World leaders meet every year to discuss their climate commitments at international summits known as COPs (Conference of the Parties).
All COPs since 2015 have tracked how countries are building on what they promised in Paris.
At COP28 in 2023, countries agreed for the first time to “contribute” to “transitioning away from fossil fuels”, although they were not forced to take any specific action.
Countries also agreed to treble the global capacity of renewables – such as wind and solar – by 2030.
But the final deal at COP30 in 2025 failed to directly mention fossil fuels. Instead, the host of the conference, Brazil, published a voluntary roadmap for moving away from fossil fuels, which will be discussed at COP31.
That COP is taking place from 9 to 20 November 2026 in Antalya, Turkey and is co-hosted by Australia.
A “coalition of the willing” composed of 57 countries has also organised its own conferences separate from the COP process to discuss phasing out fossil fuels.
The first meeting was held in Santa Marta, Colombia in April 2026, and another conference is scheduled for July 2027 in Tuvalu.
