National plans to address climate change, or what are known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), are one of the most important cornerstones of the Paris Climate Agreement. In these documents, the countries that are Party to the Paris Agreement set out the climate mitigation targets they plan to meet in order to limit the increase in the global average temperature to “well below 2°C”.

Many important lessons have already been learned from the development and implementation of the first NDCs over the past five years since the Paris Agreement was adopted. A recent FES publication discusses the importance of civil society engagement in developing and implementing the ambitious climate plans. Other studies on this topic have come to very similar conclusions. There appears to be a general consensus that broad civil society participation is instrumental for ambitious climate protection — and that combining the varied knowledge of many different actors is the most effective way of achieving results.

At the same time, it has also become clear that social justice must be at the heart of the political decision-making processes regarding the NDCs from the very start, and should not only be factored in during the later phases when the most important decisions have already been taken. This is the only way to guarantee that climate policy and decarbonisation is being pursued in a socially just manner, in keeping with the principles of a just transition. For some time now, the FES has been focused on the subject of a just transition at the global level. Trade unions play a vital role in this process. This is something that is also especially important when drawing up the NDCs at the national level. Yet, to date, very few studies have been conducted on how the principles of a just transition have been integrated into the NDC processes, and indeed how this will be done in the future. The same applies to the general participation in these processes of trade unions as part of the broader network of civil society actors.

This paper aims to bridge the gap between the ambitious and transformative development and implementation of the NDCs, on the one hand, and a socially just climate policy in keeping with a just transition, on the other. It seeks to outline the most important tenets which must be taken into account to successfully incorporate the principles of a just transition into the NDCs. In order to illustrate how this has happened so far, and which actors have been involved, the paper draws on three country case studies: Costa Rica, South Africa and Ukraine. The publication aims to answer the following questions: What tools can help in initiating and implementing processes for the integration of the principles of a just transition in NDCs? What country-specific circumstances must be borne in mind, in particular when it comes to processes of social dialogue and coalition building? And what general recommendations can be derived from this, especially for participating governments, civil society and trade unions?

In essence, this is about forging broad civil society alliances, comprising key actors, from climate activists to trade unions, enabling us to strive for socially just, ambitious climate action together. Now, in the context of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow in November 2021, this is more important than ever. During the conference, the focus will once again be on increasing commitments and updating the NDCs of all Parties to the Paris Agreement. After all, one thing is clear: without a just transition and social justice, ambitious climate plans to meet the 1.5° target will come to nothing — and to ensure this does not happen, the participation of civil society and especially of trade unions is crucial.