It was 9 a.m. on a Wednesday morning in June of 2020. In the peak of the pandemic quarantine, I had signed up for yet another virtual webinar. With coffee mug in hand, I settled into the couch and logged onto Zoom. For the next hour, I was captured by the words of Elizabeth Yeampierre. In her talk, Ms. Yeampierre drew a connection between economic, environmental, and climate justice, and she explained how a “just transition” is needed to address this interconnected web of inequities. This was the first time I had heard of the concept of a just transition, and I became curious about what it entails and how we can achieve this vision.

The term “just transition” became prevalent in global climate discourse in recent years. The 2015 Paris Climate Agreement acknowledged the “imperatives of a just transition.” During the 26th Conference of Parties (COP26) held in November 2021, a just transition declaration was released with signatures from more than 30 nations. Most recently, the phrase “just transition” was included in the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Summary for Policymakers on mitigation of climate change released in April 2022. Specifically, the IPCC emphasized the importance of applying just transition principles to ensure the achievement of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions in an equitable and socially inclusive manner. So where did the idea of a just transition come from?

Origins of a Just Transition

The concept of a just transition originated from the U.S. labor movement. In the early 1990s, Tony Mazzocchi, leader of the Oil, Chemical, and Atomic Workers Union, proposed the idea of a “Superfund for Workers,” referencing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s recently-established Superfund program for toxic cleanups. Mazzocchi wrote, “we need to provide workers with a guarantee that they will not have to pay for clean air and water with their jobs, their living standards or their future,” arguing that workers employed in sectors responsible for environmental damages should be supported and compensated as they transition into new, less hazardous jobs. At the same time, communities of color on the frontlines of polluting industries had been fighting since the Civil Rights Era for a healthier and cleaner environment. Organizers from local communities saw the opportunity to team up with labor unions in the fight against polluting industries. The Just Transition Alliance was created out of this collaboration, centering the demands of the people who are most affected by unsafe workplaces and unhealthy environments.

Perhaps as a result of the origins of the term, discussions about a just transition are predominantly focused on jobs and the energy sector. For example, some interpreted the use of the term in the IPCC report to be a call for more jobs in renewable energy. Additionally, the stories highlighted on the World Resources Institute’s Just Transition and Equitable Climate Action Resource Center website are mainly related to green jobs, renewable energy generation, and eliminating dependence on carbon-intensive fuels like coal. In the U.S., President Biden issued Executive Order 14057 in December 2021 to “support a just transition to a more sustainable economy for American workers,” among other priorities. The executive order is focused on catalyzing clean energy industries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

“Transition is inevitable, justice is not.” – Movement Generation

However, a just transition means more than reducing greenhouse gasses and avoiding job loss in the transition away from fossil fuels. A popular phrase in the climate justice movement is “transition is inevitable, justice is not.” While a transition away from extractive fuel sources like oil and natural gas is likely, for it to be just, it must also address the inequalities that have resulted from this extraction. Communities of color and low-income communities are disproportionately impacted by environmental pollution from extractive infrastructure, such as refineries, mills, and waste sites. Health disparities in these communities have been attributed to poor air quality and exposure to toxic chemicals. Justice in the transition process must prioritize those who have been harmed the most and ensure the structures that have shaped current inequalities do not persist.

Core Concepts of a Just Transition

 The exact definition of a just transition will vary between organizations. It may be considered a strategic framework (according to Movement Generation) or a set of strategies (according to the Climate Justice Alliance). The Just Transition Alliance defines the term as “a principle, a process and a practice.” However, regardless of the specific definition, a just transition calls for transformational change of the world in which we currently live.

Born at the intersection of U.S. labor and environmental justice movements, a just transition takes a human rights-based approach to change. Drawing from the Principles of Environmental Justice, a common principle of a just transition is the fundamental human right to clean air, land, water, and food. Another foundational element of a just transition is deep democracy where people have the power to make the decisions that will affect their daily lives. In the Just Transition Zine, Movement Generation describes deep democracy as “diverse in forms across place,” suggesting that it will look different depending on each community. The Indigenous Environmental Network also acknowledges this in their Indigenous Principles of Just Transition, noting that “how each Indigenous Nation and/or the community manifests these principles will most likely be different.” There is no “one-size-fits-all” solution, and a just transition requires a place-based approach that centers the specific priorities of each community.

The goal of a just transition is to shift from our current extractive economy to a regenerative economy. We live in a world that exploits resources at the expense of environmental and community health. This is most clearly seen in our energy production systems where we burn non-renewable fossil fuels for energy and pollute our natural systems. However, this same extraction is also present in other aspects of our current society. For example, our food systems rely on extractive farming practices which have limited future food production globally.

