How to Implement Just Transition?

As renewable energy investments accelerate, industries prepare for low-carbon production, and transportation systems become increasingly electrified, certain sectors, occupations, and regions may face significant adaptation challenges. While new technologies and employment opportunities continue to emerge, not everyone will be able to access these opportunities at the same pace. A manufacturing facility adopting a new production model, a mining region experiencing economic decline, or changes in energy costs affecting household budgets are all different consequences of the same transition. These impacts will not be experienced equally across cities, occupations, or income groups.

For this reason, employment, education, social protection, regional development, and access to affordable energy must all be considered together from the earliest stages of planning a just transition.

This approach also aligns directly with the "Leave No One Behind" principle that lies at the heart of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). When designing transition policies, priority should be given to workers, low-income households, vulnerable groups, and regions that are expected to be most significantly affected by the transition. In doing so, climate policies can become instruments that expand access to opportunity and distribute the benefits of the transition more equitably, rather than reinforcing existing social and economic inequalities.

To achieve this, broad policy objectives must be translated into concrete sectoral and regional implementation plans. When energy, industrial, and employment policies fail to move in the same direction, the transition becomes fragmented and less effective. A successful roadmap therefore rests on five fundamental pillars.

I. The Impacts of the Transition Must Be Mapped in Advance

The first step is to identify how different sectors, occupations, and regions are likely to be affected by the transition. The closure of a coal-fired power plant, for example, affects not only plant employees but also transportation companies, local businesses, service providers, and municipal revenues. Impact assessments should therefore extend well beyond direct employment figures.

Every region has a unique economic structure, workforce profile, and investment potential. National climate targets should therefore be translated into sector-specific and region-specific roadmaps that reflect these local realities. This enables risks to be identified early and alternative livelihood opportunities to be developed before facilities close or production models change.

II. Workers Must Be Prepared for the New Economy

The green transition is creating entirely new professions and employment opportunities. Renewable energy, energy efficiency, building renovation, energy storage technologies, electric mobility, and circular manufacturing are among the sectors expected to experience significant growth. However, the emergence of new jobs does not automatically guarantee that today's workforce will be able to access them.

Training programmes should be designed alongside regional investment strategies. Before training begins, policymakers should already know what kinds of jobs participants are being prepared for, what wages those jobs are expected to offer, and whether workers will need to relocate to another city. Success should not be measured by the number of people who complete training programmes, but by the number who secure stable, decent, and long-term employment afterward.

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III. Income and Living Standards Must Be Protected During the Transition

While some workers may move into new jobs relatively quickly, others may require support for a longer period. Unemployment protection, income support, early retirement options, relocation assistance, and employment placement services are among the essential instruments for managing this transition.

The impact on households must also be taken into account. Carbon pricing, transport electrification, and building renovation programmes may affect both energy bills and the overall cost of living. Measures that prevent low-income households from bearing a disproportionate share of the transition's costs should be integrated into just transition plans from the outset.

IV. Decisions Must Be Made Through Social Dialogue

Workers, trade unions, employers, local governments, universities, and civil society organizations should be involved in the decision-making process from the earliest stages. Simply presenting completed plans to the public is not sufficient to ensure meaningful participation. The priorities and concerns of those most affected must be reflected in investment decisions, workforce development programmes, and regional development strategies.

Social dialogue brings practical, on-the-ground knowledge into policymaking. It also strengthens trust, reduces the risk of conflict, and helps ensure that transition policies remain effective and resilient even when political administrations change.

V. Social Outcomes Must Also Be Measured

The success of a just transition should be assessed not only through emissions reductions but also by monitoring employment, wages, access to affordable energy, gender equality, and regional development indicators. Beyond counting how many new jobs are created, policymakers should also evaluate who gains access to these jobs and under what working conditions.

When monitoring systems are transparent and regularly updated, it becomes possible to see where resources are being allocated, which policies are producing positive results, and which groups risk being left behind. Combined with meaningful social dialogue, this approach transforms justice from an aspirational principle into a measurable and manageable area of public policy.

A just transition requires substantial and long-term financial investment. Funding is needed not only for renewable energy infrastructure, clean production technologies, and electricity grid modernization, but also for workforce reskilling, income support programmes, local economic diversification, and helping small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) adapt to the new economy.

This financing can be mobilized through blended approaches that combine public budgets, development banks, international climate funds, and private-sector investment. Revenues generated through carbon pricing mechanisms can also be directed toward the regions and communities most affected by the transition, helping distribute its costs more equitably. Blended finance models, supported by public guarantees, can further attract private capital to projects with significant social and environmental benefits.

However, it is equally important to monitor where these financial resources are allocated, who benefits from the employment opportunities they create, and how they affect household costs. Every financing decision should be guided by two fundamental questions: Who bears the costs of the transition, and who benefits from the value it creates?

The practical success of a just transition depends largely on corporate investment decisions and the implementation capacity of local governments.

