Author name: Tim van der Vooren

From April 24th until April 29th, the first ever Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels will be held in Santa Marta, Colombia. The conference is co-hosted by Colombia and The Netherlands and over 53 nations, willing to create concrete plans for a fossil fuel phase-out, are present. On behalf of the CLIFF Project, Principle Investigator Prof. dr. Joyeeta Gupta has contributed to several submissions and letters to the Conference.

As of April 2026, Tim joined the CLIFF project as Junior Researcher, helping the team in the final period of the project. Before joining the CLIFF team, Tim completed his BSc International Business Administration at the Erasmus University Rotterdam and his MSc Spatial Sustainability Studies at the University of Amsterdam, specializing in Urban and Regional Planning.

Dr. Augusto Heras has been awarded his PhD after his defense on March 12th, 2026. His research:

Uncovers the political and institutional dilemmas LMICs face in their energy transitions and how can these be addressed;
Shows how fossil fuel dependence is actively reproduced by coalitions of states, investors, and industries, and how those coalitions can be contested, and;
Argues that conditions for change exist, but they need to be built, politically and collectively.

Going forward, he intends to continue doing research, but closer to where decisions are made: in think tanks, advocacy organisations, and policy processes where evidence can directly shape what happens next.

We wish him all the best and will continue to eagerly follow his next steps!