Colombia Activists Resist Far-Right Fossil Fuel Push
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- Abelardo de la Espriella won Colombia's presidency on June 21 by less than 1% — fewer than 250,000 votes out of a 26-million electorate — and will be sworn in on August 7 with dozens of decrees rolling back Pacto Histórico policies
- Yuvelis Morales Blanco, a 25-year-old Goldman environmental prize recipient from Puerto Wilches, told reporters "we won't give up" and said activists are "organised and ready to mobilise" to defend natural resources against the new government's extraction agenda
- Colombia's economy has already tilted away from extractives: in 2025, non-mining, non-energy exports accounted for 52.6% of the total, overtaking mining and energy exports for the first time in at least a decade, though fossil fuels still contribute 5% of GDP
- Renewable energy capacity grew from 200 MW in 2022 to 3,600 MW in 2026 under Gustavo Petro's government, and former environment minister Susana Muhamad warns the new fossil fuel push will be "more aggressive than ever" because of an alliance with Donald Trump
- Incoming environment minister Fabio Arjona has ruled out abolishing the ANLA environmental licensing body but is calling for "greater efficiency" and fewer "obstacles," which Muhamad predicts will turn officials into "notaries of disaster" granting extraction permits
- Colombian extraction zones voted against extraction: in Santander's Puerto Wilches — where oil has been refined for decades and tap water is undrinkable — leftist candidate Iván Cepeda took nearly 60% of the vote
Why it matters: Despite the electoral defeat, environmental resistance is organized across Indigenous, Afro-Colombian, and green groups — anchored in Santander, where extraction zones gave Iván Cepeda nearly 60% of the vote despite decades of oil refining — and incoming officials are already preparing to loosen ANLA licensing, undermining the credibility of Colombia's Cop16 in Cali (2024) and Santa Marta transition conference (early 2026).
