GREEN-PATHS: European Knowledge Hub On Just Transition Pathways

Project Information

GreenPaths

Grant agreement ID: 101112305

DOI

10.3030/101112305

EC signature date 15 May 2023

Start date 1 October 2023

End date 30 September 2026

Funded under

• Culture, creativity and inclusive society

Total cost

No data

EU contribution

€ 2 997 616,26

Coordinated by

UNIVERSIDAD DE CANTABRIA
Spain

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - GREENPATHS (GREEN-PATHS: European Knowledge Hub On Just Transition Pathways)

Reporting period: 2024-04-01 to 2025-03-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

GreenPaths is a Coordination and Support Action project that addresses the complex & multi-dimensional nature of the planned transition & aims to focus on supporting a "just" transition.

Based on an enhanced understanding of the key issues & challenges influencing the transitions, & an in-depth review and synthesis of the latest and most relevant research, GreenPaths aims to enable the development & adoption of more coherent and effective policy strategies and instruments, furthering the positive outcomes & reducing the negative impacts on environmental sustainability & social well-being.

To improve the design, governance and implementation of transition strategies, GreenPaths pays particular attention to the European Green Deal, the Fit for 55 package, & the actions funded by the Just Transition Fund and the European Social Fund+.

GreenPaths has 6 key objectives. These are to:

1) Map and explain links between policies, environmental sustainability & social well-being;

2) Identify and assess indicators & tools to analyse interactions between climate interdependencies, environmental sustainability & social well-being;

3) Develop systemic, in-depth & innovative understandings of green transition policies & approaches vis-à-vis social impacts & trade-offs;

4) Offer new insights into the relevance & significance of institutional, regulatory & legal frameworks affecting the green transitions;

5) Produce policy recommendations for desirable changes in European & national policies through a multi-stakeholder backcasting approach & the participatory design of lighthouse projects;

6) Facilitate an enhanced civil society-stakeholder-policy dialogue on green transition pathways.

These objectives are being achieved by the well positioned, consortium with long-term experience on the topic through a comprehensive mixed-methods approach, to be tested and grounded in a series of case studies, which lead into a more participatory & influential engagement with policymakers, civil society organisations & other relevant stakeholders.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

GreenPaths work performed & main technical and scientific achievements include:

1) Reports bringing together what is known on the just transition across multiple sectors, including institutional frameworks & tools linked to the green transition;

2) The GreenPaths analytical framework, comprising indicators and tools, conceptual and methodological guidelines and common reporting template for case studies;

3). Setting up the evidence-based communication platform - Greenpaths Hub;

4) Conducting communications & dissemination activities showcasing GreenPaths work, including webinars on just transition topics & a policy brief;

5). Managing the project's scientific & technological objectives according to budget and schedule.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

GreenPaths aims to set a new benchmark in the production and dissemination of knowledge related to social impact assessments geared towards just green transitions. Its output so far is starting to demonstrate scientific, social & economic impact.

Scientific: GreenPaths' contribution is to produce works synthesising what is known in existing works about the green transition, with a view to improve just transition policies. Its works on: institutional frameworks & tools linked to the green transition; analytical framework comprising indicators and tools; conceptual & methodological guidelines; & common reporting template for case studies are good examples. Dissemination of these outputs have helped further develop the scientific impact of GreenPaths, particularly, thanks to the evidence-based GreenPaths Knowledge Hub, used to upload the project’s main scientific output with the aim of achieving broad diffusion, in accessible, understandable and open access format. GreenPaths’ ongoing work on case studies will produce publications towards the end of the project and after the project’s life, targeting world-class, high impact journals in the field, as well as more accessible publications, such as blogs.

Social: GreenPaths aims to improve the design of green transition policies rendering them more just, with clear societal benefits. GreenPaths work to date prepares the ground for the consortium’s conducting of case studies all contributing to social impact. For example, its works on understanding, critiquing and improving institutional frameworks and tools linked to the green transition and the GreenPaths analytical framework comprising indicators & tools, in addition to work on conceptual and methodological guidelines & reporting templates for case studies, build the foundation upon which the consortium is developing their case studies, to understand the social acceptability and feasibility of the green transition, and its social and environmental costs and benefits, ultimately in order to propose improvements to green transition policies regarding their design and implementation rendering more just in Europe (and beyond).

Economic; GreenPaths’ work towards a just transition can impact the creation of more & better jobs & promote regional development. Its output towards the production of the GreenPaths conceptual and methodological guidelines & reporting case study template set the scene for the case studies. Here, the consortium is analysing multiple economic sectors to better understand the social acceptability, feasibility & cost/benefit of different green transition policies to strengthen labour impact assessments.