Guía para cubrir temas ambientales en época electoral

The document serves as a toolkit for the press to evaluate the environmental proposals of Colombian presidential candidates. It identifies critical areas of concern—including deforestation, climate change, energy transition, and marine conservation—and provides data-driven contexts and specific lines of inquiry to ensure candidates are held accountable to national and international commitments.

• Colombia faces severe deforestation, with 171,685 hectares lost in 2020. The Amazon region is the most affected, accounting for 63% of this loss, with primary drivers being land appropriation, illegal mining, illicit crops, and the expansion of the agricultural frontier.
• The Colombian Amazon is critical for global climate stability, storing approximately 130 billion tons of carbon. However, it suffers from a security crisis where environmental defenders, indigenous peoples, and local communities are targeted due to illegal economic activities and resource grabbing.
• Colombia's economy remains heavily dependent on large-scale mining of coal, gold, and nickel, which creates significant environmental liabilities. Over 70% of the country's environmental liabilities are generated by mining and oil activities, yet there is no adequate legislative framework for their management or mine closure.
• While Colombia generates less than 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions, it is highly vulnerable to climate change, with 56% of its departments categorized as having a 'very high' threat level. The country aims to reduce emissions by 51% by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
• Public investment in biodiversity is critically low, representing only 0.16% of the central national public expenditure (1.9 trillion pesos). The document highlights the need for green taxes and the alignment of public and private financial flows with climate action.
• Colombia is identified as the most dangerous country in the world for nature defenders. Between the signing of the Peace Agreement and 2021, 611 environmental leaders were murdered.
• Food systems are a primary driver of biodiversity loss. In Colombia, 7.3 million people suffer from food insecurity, and climate change threatens staple crops; for example, 60% of coffee varieties are at risk of extinction.
• Despite having extensive coastlines in both the Caribbean and Pacific, marine-coastal ecosystems are underfunded and poorly governed. Colombia has committed to protecting 30% of its land and ocean by 2030 as part of the High Ambition Coalition.

APA

Transforma (2022). Guía para cubrir temas ambientales en época electoral. https://transforma.global/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Guia-para-cubrir-temas-ambientales-en-elecciones-WWF-Transforma-Gaia-Amazonas.pdf

Chicago

Transforma. Guía para cubrir temas ambientales en época electoral. 2022. https://transforma.global/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Guia-para-cubrir-temas-ambientales-en-elecciones-WWF-Transforma-Gaia-Amazonas.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Transforma |title=Guía para cubrir temas ambientales en época electoral |date=April 2022 |url=https://transforma.global/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Guia-para-cubrir-temas-ambientales-en-elecciones-WWF-Transforma-Gaia-Amazonas.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{transforma2022gua, author = {{Transforma}}, title = {{Guía para cubrir temas ambientales en época electoral}}, institution = {Transforma}, year = {2022}, month = apr, url = {https://transforma.global/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Guia-para-cubrir-temas-ambientales-en-elecciones-WWF-Transforma-Gaia-Amazonas.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }