How Does Energy Transition Impact Vulnerable Populations? A Review of Challenges, Determinants, and Solutions for a Just Transition

Introduction: Energy justice is a framework that seeks to address the social, environmental, and economic inequalities that often arise in the context of energy production, distribution, and consumption. With the global surge in demand for lithium due to its critical role in renewable energy technologies, including electric vehicles and battery storage, there is growing concern about the impacts on local communities, especially those in resource-rich but marginalized areas. This paper explores the concept of energy justice in relation to community-led transitions, focusing on the Ewoyaa lithium mining community in Ghana. Methods: This paper critically examines the dynamics of energy justice in the Ewoyaa lithium extractive community, drawing on case studies of community-led energy transitions. It evaluates the role of inclusive decision-making, fair distribution of benefits, and sustainable practices within the context of lithium mining and the broader energy transition. Results: The analysis reveals the potential for empowering marginalized communities through the integration of local stakeholders in the decision-making process and by ensuring the fair distribution of benefits from energy resources. Additionally, it identifies the sustainable practices necessary for minimizing the negative impacts of lithium mining on the community and the environment. Discussion: The paper critiques the contemporary energy justice literature, proposing a model for integrating local communities into the energy transition process. This model emphasizes the importance of inclusive governance structures and sustainable practices to ensure equitable outcomes for communities affected by resource extraction, particularly in marginalized areas like the Ewoyaa community.

Currently, the energy transition is gaining more and more importance in European energy policy. This article aims to introduce the achievements, contributions and challenges of Europe's current energy transition. The article outlines some of the main energy goals and initiatives proposed and developed by EU institutions. The EU attaches great importance to renewable energy, energy efficiency and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), identifying them as the three ultimate supporters for achieving carbon neutrality. The EU aims to be climate neutral by 2050. However, since energy policy requires the joint efforts of EU institutions and the WTO, each WTO plays a key role in achieving the EU's goals. Differences in socio-economic and energy structures between EU WTOs lead to different speeds at which they can achieve EU targets. Taking Germany and Spain as examples, their political policies, measures and actions with regard to the energy transition are assessed. These two countries are just examples of differences in the implementation of EU energy and climate goals. The article also describes the ambitious "Green New Deal" initiative of the EU presidency. The initiative not only identifies key goals, but also safeguards Europe's commitment to the energy and climate transition. However, the plan faced major obstacles. The difference in energy level among member states in the process of energy transition may become an important factor hindering Europe from realizing the goal of energy transition. Another challenge is the opposition of some people, especially those who believe that the energy transition is designed to attract the coming economic and industrial transformation as well as harm their welfare and pose a potential threat to employment. Finally, the energy transition mentioned in this article is not only the responsibility of Spain and Germany, but also the responsibility of the entire European Union and other world economies. Only by working together to promote energy transition and build a community with a shared future for mankind can we make the world a better place. The United Kingdom (UK) also plays a major role in the European Union's (EU) energy transition ahead of its departure from the European Union in 2020. Here are some of the ways the UK is influencing the EU's energy transition:�(i) The first is renewable energy: the UK is one of the EU leaders in the deployment of renewable energy, especially offshore wind. UK expertise and investment in renewable energy helps advance the EU's renewable energy targets and develop innovative technologies for clean energy generation.�(2) The second is climate change: the UK has always been a staunch supporter of EU climate change policies, including the Paris Agreement. Its participation in the EU's efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions helps strengthen the EU's position as a global leader in the fight against climate change.�(iii) The third is the energy market: as an energy consumer and producer, the UK is an important participant in the EU energy market.�(iv) The fourth is energy research and innovation: the UK actively participates in EU-funded energy research and innovation projects. Its contributions to these programs help drive the development of new clean energy technologies and increase the overall effectiveness of the EU's energy transition efforts. Overall, the UK's participation in the EU's energy transition is significant, and its withdrawal poses some challenges for the EU. The impact of Brexit on the EU's energy transition is complex, and it remains to be seen how the EU will adapt to the loss of the UK's contribution to its energy policies and initiatives.�Brexit will also have some impact on the EU's energy transition, especially in the field of renewable energy. First of all, the UK is an important energy market in Europe, and Brexit will have a certain impact on the EU energy market. Second, the UK's own energy policy and future development direction will also affect the EU's energy transition. The United Kingdom has a relatively high level of development in renewable energy, and its policies may change after Brexit, such as reducing subsidies for renewable energy. This may affect the EU's progress in renewable energy, and even delay the EU's energy transition process. In addition, after Brexit, energy trade with the EU may be subject to certain restrictions, and it will take time and resources to form a new trade relationship. This may have some impact on the EU energy market and supply chain. It can be seen that the impact of Brexit on the European Union will affect the various member states of the European Union.�Brexit has brought certain uncertainties and challenges to the EU's energy transition, but at the same time there are also opportunities and potential areas of cooperation, which require the joint efforts of the EU and the UK.Finally, It can be explained how Europe's energy transition will also affect its external relations, for example with Russia, and propose how the two blocs can maintain energy relations in light of the energy transition, in particular through the conversion of natural gas into hydrogen and the storage/use of the resulting of carbon dioxide.

