By Climate Spotlight
Over 1,400 governmental and civil conservation organizations are rallying their members to ramp up efforts toward a global Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) last Thursday adopted a motion expressing deep concern over governments’ plans to extract more than double the amount of fossil fuels compatible with the 1.5°C temperature limit by 2030.
The organization is calling to create a pathway to an equitable transition away from — with a view to phasing out — coal, oil, and gas in line with the 1.5°C temperature limit and biodiversity goals.
Resolution adopted in Abu Dhabi
The IUCN Members’ Assembly adopted Motion 42 at its World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi, UAE, where over 10,000 attendees from 189 countries took part in the week-long congress. The organization has members in 160 countries, including many government conservation agencies and international environmental groups.
The Director General and the World Commission on Environmental Law of the IUCN were asked to assess governance gaps in current global frameworks related to fossil fuel supply and just transitions.
Closing the governance gap
IUCN has also requested its Commission on Environmental, Economic and Social Policy and the Climate Crisis Commission to “provide guidance to accelerate just transition pathways for fossil-fuel-dependent developing States.”
The organization referred to its nonbinding resolution as “the strongest language ever adopted in a multilateral forum on the supply of oil, gas, and coal.”
The resolution notes that without international governance of the just transition, many developing states will remain locked into fossil fuel dependence. It highlights the legal gap surrounding the extraction and supply of fossil fuels and urges members to support international agreements such as the Paris climate accord.
End new projects
The resolution calls on states to end new fossil fuel projects, increase transparency on fossil fuel extraction and financing, and encourage Amazonian States and others to declare “fossil fuel non-proliferation zones” to protect biodiversity and Indigenous rights.
Without swift and coordinated action, the world’s remaining carbon budget — and the biodiversity it supports — will continue to shrink. The IUCN’s call adds significant multilateral pressure for governments to address not only how fossil fuels are burned, but how they are extracted in the first place. Advocates say this moment could mark a turning point where global climate governance finally confronts the root of the crisis.
