Just Transition Principles
A 2020 paper which looks at how transitions are approached, including experiences and approaches to governance elsewhere, particularly in relation to protecting vulnerable groups and sectors. It seeks to identify insights and lessons from past and current international experience.
[Originally posted at http://files.nesc.ie/nesc_secretariat_papers/No_20_Approaches_to_Transition.pdf]
A 2016 report which aims to assess the notion of 'just transition', how it is being used, what kinds of ideas and approaches are surfacing for short and long-term strategies, and what kinds of relationships groups are developing in pursuit of a 'just transition'. Its purpose is to open a broad and respectful discussion about the varied ways the 'just transition' frame is being used, and whether then can contribute to a shared
vision of how to make the transition we face a 'just transition'.
[Originally posted at https://www.labor4sustainability.org/files/Just_Transition_Just_What_Is_It.pdf]
A 2021 report which explores 'just transition' readiness found that the most-exposed companies globally are generally under-prepared for the coming disruption to workforces, supply chains, communities and consumers caused by the transition to net zero.
[Originally posted at https://assets.website-files.com/5df9172583d7eec04960799a/61b1ecee7929380a0fdba25b_BX10329_MCO-ESG%20Solutions_Just%20Transition-DEC2021.pdf]
A 2017 thesis which examines the Government of British Columbia’s 'Supports for Interior Forestry Workers’ programs in response to the 2019 forest sector downturn and describes lessons about how impacted workers and community members evaluate transition management based on their perceptions and values. This work also offers principles and practices for delivering 'just transition' policy and program supports. It suggests that the government of British Columbia must adjust existing supports and proactively develop policy measures to manage and mitigate the negative consequences of future transitions in collaboration with other key actors.
[Originally posted at https://dam-oclc.bac-lac.gc.ca/download?is_thesis=1&oclc_number=1287015047&id=8d83b527-5111-460c-a7b6-657ce9f4e245&fileName=file.pdf]
A 2018 broad overview from the World Bank of coal mines focusing on transition policies and strategy development; People and communities; and land and environmental remediation.
[Originally posted at https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/484541544643269894/pdf/130659-REVISED-PUBLIC-Managing-Coal-Mine-Closure-Achieving-a-Just-Transition-for-All-November-2018-final.pdf]
A 2018 report which highlights key considerations and sets out how to plan a just transition process, rather than making detailed policy recommendations. This report focuses on progress in the energy sector in BRICS countries and the Next 11 emerging markets, comparing approaches to distill best practice in achieving local objectives. [Originally posted at https://www.sustainablefinance.hsbc.com/carbon-transition/enabling-a-just-transition-to-a-low-carbon-economy-in-the-energy-sector]
A 2022 research paper which summarises the key findings of a project which has looked at the role of territorial cooperation in supporting the delivery of Just Transition in the remote and sparsely-populated areas of the (European) Arctic and near Arctic.
[Originally posted at https://eprc-strath.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Territorial-Cooperation-and-Just-Transition_draft-report.pdf]
A 2017 study which provides an overview of the different 'just transition', energy transformation and climate justice discourses of the previous years and how they are ultimately reflected in the Paris Agreement. It shows how they overlap in terms of transition narratives and policy demands.
[Originally posted at https://library.fes.de/pdf-files/iez/13955.pdf]
A 2021 study urges further development of the just transition framework to consider the situation of developing countries; it includes a set of recommendations for action. This was a a collaboration between Climate Strategies and Fedesarrollo (Colombia), Dala Institute (Indonesia) and University of Ghana.
[Originally posted at https://climatestrategies.org/publication/incorporating-just-transition-strategies-into-developing-countries-ndcs-and-covid-19-responses-comparing-insights-from-ghana-colombia-and-indonesia/]
A 2020 report from the Danish Trade Union Confederation which outlines a climate proposal based on "a healthy and safe work
environment, worker participation, training and education, skills development and job security."
[Originally posted at https://fho.dk/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/20200922-green-transition-compressed.pdf]
A 2021 position statement which targets the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) and is the outcome of consultative processes with Civil Society Organisations across Africa. The paper highlights the urgent need to advance a just transition to a more equitable and sustainable future for all African people by ending the finance of all new and proposed fossil fuel-based energy, large-scale mining and plantations and large-scale industrial/intensive livestock farming investments and developments. [Originally posted at https://citinewsroom.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/AfDB_PositionPaper_English.pdf]
A 2018 book which aims to present the One Million Climate Jobs Campaign (mechanism based on research, networking and advocacy) as a movement which prefigures a 'just transition' to low-carbon development in South Africa, and to investigate in what sense this
perspective from the South can be adapted and used in other Southern contexts in particular, and in the global context in general.
[Originally posted at http://biblioteca.clacso.edu.ar/clacso/sur-sur/20180810041959/Changing_environment.pdf]
A 2019 paper which argues that there is no “universal blueprint” for a 'just transition', but rather some common principles –principles that ultimately relate to basic philosophical ideas of natural justice, human decency and respect, and theories of effective social change– that are likely to be more or less universal across cultural contexts.
[Originally posted at https://www.funcas.es/wp-content/uploads/Migracion/Articulos/FUNCAS_PE/007art03.pdf]
A 2021 brief which investigates the actual state of labour and employment in Canada’s fossil fuel industry, delves into some of the dimensions
of a planned and fair employment transition away from fossil fuels, explains why that transition is manageable, and lays down a roadmap of principles that should be followed.
[Originally posted at https://environmentaldefence.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Steady-Path-Labour-Transition-Jan-2021.pdf]
Hot Reports
Covid-19 and a Just Transition in India's Coal Mining Sector
The COVID 19 pandemic hit India hard in early 2020, with negative GDP growth and a surge in unemployment. In the energy sector, coal fired power generation was already under pressure from overcapacity, low electricity demand growth, and increasingly competitive renewables.
Considerations for a Just and Equitable Energy Transition
As the energy transition accelerates, it is our responsibility, it is our opportunity, to ensure that in addition to contributing to a healthy planet by replacing fossil fuels with clean energy sources, this is accomplished in a just and equitable manner providing prosperity for all.
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