Research paper
Published 1 April 2020
Updated 11 December 2020
ISBN: 978 1 78413 392 4
Considerations of justice and social equity are as important for the circular economy transition as they are in the contexts of low-carbon transitions and digitalization of the economy. This paper sets out the just transition approach, and its relevance in climate change and energy transition debates.
The term and the concept of ‘just transition’ brings together concerns about social justice in the transition to a sustainable economy and society.23 First used by trade unions in North America in the late 20th century, the call for just transition emphasizes the need to assist workers who lost their jobs through energy transition, in a context of limited support measures and social security. The focus has been on coal producing regions that have been hardest hit by mine closures and the shutdown of coal-fired power plants – in particular the Appalachian states of the eastern US, which have suffered almost nine in 10 of the country’s coal-related job losses.24
The meaning and use of the concept have expanded to include broader efforts to promote jobs, sectors and economies that are both environmentally and socially sustainable. As awareness of the global climate change threat grows, the term is increasingly associated with action on climate change and low-carbon transitions.25 The concept of just transition has also risen in salience on the international agenda, as manifested by its inclusion in the Paris Agreement, which states the need to take account of the ‘the imperatives of a just transition of the workforce and the creation of decent work and quality jobs in accordance with nationally defined development priorities’.26 The rationale is to ensure that climate mitigation actions do not disproportionally affect poor and vulnerable communities and countries. Just transition was also the focus of the Solidarity and Just Transition Silesia Declaration, signed by 56 governments at COP24 in Katowice, Poland, in December 2018.27
Notwithstanding these high-level political declarations, it is worth pointing out that there is legitimate concern that the concept of just transition may be misused by parties seeking to protect incumbent industry as a means of slowing the low-carbon transition. There is concern, too, that the adoption of just transition in the international policy realm brings the risk that ‘its propagation in bureaucratic policy-making circles will not only dilute the vision but undermine it’.28
But mainstream acceptance and implementation of just transition approaches are necessary, not least in order to avoid further delay: sustainability transitions require urgent action, and have to be made against the clock if the SDGs are to be met and runaway climate change is to be averted. On the face of it, this seems to create a contradiction. In the short term, decisive action from above may mean implementing ‘top-down’ designed policy programmes to speed up processes that will drive transition, including deploying technologies and building new infrastructure. However, ensuring social justice is contingent on there being inclusive, deliberative processes and participation, and these need more time. Consequently, context-specific, realistic transition plans and timelines are crucial. Undue haste and rapid but ill-conceived transitions implemented without social acceptance can be costly and create unexpected delays.29 The ‘gilets jaunes’ protests in France against (inter alia) taxes on diesel fuel that began in 2018, and social unrest that erupted in the Chilean capital, Santiago, in 2019, forcing the relocation of the UN climate conference to Madrid, are pertinent here.30
Air pollution is a major environmental risk. It caused over 4.2 million premature deaths worldwide in 2016,31 and has a particularly high death toll in fast-developing countries in South and East Asia. The problem of urban air pollution exposes a range of inequalities in terms of its impact on health, employment, income and education.
To combat air pollution in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, thousands of small factories in Hebei province – the centre of China’s steel manufacturing industry – surrounding Beijing municipality are regularly ordered to halt production in the winter months to help reduce air pollution affecting urban populations.32 As production grinds to a halt, hundreds of thousands of workers are often laid off. One study published in 2015 estimated that factory closures and industrial restructuring might lead to more than 1 million job losses in Hebei province alone.33
Research shows that the appropriateness and sustainability of the current air pollution control measures, especially for industries subject to top-down enforcement, are questionable. The large societal burden, including unemployment and social inequity, resulting from industrial restructuring brings multiple concerns. There is a lack of immediate alternative employment opportunities for often low-skilled workers.34
People’s economic welfare and political rights are affected not only by toxic air pollutants, but also through the various policy interventions, market activities, and social practices designed to reduce or adapt to air pollution. And the poorest groups in society are affected disproportionally.35
Just transition approaches are necessary to ensure that people already affected negatively by air pollution in terms of their health do not also suffer as a result of pollution control measures, such as through loss of livelihood. While the Hebei government has more recently incorporated social, financial and employment support policies in its air pollution action plans, many issues concerning how to translate support measures into tangible benefits for communities remain unresolved.
Just transition is important not only from an ethical perspective; it is also critical in ensuring the long-term sustainability of the transition process itself. Opposition from those who stand to lose out as a result of transition could slow down the process – or even prevent it from happening at all – if competing interests are not resolved or unintended social consequences are not addressed. Among the countries of the EU, for instance, the circular economy, as a key element of the European Green Deal,36 could become the target of populist forces and extremist parties such as the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) in Germany and the Rassemblement National (the former Front National) in France, particularly if their supporters feel they do not have a stake in the transition.37
Just transition is important not only from an ethical perspective; it is also critical in ensuring the long-term sustainability of the transition process itself.
Moving from the concept of the Green Deal to declarations and specific policy measures, in January 2020 the European Commission announced the establishment of a Just Transition Mechanism, in the form of a fund to support poorer regions in the EU that will be most affected by the transition to a climate-neutral economy.38 The objective is to provide targeted support for the most affected regions by mobilizing at least €100 billion over the period 2021–27, to alleviate the socio-economic impact of the transition.39
The concept of just transition has hitherto mainly been applied in the context of low- and zero-carbon transitions. However, its principles and considerations are equally relevant for the circular economy transition. If just transition principles are adopted at an early stage of this transition, the adversarial politics currently playing out in the global climate change debate may be avoided.
