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| NEW: Co-Host Takeaways on the First Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels, Santa Marta, Colombia, 30 April 2026 |
From 24 to 29 April, the governments of Colombia and the Netherlands will host the first Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels (TAFF) in Santa Marta, Colombia. 54 governments confirmed their participation so far. Agreed at COP30 in Belém last November, the conference will bring together governments, civil society organisations, Indigenous Peoples, workers, academia, and the private sector for one shared purpose: turning the commitment to leave fossil fuels behind into concrete, actionable pathways.
“Through ethical leadership and genuine bridge-building, governments must transform voluntary commitments into durable progress.”
Catholic Actors’ Statement for Santa Marta
Read: “A Moral Moment to Deliver Action for Our Common Home”,
Catholic Actors’ Statement for Santa Marta. (ES)
CIDSE is working closely Catholic allies in Colombia: CELAM, Cáritas Colombia and the Diocese of Santa Marta, and will join Catholic actors from across the world to affirm a clear message: this transition is not only urgent, it is a moral imperative.
OUR DELEGATION
CIDSE will be represented in Santa Marta by staff from the Secretariat, its member organisations: Fastenaktion (Switzerland), Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns (USA) and Misereor (Germany) and allied organisation: CRS (USA).
OUR OBJECTIVES
Through various spaces, CIDSE aims to:
- Strengthen coordination among Catholic actors
- Amplify the voices of communities directly affected by fossil fuel extraction
- Influence official delegations in collaboration with faith actors and partners to amplify CIDSE’s moral voice
- Connect faith actors and broader civil society networks around the momentum on the phase out of fossil fuels towards the June UNFCCC climate negotiations (SB64, Bonn) and COP31 in November in Antalya, Türkiye
PROGRAMME OF ACTIVITIES (all events are indicated in local time: GMT-6 / CEST-7)
| 24 APRIL |
08:00-18:00: Meeting of Spiritualities for a transition beyond fossil fuels / Encuentro de Espiritualidades por una transición más allá de los combustibles fósiles. Programme: EN / ES.
Language: Spanish with English Interpretation.
Venue: Colegio Diocesano San José. Participation upon invitation.
NEW: Watch the livestream recordings of the morning session and the closing session:
| 24-26 APRIL |
People’s summit for a fossil free future / Cumbre de los pueblos por un future libre de combustibles fosiles. Venue: Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia & Universidad del Magdalena
NEW: Read the Final declaration
| 26 APRIL |
12:00-13:00: Mass for the Care of Our Common Home and for Climate Justice celebrated by Msgr. Domingo Ulloa, Archbishop of Panama, Msgr. José Mario Bacci, Bishop of Santa Marta and Msgr. Juan Carlos Barreto, President of Cáritas Colombia.
Venue: Catedral Basílica de Santa Marta.
NEW: Watch the Mass livestream recording.
| 27 APRIL |
09:00-10:00: Press conference organised by the Episcopal Conference of Latin America (CELAM), Cáritas Colombiana, Diocese of Santa Marta, Pastoral Social Diocesan Secretariat of Santa Marta, CIDSE, Laudato Si’ Movement and REPAM. Language: Spanish. Participation upon invitation. Venue: Colegio Diocesano San José.
NEW: Watch the press conference recording:
16:00-18:00: March for a future free of fossil fuels in Santa Marta! organised by the People’s Summit for a fossil free future.
Starting point: SENA Comercial. End point: Plaza de Bolívar.
| 29 APRIL |
11:00-12:00: Webinar: Live from Santa Marta: Advancing Climate Justice and a Just Transition Beyond Fossil Fuels organised by CELAM, Caritas Internationalis, Laudato Si’ Movement, ISER and CIDSE. Languages: Live interpretation EN – ES- IT – FR – PT. Register HERE.
NEW: Watch the webinar recording:
| 28-29 APRIL |
Official conference high level segment meeting. Venue: Centro de Convenciones Estelar
RESOURCES FROM OUR MEMBERS
- Konferenz packt den Ausstieg aus Öl, Kohle und Gas an, Press Release, Fastenaktion, 30 April 2026 (DE – FR)
- Newsticker zur Weltklimakonferenz: Santa Marta Conferenz: Fastenaktion
- Via dai combustili fossili, è un’occasione storica, Focsiv
- Die Santa Marta Konferenz – Abkehr von fossilen Brennstoffen, KOO
- Join the Global Movement to Phase Out Fossil Fuels, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
- Updates from the First Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
- Klares Signal für Abkehr von fossilen Energien, Press release, Misereor, 30 April
- It’s Time for Ireland to Accelerate Away from Fossil Fuels, Trócaire, 28 April
- Ireland must now act on fossil fuel phase-out, Trócaire, 1st May
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
NEW: A call from the ecumenical, interfaith and eco-spiritual coalition of the Global South, 24 April 2026 (ES)
A Catholic Theological Reflection on the Proposal for a Fossil Fuel Treaty Initiative
Supported by Laudato Si’ Movement, REMAM, CAFOD, CIDSE, Jesuit Institute South Africa, CLAR, JPIC Commission USG-UISG, IMDOSOC, Caritas Internationalis, Iglesias y Minería, Instituto Mexicano de Doctrina Social Cristiana, Trócaire, Jesuits Social Justice and Ecology Secretariat, March 2026
Manifesto of the Churches of the Global South for our Common Home: Towards peace with creation: an urgent call for’ a just transition beyond fossil fuels’. (EN – ES – FR – IT – PT).
The manifesto was officially launched at a webinar on 16 March co-organised by Laudato Si’ Movement.
Watch the recording.
An end to the fossil fuel era? Catholic groups hopeful as nations meet in Colombia, National Catholic Reporter, 28 April
CIDSE ONSITE CONTACT (22-30 April)
Pedro Guzmán Pérez
Energy and Extractivism Officer
guzman(at)cidse.org
Cover photo : Global climate march during COP30 conference, Brazil, November 2025. Credit: Hellen Loures/CIMI. CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
CIDSE delegation photo – Credit: CIDSE