https://www.minambiente.gov.co/se-crea-el-primer-panel-con-los-mejores-c...
https://transitionawayconference.com/press-releases
The initiative, announced in Santa Marta by Minister Irene Vélez Torres during the First Conference for the Transition beyond Fossil Fuels, will bring together world-class experts in climate, economy and technology to guide public policies and concrete actions towards decarbonization.
Santa Marta (Colombia), April 25, 2026 (#MásAlláDeLosCombustiblesFossils) –
Within the framework of the First Conference for the Transition beyond Fossil Fuels, the Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development of Colombia (e), Irene Vélez Torres, announced the creation of the Scientific Panel for the Global Energy Transition (SPGET, for its acronym in English), the first of its kind worldwide to advise nations on concrete actions towards a transition beyond fossil fuels.
The announcement was made together with renowned international scientists such as Johan Rockström, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research; Carlos Nobre, Brazilian scientist expert in the Amazon; and Gilberto M. Jannuzzi, from the State University of Campinas, in Brazil.
This panel will bring together some of the best scientists in the world in climate, economy and technology, who will provide inputs for the construction and strengthening of relevant, urgent and concrete actions, supported by the best available evidence to provide recommendations regarding the design of public policies. aimed at the progressive exit of fossil fuels.
“This panel not only repairs a historical debt of an organization dedicated, finally and for the first time, to overcoming fossil fuels in the energy matrix; It also tells us about other types of challenges regarding the social and economic limitations of being able to carry out this transformation as quickly as possible. This panel is the first of its kind designed to organize, in the next five years, the scientific evidence that allows cities, regions, countries and coalitions to take that great leap», said Irene Vélez Torres.
For his part, Rockstrom assured that “The reason why this panel is so important is that scientists from all over the world, and from all disciplines and geographies, join forces in the global energy transition is twofold: on the one hand, it is of a complex transition that has to do with economy, environment, equity and fundamental elements of justice. And on the other hand, I see science playing a bridging role between countries that want to move faster in the transition away from fossil fuels and those countries that still hesitate. It is a way to gradually integrate everyone”.
In the current context, marked by the persistent volatility of global oil prices, the world faces security, economic, energy and environmental risks associated with high dependence on fossil fuels.
This panel represents an articulation effort between academia and governments for the progressive elimination of fossil fuels, led by independent climate councils or similar organizations, and based on collaboration between international experience, the best available science and regional knowledge.
With this announcement, Colombia reaffirms its leadership in the global climate agenda. The formation of this panel seeks to ensure that the path towards decarbonization, beyond energy efficiency and focused on the exit from fossil fuels, is not only a goal, but a technical reality that strengthens the national and global economy, and guarantees the energy security of future generations.
