Lessons from previous coal transitions

Will the climate agreement reached at the COP in Paris in 2015 on global CO2 reductions contribute to a reduction in coal consumption in countries where coal continues to be important? What will be the social and economic consequences of this agreement? IDDRI and Climate Strategies – the leaders of the Coal Transitions project, whose Polish partner is the Institute for Structural Research (IBS) – presented a report containing conclusions about transformation in the mining industry in the: Czech Republic, Spain, the Netherlands, Poland, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The most important theses of the report:

1. The transition out of coal is inevitable
2. If well-anticipated, and actively managed, just transitions are possible
3. Time is running short for the “just transition”
4. In purely economic terms, the costs of a managed transition are often lower than the costs of no transition
5. Key recommendations that are essential to enable a just transition:

• forging basic consensus between stakeholders on the essential questions of ‘whether and why’ to transition
• governments using their leverage early on to promote constructive social dialogue
• stakeholders developing a transition plan that they have ownership of and that reflects local circumstances

The report has been published on the Coal Transitions website -> report (press summary).