A wind turbine and a coal-burning power plant. Photo: Getty / acilo.

A UN Summit of the Future, set to be held next month, has come under pressure ahead of time because a draft of a statement that is envisaged to come out of the gathering doesn’t mention fossil fuels.

The first draft of the statement – due to be called the Pact of the Future – included two mentions of fossil fuels, urging a just transition away from them and the setting of a deadline for eliminating fossil fuel subsidies.

But a revised draft – after receiving feedback on the original version from UN member states, as well as civil society organisations, academia and the private sector – surprised many by having taken out any reference to fossil fuels.

In response, former government leaders and Nobel laureates from around the world have written an open letter calling on world leaders due to attend the summit in New York to commit to a “fast and fair” transition away from fossil fuels.

Signatories that include Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser of Bangladesh; Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland; the Dalai Lama; and Stefan Löfven, the former prime minister of Sweden, wrote:

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“We call on the United Nations to ensure that the Pact for the Future includes robust commitments to manage and finance a fast and fair global transition away from coal, oil and gas extraction in line with the 1.5°C limit agreed to by nations in the Paris Agreement.”

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The revised draft does include a commitment to “combat climate change”, including developing and deploying the technologies needed to triple renewable energy capacity and double energy efficiency by 2030, as agreed by almost 200 countries at COP28 last year.

But leaving out a specific mention of ‘fossil fuels’ is seen by many as a missed opportunity, and surprising as the multi-country statement at the end of COP28 had included the term, unlike earlier COP gatherings. 

“The omission of fossil fuels from the draft ‘Pact for the Future’ is another stark failure to confront one of the greatest threats to our planet and humanity,” Löfven said in a statement.

“World leaders should be unequivocal when it comes to acting decisively and collectively to prevent further climate impacts, and instead, they are deciding to bury their heads in the sand. Only through unwavering international cooperation to phase out fossil fuels can we safeguard our common future.”