India on 18 November made an important intervention during the ‘Second Annual High-Level Ministerial Round Table on Just Transition’, at the CoP29 of the UN Climate Change Summit in Baku, Azerbaijan.
- Participating Nations had to deliberate on the expectations on the UAE ‘Just Transition Work’ programme, and how can it serve as an effective tool for assisting Parties in further defining and implementing their climate plans in the context of just transition pathways that promote sustainable development and poverty eradication.
- Environment Ministry’s (MoEFCC) Secretary clarified that India’s interpretation of ‘Just Transitions’ is far broader than the narrow framing of the questions.
- She further said that the principles of equity and Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC) are foundational to all work under the Convention and its Paris Agreement”.
- India raised concerns over unilateral coercive measures, intellectual Property Rights on green technologies, carbon debt etc.
Just transition concept
- The concept of “just transition” has been around since the 1980s, when it was used in a movement by US trade unions to protect workers affected by new water and air pollution regulations.
- In recent years, the concept has gained traction with reference to meeting climate goals by ensuring the whole of society – all communities, all workers, all social groups – are brought along in the pivot to a net-zero future.
