Brief
An inclusive Social Climate Fund for the just transition
“Vulnerable citizens and families are more likely to have the least resources to face climate change, both financially, to move away from fossil-fuels, and politically, to have their voices heard in policymaking. The Social Climate Fund is an unprecedented opportunity to fill this financial and political gap.”
The just transition will not be just if it is not inclusive. Currently, one in five Europeans are at risk of poverty or social exclusion. “To leave no one behind” implies taking extra care of the most vulnerable groups in the energy transition. Vulnerable citizens and families are more likely to have the least resources to face climate change, both financially, to move away from fossil-fuels, and politically, to have their voices heard in policymaking. The Social Climate Fund (SCF) proposed by the European Commission in July 2021 is an unprecedented opportunity to fill this financial and political gap. The SCF has the potential to support access to essential energy and mobility services for vulnerable citizens across the European Union (EU). It would serve as a complement to the Just Transition Mechanism that primarily is dedicated to mitigating social and employment impacts in coal dependent regions.
However, the current proposal offers insufficient guarantees for fulfilling expectations on social justice, decarbonisation, and more inclusive governance. Building on our previous brief on the Social Climate Fund that highlighted the need to decouple the SCF from the “ETS2” (the proposed Emissions Trading System on heating and road transportation), this brief outlines the key conditions to ensure that the SCF delivers a just transition. First, we present the main features of the Commission’s SCF proposal, and thereafter we turn to highlight why social acceptability should be the guiding principle of the SCF. This implies: (1) leaving enough room for social compensation targeted at the most vulnerable in the transition, which will be indispensable in some national contexts; (2) financing salient decarbonisation programmes targeted to the most vulnerable; and (3) implementing inclusive consultation, decision-making, and monitoring processes in the governance of the fund.
Recommended citation:
Defard C. & Thalberg K. 2022. “An inclusive Social Climate Fund for the just transition”, Policy brief, Jacques Delors Institute, January 2022.
SUR LE MÊME THÈME
ON THE SAME THEME
PUBLICATIONS
Make the Social Climate Fund a game changer to tackle energy poverty
[FR] France’s energy future
The need for a socially-just European Green Deal
Energy Sufficiency
Stop feeding the bear
Climate policy
of the new German Government
The European recovery plan as a breakthrough for green innovation? Challenges and opportunities for an innovative green recovery
High energy prices. Russia fights back?
Addressing the climate and social emergencies with minimum energy performance standards
Cop 26: Europe leads the way towards climate neutrality
The European energy price spike
A Social Climate Fund for a fair energy transition
Putting the cart before the horse? PERSPECTIVES ON A POTENTIAL ETS ON RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS
Young people facing the crisis: bouncing back with the EU
Climate: How do MEPs vote?
the French and the environment
Make regulation fit for innovation
Europe needs to innovate
to become a front-runner in the global green economy race
Greening EU Trade 4:
How to “green” trade agreements?
FRUGAL MEMBER STATES VS. THE EU:
NOT TOO MUCH PLEASE
European Green Transparency
Lessons from France and Further Room Improvement
Science and Innovation as the way out of the crisis
Building a clean mobility system in times of COVID-19
European debt mutualisation
Crisis notebook
Crisis Notebook
Jacques Delors Institute supports letters to EC Vice Presidents
An ambitious recovery budget, tough negotiations ahead
CRISIS NOTEBOOK
A European Border Carbon Adjustment proposal
Greening EU trade – 3
CARNETS DE CRISE
Overcoming covid-19 crises
by building a clean and resilient Europe
Making the Green Deal a European success
Coalition, narrative, flagships
Greening EU trade policy – 2 :
the economics of trade and environment
The European Green deal starts with the energy transition
Time to green EU trade policy : but how?
Innovation for the energy & climate transition
Climate Change: at the Heart of a New European Political Balance
Europe: facing climate change
COP21: an opportunity to speed up the global energy transition
2015 Climate negotiations: Speeding up or slowing down the energy transition?
The reality of precaution: US-EU comparative analysis
Making more of our interdependence
Think Global – Act European IV. Thinking Strategically about the EU’s External Action
Think Global – Act European IV – Thinking Strategically about the EU’s External Action
EU resource management: time for coherence
A green path of growth for the European economy? Synthesis of Green Forum 2012
Achieving a Doubly Green Revolution
Response to Policy Paper 34 ” Clinton, Obama, McCain : Europe’s Best Hope for Fighting Climate Change”
U.S. Climate Policy and the European Response: A way forward – Response to the Policy Paper 34 “Clinton, Obama, McCain: Europe’s Best Hope for Fighting Climate Change”
Clinton, Obama, McCain – Europe’s Best Hope for Fighting Climate Change
MÉDIAS
MEDIAS
Climat : l’UE veut faire payer le CO2 aux ménages, malgré le risque social
Les zones à faibles émissions, une stratégie pas si écologique
Le b.a.-ba des zones à faibles émissions avec Reporterre