Fostering a democratic and socially just energy transition: How do Ombudspersons in Europe frame energy poverty?

Energy transition as a process of decarbonizing energy systems is considered a key mitigation strategy in the global effort to curb rising temperatures stemming from greenhouse gases. The main challenge with the energy transition process has to do with the social, economic, political and technological capacities of a country to undertake this transition process for which developing countries globally are lagging behind. The purpose of this study is the present a policy discussion paper looking at the pertinent social, economic and institutional challenges that developing countries need to consider in its energy transition process. As a case study, the paper also looked at the economy of Guyana, a country that is experiencing an oil and gas boom and also has committed to developing a low carbon development strategy. The paper implemented a narrative literature review and constructed the case study for Guyana utilizing secondary information on policy positions and directives for the energy sector in Guyana. Several pertinent issues within developing countries were identified including centralized and state dominated markets, poor infrastructure to support the transition process, availability of technology, energy justice and energy bullying and a lack of policies that foster community energy systems, energy sensitization and energy investments. These issues also reverberated with Guyana with policy recommendations emphasizing on collective actions needed to address the policy needs of developing countries in their transition process. The issues identified within the policy discussion of this paper can be used by policy makers globally as a potential framework for identifying the research gaps and priority areas to channel resources and technical skills to enhance the energy transition process in developing countries.

This chapter will explore the meanings of energy justice in the specific context of the low-carbon transition. I start with the dominant three-tenets theoretical framework of procedural, distributional, and recognition justice. Then I examine the relationship between energy justice and other concepts of justice such as climate, environment, mobility, and planetary justice as well as ‘just transitions’. Developing countries will account for over ⅔ of the world’s energy demand in the coming decades but scholarship continues to view the concept of energy justice largely through a Western perspective. So, I analyse the extent to which scholarship relating to the low-carbon transition in developing countries considers ‘universal’ meanings of energy justice, develops context-specific versions of the concept, or relies on other concepts such as energy ethics, energy equity, energy poverty and equity sovereignty. I then turn to the relationship between energy justice and energy injustice. The conclusion reflects on some challenges facing the quest for meanings of energy justice and identifies some areas for future research.

