undeniable energy and economic consequences, has deepened reflection on dependence on fossil fuels. Their prices are rising, and there are chain effects on food markets due to fertilizers and the growing risk of supply shortages. This situation will enrich the discussions and presentations that will take place at the First International Conference for the Transition Beyond Fossil Fuels, which will be held in Santa Marta from April 24 to 29.
The Conference is organized by the governments of Colombia and the Netherlands, and regional and local administrations, the private sector, trade unions, academia, multilateral development banks, and civil society will participate. In preparation for the Conference, the Colombian diplomatic corps intensified dialogue with environment ministers from more than 90 countries that, as of last February, had expressed their support for moving toward the progressive elimination of fossil fuels, consolidating a broad international coalition.
The Climate Ministers of Colombia and the Netherlands, Irene Vélez and Stientje van Veldhoven respectively, have anticipated that the meeting will bring together more than 50 countries willing to move from commitment to implementation, will strengthen collaboration among the different initiatives working toward this common goal, and will seek to establish a “support platform” for countries in their steps toward the progressive elimination of fossil fuels.
For the Colombian Government, the Conference will be a high-level space aimed at building concrete, fair and viable pathways toward decarbonized economies. It also considers that it positions Colombia as a key actor in the construction of international consensus for compliance with global climate change mitigation commitments. This points to a marked intention of the administration of Gustavo Petro to project itself among global leaderships, in this case in the environmental field.
In fact, the Colombian Foreign Ministry attributes to its diplomatic work at COP30 in Belem (Brazil) the fact that the Conference that is about to begin in Santa Marta can take place. Although it admits that “the meeting aims to complement existing multilateral processes and translate political commitments into coordinated and measurable actions.”
The Conference will seek to align wills
Beyond the actors that could drive the Conference, the most important thing is that scientific evidence warns that the planet faces irreversible risks if emissions reduction is not accelerated. Currently, fossil fuels are responsible for more than 75 percent of greenhouse gases globally, which deepens the climate crisis, biodiversity loss and pollution.
For this reason, the Conference will seek to align wills, articulate alliances and promote structural transformations in economic, productive and fiscal models. The agenda will be structured around three priority lines, the first of which is to overcome economic dependence on fossil fuels, addressing challenges of fiscal dependence, energy security and productive reconversion, and promoting diversified and resilient economies.
The second is to transform energy supply and demand, through the progressive substitution of fossil sources, the review of exploration and exploitation licenses, the responsible closure of production sites, and the reform of incentives and subsidies; and the third line will be to strengthen international cooperation and multilateralism, promoting mechanisms to close implementation gaps and address legal barriers that hinder the transition.
The Conference will take place in three complementary moments to ensure broad participation:
• Multi-actor assemblies with civil society, social organizations and citizens.
• High-level dialogues with subnational governments and representatives of international cities.
• Ministerial dialogues aimed at concretizing political commitments.