Road to COP26: Just Transitions and the Climate Agenda

We’ve got to be deliberate and thoughtful in what we are doing. So, for our COP presidency, what we are thinking about very much is not just working on what we need to do, but how we need to do it.

Kate Hughes

On March 9, the Just Transition Initiative explored the role of just transitions ahead of the COP26 climate meetings in November 2021. Government officials, civil society leaders, and international trade union representatives discussed how just transitions can help accelerate climate action.

It is, I believe, the greatest job creation opportunity that we have in our lifetime, that we will ever have in our lifetime, to shepherd through what will be a just transition to a global clean energy economy.

Andrew Light

They also outlined how national climate plans can ensure justice and a fair distribution of opportunities in the new climate economy. Participants acknowledged the challenges created by Covid-19, but also noted the opportunity it presents for job creation and transformational change.

They suggested that COP26 could serve as a platform to develop aspirations for just transitions to clean economies.

If we don’t have a recovery that is rich in good jobs and that respects people’s rights, also rights to form trade unions, then it’s pretty hard to see how we are going to have the kind of political stability we need to roll out climate policy.

Samantha Smith

The first challenge that we have is to ensure that people have the right kind of skills that are needed to take advantage of this transition, and to ensure that the day the last coal power plant closes is the day the last coal mine closes, is the day the last coal miner retires.

Ajay Mathur

Participants