Companies should assess how their transition strategies will affect employees, suppliers, and the communities in which they operate before implementation begins. Workforce reskilling initiatives, internal career transition opportunities, and technical support for SMEs throughout the value chain should form core components of corporate transition plans. Likewise, net-zero commitments should be monitored not only through emissions reductions but also through indicators such as employment, wages, occupational health and safety, and contributions to local economic development.

Local governments, meanwhile, are often the actors best positioned to understand regional needs. They can identify occupations at risk, determine which groups require additional support, and assess where new investments can generate the greatest local value. Partnerships among vocational training institutions, universities, employers, and workers can significantly accelerate the transition. In this way, national climate objectives can be translated into concrete programmes tailored to the economic structure and social priorities of each region.

Just transition emerged as one of the priority negotiation topics at COP30 under the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Just Transition Work Programme, which was established to support the implementation of the principle of "just transition of the workforce and the creation of decent work and quality jobs" set out in the preamble to the Paris Agreement.

Discussions under the Work Programme focused on policy approaches that promote economic development, social inclusion, employment protection, workforce reskilling, and support for vulnerable groups while pursuing climate objectives. The programme also encouraged countries to exchange experiences in developing nationally appropriate pathways for achieving a just transition.

At COP30, Parties agreed that the international process should move beyond dialogue and knowledge-sharing alone. They decided to develop a Just Transition Mechanism that would strengthen international cooperation, technical assistance, capacity building, and knowledge exchange. Rather than establishing the mechanism immediately, Parties tasked the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) and the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) with developing its institutional and governance framework for adoption at COP31.

This decision marks a significant step toward transforming the just transition agenda into a permanent, implementation-oriented institutional framework within the UNFCCC process.

Within this context, negotiations at COP31 in Antalya are expected to focus primarily on defining the operational structure and implementation arrangements of the Just Transition Mechanism. Based on recommendations prepared by the Subsidiary Bodies, negotiators will consider the mechanism's scope, governance framework, international cooperation tools, and the technical assistance and capacity-building support available to developing countries. In addition, the outcomes of the ongoing dialogues under the UAE Just Transition Work Programme are expected to inform COP31 decisions, helping transform the social dimension of climate policy into a concrete and actionable implementation framework.

The fact that COP31 will be hosted in Antalya provides Türkiye with an important opportunity to demonstrate how the just transition approach can be translated into concrete practices. During the preparation process for the summit, implementation, inclusiveness, and measurable outcomes are emerging as key priorities. A just transition brings these three dimensions together within a common framework.

You may also be interested in our article "COP31 Antalya: Why Is It a Critical Summit for Türkiye?"

Different regions of Türkiye will experience the transition in different ways. Cities and regions connected to coal-based industries and carbon-intensive sectors will need strategies for economic diversification. In major urban areas, priorities include building stock transformation, transportation systems, and energy poverty. In agricultural regions, access to water, climate adaptation, and seasonal employment will become increasingly important. Tourism destinations, meanwhile, will need to address energy efficiency, water management, waste management, and local quality of life together.

For this reason, Türkiye needs regional transition roadmaps based on common national objectives rather than a single uniform programme applied everywhere.

Tourism, agriculture, urban development, water management, and energy demand all intersect within the same geographical areas. Local projects, social impact indicators, and financing models presented within the scope of COP31 can create lasting value if they are designed in ways that can be replicated and adapted across different regions.

One of the greatest challenges facing a just transition is the fragmented nature of decision-making processes across energy, employment, education, social policy, and regional development. When these areas progress independently of one another, investments may accelerate while workers and local economies remain unprepared for the changes ahead.

Financing represents another major challenge. While resources are often directed toward technologies and infrastructure, areas such as workforce development, income support, local economic diversification, and SME adaptation may receive a smaller share of available funding. A lack of reliable data also makes it more difficult to identify which occupations are most vulnerable and which regions require priority support.

Another significant barrier is the late involvement of social dialogue mechanisms. When affected communities and stakeholders are not included in planning processes from the beginning, trust can weaken and social resistance may increase. Short-term political and economic pressures can also threaten the continuity of long-term transition programmes.

Overcoming these challenges requires the simultaneous establishment of institutional coordination, transparent financing mechanisms, reliable data systems, and permanent participation structures.

A just transition is a governance approach that considers the social impacts of energy and economic policies from the very beginning. Reducing emissions is an essential measure of success. However, the true quality of a transition is determined by whether people can protect their livelihoods, access new skills, afford energy costs, and build a future in the communities where they live.

For this reason, justice should not be treated as an additional support measure introduced only at the end of the transition process. It must remain at the centre of planning, financing, and implementation.

COP31 Antalya offers Türkiye an opportunity to demonstrate how national climate commitments can be translated into meaningful local outcomes. A lasting transition will only be possible when technology, economic transformation, and social trust advance together in the same direction.