OILWATCH LATINOAMÉRICA
(Castellano) (Euskara)
STATEMENT
In the context of the First International Conference on the Transition Away from Fossil Fuels and the Conference for Fossil-Free Territories (Santa Marta, Colombia, April 24–29, 2026)
We arrive in Santa Marta with our memories alive. With wounded rivers, with territories that resist, with peoples who do not give up. With the wounded rivers, with the territories that resist, with the peoples who refuse to give up. We come with the certainty that the era of the oil-based civilization must come to an end.
We welcome this gathering as an attempt to open new paths to address the climate crisis and as a space where communities in struggle and social organizations will participate, adding their voices and knowledge. But we also want to make it clear that it is not enough to talk about “energy transition”; we need to take decisive and immediate steps toward a profound change in this civilizational model based on the plundering of life; we need to expand the spaces so that it is the people who change the course of history. There is a huge risk that the energy transition will be co-opted by corporate power, reduced to a mere change or addition of energy sources, thereby reproducing the extractive model of mass consumption and deepening historical inequalities.
For decades, we in the Global South were told that oil was the goal to be achieved; that without it there was no future. Our societies were enveloped in promises of progress and development through oil revenues. But that promise was a trap; it never materialized, and this is palpable in oil-producing regions and in much of the oil-exporting world. 
The so-called “resource curse” is not an inevitable phenomenon, but the result of political decisions that have perpetuated dependence and limited the possibilities for building alternatives. The oil illusion has served to sustain the accumulation of wealth by a few, at the expense of the sacrifice of many and of everything. Our dependence is not natural; it is political. And breaking free from it is not merely a technical option, but an act of dignity.
Turning the page on the oil era is not a metaphor; it is an ethical, climatic, and post-civilizational imperative. It is recognizing that, in less than two centuries, oil dependency has polluted every aspect of life and left a deep trail of devastation, dispossession, and inequality across territories, throughout the entire oil metabolism chain. This debt to life demands truth, justice, and comprehensive reparations, which entails perpetual recognition of the damages, plans tailored to each territory, contributions toward productive diversification, ecosystem restoration, and a perspective of environmental and labor justice.
However, rather than a de-escalation, we are currently witnessing the reckless expansion of hydrocarbon production and consumption, and a constant advance of extreme energy projects that we at Oilwatch have been denouncing for years. Among these are the Pre-Salt in Brazil, fracking in Argentina and Mexico, heavy and extra-heavy crude in the Orinoco Belt in Venezuela, oil exploitation in the Amazon, and the expansion of offshore hydrocarbon extraction projects, all of which generate impacts throughout the region. This expansion goes hand in hand with new exploration projects, new licensing, and environmental deregulation. We are seeing more severe and frequent consequences: droughts, floods, fires, and displacement—life pays the price.
This expansion would not be possible without the backing of financial systems that continue to subsidize and ensure the operation of the fossil fuel industry, deepening an ecological and climate debt that falls on the peoples of the Global South.
After 30 COPs, after 30 years, these have been the results —the product of partial measures and false solutions that do not address the root of the problem, are not legally binding, and do not truly involve the voices of the people. These results speak to an exhausted model and the urgency of proposing new strategies for action.
To top it off, we see how military aggression and wars are increasing and intensifying across the globe —as has recently occurred in Venezuela and Iran— along with new forms of colonialism, where control over fossil fuels continues to be the driving force behind violence, domination, and geopolitical reconfiguration. These are not isolated incidents: fossil fuels have historically been at the center of armed conflicts, territorial disputes, and interventions.
OUR PROPOSALS AND PRIORITY DEMANDS
Within the framework of this Conference, and in light of the scenarios outlined above, Oilwatch Latin America sets forth the following key proposals and demands:
- The transition away from fossil fuels cannot be limited to a change in energy sources; rather, it must be approached from a structural perspective that transforms the existing economic, social, political, and energy foundations. A transition must be just, ecological, and social, based on equity and the effective, leading participation of workers, Indigenous peoples, Afro-descendant communities, women’s organizations, and local communities. It must recognize and strengthen the role of Indigenous, Afro-descendant, and peasant territories as fundamental to the protection of life and ecosystems.
- An urgent discussion must be initiated that brings the following questions to the table: Energy for what? For whom? We must start by questioning the logic of consumer societies and the imperatives of endless growth, within systems that are also profoundly unequal.
- We demand an immediate end to direct and indirect (or hidden) subsidies to hydrocarbon companies, tax exemptions, special customs or exchange rate regimes, public financing, and insurance for fossil fuel projects, and the redirection of these resources toward socio-ecological transitions that are just and territorialized.
- We warn of the risk of reproducing extractivist and colonial logics under the guise of so-called “clean energy” and “false solutions,” when these are imposed without the free, prior, and informed consent of communities.
- For decades, Oilwatch has advocated for keeping fossil fuels in the ground as a political obligation and a fundamental condition for climate stability and environmental justice. An immediate moratorium on new hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation activities must also be established. At the same time, it is necessary to advance and strengthen processes for the progressive dismantling of existing infrastructure, with fiscal guarantees, monitoring mechanisms, and accountability on the part of companies.
- We recognize, value, and highlight the many initiatives driven by local communities that are moving day by day toward a post-fossil fuel world. Initiatives such as the moratorium on oil exploration in Costa Rica, the democratic decision to keep oil underground in Yasuní, Ecuador, the struggle to legalize the ban on fracking in Colombia, Oilwatch’s “Annex 0” proposal, which brings together initiatives that are already leaving oil in the ground, as well as the various forms of social resistance confronting the expansion of the hydrocarbon industry in Latin America and other regions of the world, constitute concrete examples for advancing toward post-extractivist models. We call for “Yasunizing” the world, for multiplying these courageous decisions that prioritize life over profit.
- Models of energy sovereignty based on community control, decentralization, and respect for territories must be promoted.
- To respect human rights and the rights of nature, and implement climate justice mechanisms that include comprehensive reparations for territories affected by extractive activities. Protect human rights and nature defenders in the face of growing criminalization and violence. Reject the militarization of energy territories and demand the de-escalation of conflicts linked to the control of fossil fuel resources.
- We underscore the importance of strengthening international initiatives aimed at the phased elimination of fossil fuels, which engage with proposals such as the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, and that move toward binding commitments guaranteeing an effective reduction in the supply and demand for these resources.
- We demand that countries in the Global North and emerging powers assume their historical responsibility through accelerated reduction, fair phase-out and decommissioning plans, among other actions. Transition initiatives must not involve increasing pressure for the extraction of critical minerals or the expansion of the hydrocarbon frontier in the Global South. These countries must also contribute to financing the transition in our countries, supporting restoration processes, recognition of damages in perpetuity, economic diversification, and alternative employment opportunities for territories dependent on fossil fuel extraction; while also acknowledging the cancellation of climate debt.
- Finally, we urge participating States and the international community to ensure that the Santa Marta Conference goes beyond declarations of intent and translates into concrete actions, with defined timelines, monitoring mechanisms, and accountability.
After 30 years of existence, the Oilwatch International Network reaffirms its commitment to continue supporting frontline communities and contributing to the creation of a shared vision based on justice, equity, and respect for life in all its forms.
