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Environment & Climate vocabulary · Climate Action: Mitigation and Adaptation

Just transition

Meaning in environment & climate, with examples

/ˌdʒʌst trænˈzɪʃən/nounAdvanced term

In environment & climate, just transition means: The idea that the shift to a low-carbon economy should be fair, protecting workers, communities and regions that depend on fossil fuel industries and sharing the benefits widely.

In Turkish: adil geçiş, adil dönüşüm

How it is used

Used by governments, trade unions and development banks, and mentioned in the preamble of the Paris Agreement. Typical measures are retraining for coal workers, new local investment and social protection. Common phrases: just transition plan, just transition fund, ensure a just transition.

Example sentences

  1. The just transition plan includes retraining programs for 4,000 mine workers.

  2. Unions say a just transition must guarantee decent jobs in regions affected by coal closures.

Common collocations

  • ensure a just transition
  • just transition plan
  • just transition fund
  • affected communities
  • phase outTo stop using, producing or allowing something gradually, step by step over a planned period, for example coal power or harmful chemicals.
  • decarbonizationThe process of reducing the carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions of an economy, sector or company, for example by switching to clean energy and electrifying processes.
  • climate financeMoney from public, private and international sources that pays for reducing emissions and for adapting to the impacts of climate change, especially in developing countries.
  • sustainable developmentEconomic and social progress that meets the needs of people today while protecting the environment and natural resources that future generations will also need.
  • fossil fuelA fuel such as coal, oil or natural gas, formed underground over millions of years from the remains of plants and animals. Burning it releases carbon dioxide.

More terms: Climate Action: Mitigation and Adaptation

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