Policy Brief: Unlocking the governance challenges of Just Transition in the EU

Author(s): Andrei Marcu, Marina Monciatti, Pietro Cesaro

This brief looks into the European Just Transition process, with a specific focus on the Just Transition Fund (JTF) and its underpinning Territorial Just Transition Plans (TJTPs). It examines the governance challenges identified from the consultations and literature review and injects some ideas for strengthening the Just Transition governance process both at EU and Member State level.

Key messages

• While in certain Member States and regions of the EU we see strong Just Transition governance frameworks in place, in some others accountability, clarity on implementation plans, inclusive dialogue and transparency are lacking.
• Establishing a long-term vision and a detailed transition plan will prove crucial for the socio-economic success of regions in transition in the following decades.
• Looking beyond the JTF and the TJTPs, in the longer term, political and economic decisions will have to be made in this context and we believe that the basic principle to be followed should be to make Just Transition self-sustainable and cost-efficient beyond grant-based instruments as the JTF. One example would be to strengthen the InvestEU component of the JTM.
• Social and environmental objectives throughout the EU decarbonisation process will only be reached by a well-proportioned mix of market approaches, standards, and regulations in conjunction with a strong political vision.