Governments from around 50 countries will gather in Santa Marta, Colombia, from April 24 to 29 for a summit aimed at accelerating the shift away from fossil fuels. Co-hosted by Colombia and the Netherlands, the conference will bring together ministers, subnational governments, academics and civil society groups to discuss moving beyond oil, gas and coal while ensuring the transition is “just, orderly and equitable,” organisers said.
The meeting reflects growing frustration that decades of UN climate negotiations have failed to directly address fossil fuel production, the main driver of global warming. Unlike formal UN talks, the summit is not expected to produce binding commitments. Instead, officials aim to generate proposals and build coalitions of countries willing to move faster on phasing out fossil fuels.
Colombia’s environment minister, Irene Vélez Torres, told the Associated Press: “It is definitely a political space. We are opening a space for discussion that does not exist.” Nations from Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia will attend, but the United States and Saudi Arabia, two of the world’s largest oil producers, will not, underscoring divisions between countries pushing for a faster transition and those tied to fossil fuel interests.
Some advocates are pushing for “fossil-free zones” — areas where oil, gas and coal extraction would be off-limits, particularly in ecologically sensitive regions. Indigenous leaders say such zones are essential to defending their territories and governance systems. Analysis by advocacy groups shows that oil and gas concessions already overlap with vast areas of tropical forest and Indigenous territories.
The summit takes place amid heightened geopolitical uncertainty, including the war in Iran, which has disrupted global energy markets and threatened supply through the Strait of Hormuz. Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and a climate justice advocate, said: “Oil prices don’t just stay in energy markets — they move straight into people’s lives. Impacts are hitting the most vulnerable hardest, as always, while oil companies reap windfall profits.”
