Just Transitions: How to manage social impacts?

Why?

The “Just transition” concept is increasingly used in policy documents. It generally refers to incorporating elements of social justice into transformations towards sustainability. This includes the development of climate change adaptation pathways, the energy transition and deliberate initiatives to transform food systems.

Amongst policy makers and practitioners there is increasing awareness of possible synergies and trade-offs that can happen as a result of interventions towards climate change adaptation and sustainable food systems. For instance, Just Transition is not only about re-skilling coal mine workers to find alternative jobs as part of the energy transition. Deliberate transitions in one country or with one target group can have (positive or negative) impacts on another group or in other countries. These impacts can be intended or unintended, or even unconscious. Human rights can be violated or opportunities for transformation can be missed. Justice therefore needs to be an inherent part of the way transitions are designed, planned and governed.

In the research project 'Just Transitions' WUR aims to develop a framework and approach to operationalise the 'just' concept, and test this framework in practice. The project design is deliberately based on the principles of co-creation and dialogue. The dialogues will be mainly used to make sense of ongoing practices and will help to further build the framework. That is why you are warmly invited to join this dialogue on Just Transition.

Purpose

The purpose is to identify positive and negative impacts of transitions on different stakeholders and how conditions can be created to make sure no one is left behind.

Cases

Participants will gain insights into the realities of different stakeholders involved in transition processes in India (energy transition, with resource people from WRI India and partners) and tentatively Bangladesh (food system) or South Africa (global energy transition – Manganese mining) to be confirmed.

Participants

Practitioners, scientists, activists, policy makers whose work is related to climate change adaption or food systems, with expertise, ideas and / or experience about matters that could be named as just transition.

Programme