‘Time to move forward, or be left behind’: Colombia climate talks end with fossil fuel phaseout push

The current energy crisis has exposed how deeply countries remain dependent on imported fossil fuels – and the risks that come with it. Against this backdrop, 56 countries gathered in Santa Marta, Colombia, for the first international conference dedicated to mapping a fair and orderly transition away from fossil fuels.

European governments made up the largest proportion of any continent, accounting for 30 per cent of the countries in attendance. The world’s biggest oil and gas producer, the US, was very much not in attendance. Organisers did not invite the Trump administration, owing to his many, repeated actions to undermine the clean energy transition. Other major coal and oil producers, including Australia, Türkiye, Canada and Norway, did take part in the talks.

The conference marked an important moment in global diplomacy ahead of the official UN climate talks (COP31), which will be held in Antalya, Türkiye, (9-20 November 2026) under the Turkish presidency, with Australia leading the negotiations.

“The actions of the coalition of the willing in Santa Marta will almost certainly inspire more phase-out actions,” Edward Maibach of the Global Climate and Health Alliance tells Euronews Earth. “They are establishing a new social norm that signals it’s time for all nations to move forward – or risk being left behind.”

Civil society takes centre stage

Unlike traditional climate summits, Santa Marta gave unprecedented prominence to civil society. The conference opened with a four-day ‘People’s Summit’, bringing together more than 1,000 civil society organisations, alongside scientists, Indigenous representatives, social movements and youth groups.

“The children who spoke during the conference brought us back to what should be the most powerful argument for transition,” Milena Sergeeva of the Global Climate and Health Alliance tells Euronews Earth. “They talked about friends made sick by coal dust and urged governments to protect them.”

The breadth of participation expanded the conversation beyond energy policy, framing the transition as a wider economic and societal shift with implications for industries ranging from agriculture to law and finance.

France sets out a national fossil fuel exit plan

France took a major step forward in its climate plans by publishing its national roadmap to transition away from fossil fuels.

The plan commits to ending coal use by 2030, oil by 2045 and gas for energy by 2050, as part of its broader goal to reach carbon neutrality.

It consolidates existing measures – including a ban on gas boilers in new buildings from 2026 and a target for two-thirds of new cars to be electric by 2030 – while also reaffirming commitments to support the transition in other countries.

Fossil fuel phase-out framed as a legal obligation

Legal experts at the conference argued that moving away from fossil fuels is no longer simply a political choice. In an open letter, more than 250 lawyers and scholars said governments have a legal duty to phase out fossil fuels and prevent climate harm, regardless of their participation in specific international agreements.

“For decades, fossil fuels have been treated as inevitable or too difficult to confront,” says Rebecca Brown, President and CEO of the Center for International Environmental Law. “That era is over.”

The legal experts called on governments to take concrete measures and cooperative action to end fossil fuel expansion, eliminate subsidies, and advance a just and equitable phaseout.

Scientists map a path out of fossil fuel dependence

More than 500 scientists contributed to a new advisory body designed to guide the transition away from fossil fuels.

The panel will feed into the conference’s final report, identifying practical pathways to keep the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C target within reach – from global policy frameworks to sector-specific solutions.

Rather than starting from scratch, researchers are working to consolidate existing evidence while developing benchmarks for how quickly fossil fuels must be phased out to avoid dangerous warming.

Their work focuses not only on emissions reductions, but on the broader systems needed to enable the transition – including financial mechanisms, governance structures and scalable clean technologies.

Who pays for the transition?

If Santa Marta made one thing clear, it is that ambition alone will not deliver a fossil fuel phase-out – financing remains the central challenge. This is particularly acute in the Global South, where high borrowing costs and limited access to capital continue to constrain the shift, even as renewable energy becomes cheaper than fossil fuels.

Some governments are exploring whether revenues from fossil fuels themselves could help fund the transition. In Brazil’s Espírito Santo state, for example, oil and gas income is being channelled into clean energy projects and investment funds aimed at attracting private capital.

But such approaches have clear limits, given the volatility of fossil fuel revenues and their expected long-term decline.

At the same time, Indigenous groups warned against relying on carbon markets and offset schemes, arguing they fail to address the root causes of the crisis and risk prolonging fossil fuel dependence.

Indigenous leaders also stressed that financial solutions cannot replace what is lost. “No amount of money can pay for the spirit of the territory,” says Luene Karipuna, Executive Coordinator of the Association of Indigenous Organizations of Amapa & Northern Para (APOIAP) in the Brazilian Amazon, warning that the transition must centre communities on the frontlines.

A different kind of climate summit

Santa Marta also broke convention in limiting who was allowed to attend. Fossil fuel lobbyists were explicitly excluded – a move participants say changed the tone of discussions.

“If you couldn’t commit to phase out, you couldn’t come,” Mark Campanale, CEO of Carbon Tracker, tells Euronews Earth. “That meant conversations could focus on solutions without the hindrance of vested interests.”

The result, many said, was a more focused and action-oriented space than traditional UN climate talks.

“This conference was less about debating the problem and more about how to deliver solutions,” João Cerqueira, Country Manager of 350.org Brazil, tells Euronews Earth.

A ‘coalition of the willing’ looks beyond COPs

The atmosphere in Santa Marta was described by participants as “energised, hopeful and chaotic” – but also unusually focused.

Rather than negotiating consensus among nearly 200 countries, the conference brought together a smaller group already committed to phasing out fossil fuels. That shift allowed discussions to move beyond abstract targets and towards implementation – from legal frameworks to financial systems and real-world delivery.

Momentum is already building for what comes next. At a side event, Tuvalu – a low-lying Pacific island nation highly vulnerable to rising sea levels – announced it will host the next conference. “This is not a negotiating position – it is a matter of survival,” said the country’s climate minister.

For many, Santa Marta reflects a broader shift in climate diplomacy: from setting goals to figuring out how to achieve them.

"We need three transitions: out of fossil fuels, into renewable energy for all, and into a world that cares for nature," says Mary Robinson, human rights activist and Former President of Ireland. "The time is now, and the way forward is practical action together."

Whether this translates into concrete outcomes at COP31 remains to be seen. “But it has created momentum and clarity, as the latest energy crisis once again exposes the cost of fossil fuel dependence," Natália Oliveira of the Global Renewables Alliance tells Euronews Earth.

For now, Santa Marta has drawn a clearer line than most: the question is no longer whether the fossil fuel era will end, but how fast.