In contrast to an extractive economy, the United Frontline Table envisions a regenerative economy that is based on “ecological restoration, community protection, equitable partnerships, justice, and full and fair participatory processes.” This requires that we use resources sustainably while also improving the environment at the same time. The centering of human rights and deep democracy are also represented in this vision.

A strategy framework for a just transition, moving away from an extractive economy towards a regenerative economy. Image credit: Movement Generation’s Just Transition Zine, designed by Micah Bazant, used with permission.

Just Transition in Practice

Here, I explore some solutions that utilize principles of a just transition to move towards a regenerative economy. All three examples are the result of communities developing solutions that address their specific situation, emphasizing how solutions for a just transition are based in a local context.

Energy Democracy

Energy democracy is one component of a regenerative economy that ensures a just transition away from fossil fuel energy. As we make the shift towards renewables, communities should have ownership and governance over their own energy resources. Energy democracy also means giving people agency in choosing the sources of energy that they consume.

Sunset Park Solar, New York City’s first cooperatively owned community solar project, is expected to be operational this year. The project involves building a solar farm on the roof of a city-owned building in the Sunset Park neighborhood and applies the principles of a just transition by democratizing energy resources. As a community-owned and operated utility, the project enables participating community members to vote on how the resources and profits of the cooperative will be used. In the U.S., access to residential solar power is mostly limited to homeowners, making it difficult for renters and those who do not live in a single family home to decarbonize their electricity consumption. The Sunset Park Solar project addresses existing inequities in housing by building the solar farm on a publicly owned building, allowing renters, people who live in multi-family buildings, and even small businesses to participate.

Equitable Governance

Equitable governance is an extension of deep democracy that says communities should be able to participate meaningfully in decisions that directly affect them. Especially when it comes to environmental and climate issues, communities that are most impacted by pollution and environmental hazards are best positioned to understand and evaluate which solutions will be most effective in addressing their needs.

The Washington State Healthy Environment for All (HEAL) Act, passed in 2021, is the first statewide law to directly define and address “environmental justice.” The legislation is the result of the advocacy work of Front and Centered, a coalition of communities of color across the state. Through community-led efforts, Front and Centered developed the environmental health disparities map to illustrate how certain communities are disproportionately impacted by environmental hazards. This tool was a community-based initiative and showed lawmakers what communities have been experiencing on the ground. One element of the HEAL Act is the creation of an Environmental Justice Council that consists of 16 community members representing different populations of Washington, including a youth community representative, environmental justice practitioners, tribes, labor and business. This council will provide community-focused and community-centered guidance to state agencies on integrating environmental justice into state action. In addition to this council, the HEAL Act requires state agencies to ensure meaningful community engagement in planning, resource allocation, programs, and enforcement actions where environmental justice may be a factor.

Food Sovereignty

The Declaration of Nyéléni, written at the first global forum on food sovereignty, stated that “food sovereignty is the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems.” Our global industrial food systems are extractive, not only depleting natural resources through unsustainable farming practices but also creating a dependence on imported foods. Food sovereignty promotes sustainable food production that replenishes the land and centers the rights of people to make their own food decisions, including where this food comes from.

The Micronesia Climate Change Alliance (MCCA) is working to ensure food security and reclaim food sovereignty for the people of Micronesia. Micronesia is a region that is made up of several different island nations in the Pacific Ocean. On an episode of the Stories from Home: Living the Just Transition podcast, Moñeka De Oro from MCCA shared that food in Micronesia is mainly imported, including products that are native to the islands, such as coconut water and coconut milk. MCCA’s FANGGÁI’ASE’ cookbook project is a collection of recipes that provide plant-based alternatives to popular dishes. Interspersed between recipes are educational content that feature ingredients which are native to the islands of Micronesia. The cookbook also highlights local restaurants that offer vegan food options and stores that sell locally grown, sustainable produce, presenting readers with more options for a plant-based diet.

The cookbook encourages the people of Micronesia to exercise their right to control what foods they consume. Principles of just transition are exhibited in supporting local farmers growing sustainable produce on the islands. Additionally, having local food options relieves some of the region’s reliance on imported foods, increasing food security while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the transport of imported goods.

Moving Forward

For me, a just transition provides another frame of reference for how to address the climate crisis. The theory of change in a just transition is to redistribute power and resources to people, whether an individual or a community, so they can effect change in their lives. The examples I highlighted in this piece show the importance of local communities leading on climate solutions. As I consider what my career in the climate space might look like, my goal is to ensure that my work centers the people who are most affected by climate change and support their work towards building a better future.

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Tony Mazzochi. (1993). A Superfund for Workers. Earth Island Journal, 9(1), 40–41.