Good morning, this is Kasmira. A gathering of government ministers and civil society in Colombia devising how to move away from fossil fuels ended the week on a high note, with countries giving themselves an ambitious to-do list ahead of November’s Cop31 in Turkey. My colleague Michelle Langrand reports.
Meanwhile, here in Geneva, member states are once again racing against the clock to finalise a crucial missing piece in the pandemic agreement puzzle – one that would help the world better prepare for future health crises. |
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Colombia's environmental minister Irene Vélez Torres, left, embraces Stientje van Veldhoven, Dutch minister of climate policy and green growth, at the end of a conference aimed at transitioning away from fossil fuels 29 April 2026, in Santa Marta, Colombia. (Keystone/AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)
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The first conference on ditching fossil fuels concluded on Wednesday evening in the port city to cheers and applause, with delegates hailing the five-day gathering as “historic” and unlike anything they’d experienced in years of stalled climate talks.
“This is the beginning of a new global climate democracy,” said Colombia’s minister for the environment and the green transition, Irene Vélez Torres, calling the conference she co-hosted a “breath of fresh air” and the only one that hasn’t caused her frustration.
Some 57 governments joined over 1,500 civil society members to grapple with how the world might actually end its dependence on the oil, gas and coal responsible for nearly 80 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions. The discussions were held behind closed doors in small groups, a format delegates credited for enabling frank exchanges.
“This is the first time that we can open our hearts, open our brains, and have a real conversation without a stupid point of order, or procedural process that derails the entire session, and then we're left off with only 10 minutes to talk about substance,” Panama’s climate envoy Juan Carlos Monterrey told journalists, calling the consensus of UN climate talks “outdated”.
Read the full story on Geneva Solutions.
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Here's what else is happening
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🦠WHO member states hold tough north–south negotiations over pathogen sharing for pandemic response.
Member states gathered in Geneva this week to negotiate a key addition to the Pandemic Agreement ahead of the World Health Assembly next month. Major obstacles remain, but a positive outcome would help the world better prepare for future pandemics.
Le Temps via Geneva Solutions (EN)
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🇺🇳UN candidate Rebeca Grynspan says world body must do 'less with less'.
Visiting Paris as she campaigns in countries sitting on the UN Security Council, the Costa Rican economist vying to succeed António Guterres stressed that not everything had to happen within the UN, saying the organisation should look to partner more with outside actors.
Reuters (EN)
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🗳️Exclusive: WHO opens race for next director general; Germany mulls nomination of former Merkel aide.
The organisation has formally issued a call for countries to put forward candidates for the next director general, with Germany likely to propose Helge Braun, Angela Merkel’s former chief of staff.
Health Policy Watch (EN)
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💥Attacks on hospitals and medics rising, driven by Middle East conflict, says World Health Organization.
Before the US-Israel war on Iran began at the end of February, such attacks averaged about 3.7 per day, but that has now increased to 4.3, the health body said.
Reuters (EN)
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☢️Head of organization overseeing nuclear test ban treaty issues warning to US and Russia.
Robert Floyd, executive secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization, cautioned that if the US, Russia, or any other nation were to go ahead with a test, the move would prompt others to follow.
Associated Press (EN)
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