The Commitment to a Just Transition

Author: Alan H. McGowan, Lecturer, Environmental Studies Program, New School in New York City.

This Q&A was originally published in the journal Environment: Science and Policy for Sustainable Development, here (open access through June 7, 2023)

Team EESI (right) and Howard University students (left) volunteered to do some gardening and yard work at Noyes Elementary, a D.C. public school, on August 19, 2022. EESI President Daniel Bresette is seated at the bottom right.

As noted on your website, in January 2021, President Biden signed Executive Order 14008, which launched Justice40, a new initiative that aims to help disadvantaged communities. How successful has this been? What do you think are the most important elements of Justice40?

Justice40 represents a lot of work over many years by a network of advocates who understand that climate solutions that are not implemented equitably are not really climate solutions at all. We held a briefing about the status and potential of Justice40 in April 2022, about a year after it was announced. I am pleased that the Biden–Harris Administration has made environmental justice a priority. This commitment is widely shared across the climate advocacy community. Many leaders are pushing for more resources, faster implementation, and even greater recognition of the role of systemic racism—perpetuated over generations—in our present state of environmental injustice.
It is too early to declare Justice40 a success, failure, or something in between. A core element of Justice40 is the imperative for investments in climate mitigation and adaptation to directly, intentionally, and meaningfully benefit environmental justice communities. That will not happen on its own, and it will take time to fully implement. We need to consider the actual needs and wants of the communities we are trying to reach, including by incorporating their knowledge, respecting their traditions, and facilitating their participation. The Inflation Reduction Act is historic in terms of funding for climate action, but it will only live up to its potential if those investments fulfill the goals of Justice40 on a timeline that matches the urgency of the challenge.

What do you think are the main obstacles to achieving a “just transition”?

To meet our Paris Agreement goals, we need to rapidly deploy clean energy and decarbonize our entire economy. That is a massive undertaking. The Department of Energy estimates that more than three million workers are employed in “net-zero emissions-aligned areas” out of a total of 7.8 million energy sector jobs. That is a big slice of the pie, and clean energy jobs have been increasing while the fossil fuels sector continues to shrink. But millions of people, as well as the communities they call home, are still dependent on coal, oil, and gas—and will continue to be for some time.
The concept of climate justice, which acknowledges the history of unequal impacts on different groups of people, aims to address these inequalities through resilience and adaptation strategies and a just transition away from fossil fuels. I think we are up to the challenge. Climate change will force changes in our economy. Our choice is whether we do something to minimize the disruptions caused by those changes. It is simply unrealistic to expect a one-for-one exchange of jobs between the clean energy and fossil fuel sectors. There will be losses that are not directly offset by gains. To minimize the hardship for affected workers and their communities, we need to be there for each other with compassion and resources as the transition occurs.