Energy poverty affects numerous households across the globe and has several key implications and concerns for public health and social equity. Energy poverty is defined as “the lack of access to modern and affordable energy services”. Individuals or communities in energy poverty face limitations in accessing reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy. This review paper examines a focused subset of recent research on energy poverty highlighted by the “NSF 2026: Priorities and Research Needs for an Equitable Energy Transition” workshop and the United States Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Justice Policy and Analysis to help frame energy poverty’s impacts on policy, poverty alleviation, environmental impact, and social inequity. This review paper uses five themes to organize previous energy poverty work: (1) Energy Poverty and Justice Definitions and Metrics; (2) Behavioral Aspects of Energy Poverty; (3) Efficacy of Energy Assistance Programs; (4) Efficiency of Energy Efficiency Policy; (5) The Energy Transition and Environmental and Energy Justice. We found that the literature examined how comprehensive assessment of energy poverty requires going beyond standard statistics and metrics and must include an understanding of how underserved households interact with energy. We found strong optimism for the clean energy transition’s ability to significantly alleviate energy poverty, but only if policymakers include equity. Finally, we found that while there is plenty of work highlighting deficiencies there is a dearth of work examining successful implementations and how to replicate them which will be needed if the clean energy transition is to match its potential.

Energy poverty is a multifaceted and urgent issue in the Global South, especially in South Africa, where, despite an electrification rate exceeding 90%, a substantial 40% of the population still experiences energy poverty. This paper presents a systematic review of literature on energy poverty in South Africa, covering the period from 1994 to 2023. The review identifies eleven key themes that offer a multi-dimensional perspective on such energy poverty. It offers insights into addressing critical issues for advancing an equitable and just energy system. Understanding the extent and nature of energy poverty could facilitate a deeper understanding of (in)justices entrenched in South Africa’s socio-technical energy system, for policymakers, practitioners and experts alike. Energy justice is employed as an analytical framework to examine the implications of energy poverty through the lenses of restorative, distributive, procedural, and recognitional justice. The analysis seeks to contribute to South Africa’s just transition (JT) Framework, which currently addresses energy poverty primarily as a matter of restorative justice. South Africa’s just energy transition cannot be achieved in an inclusive and transformative manner without accounting for multifaceted dynamics at the household level; here, energy poverty serves to bring about a more intersectional focus on the justice dimensions inherent in energy transitions. The findings underscore the need to address energy poverty at the household level, where it intersects with broader socio-technical dynamics. Such a multi-dimensional perspective on energy poverty in South Africa could help to inform targeted policies and initiatives to meet the specific needs of energy-poor households, while broader socio-technical changes are accelerated as part of the energy transition, thus more strongly meeting the goals spelled out in the JT Framework.

The pursuit of climate action to meet net-zero targets has triggered the call for a global energy transition from fossil fuels to clean energy sources. However, this global energy transition does not entirely recognise all countries’ social, economic and technological capacities as well as emission contributions as envisaged under the Common but Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR) principle, which underlies international climate policy. It is concerned more with the outcome of transitioning to clean energy than with justice in the transition process. Recognition justice, an element of energy justice, enables us to identify the inequalities that global energy paradigms (such as the energy transition) can create and how a justice framework can help us understand the implications of energy injustice and address the inequities across energy systems. Recognition justice acknowledges the divergent perspectives rooted in social, economic and racial differences and the varied strengths of developed and developing countries. The energy transition process ought to recognise these differences so that they are reasonably expected to benefit everyone. Implementing the energy transition in the Global South (GS) in the same way as it is being advanced in the Global North will have security, justice, economic, resource-stranding, and sustainable development implications. This issue (of injustice in the energy transition) is aggravated by two dichotomous realities: many countries in the South will be most impacted by climatic changes, yet there remains political and social opposition to climate action through the energy transition. As a solution, this paper relies on the notion of recognition justice with support from the Rawlsian justice concept to argue that a delayed transition represents justice and recognises the peculiar nature and different circumstances of the GS. It identifies that learnings from the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer and the notion of CBDR under international climate treaties can be mainstreamed into energy transition research and policies to achieve justice for countries of the GS. The paper further finds that a delayed transition for the GS will (i) enable the region to address sustainability-related issues of hunger and multidimensional poverty, essential to realising other Sustainable Development Goals, whilst gradually implementing energy transition policies; (ii) present an attractive case against political and social opposition to energy transition in the GS; (iii) advance the goal of CBDR already recognised under international climate treaties and the bifurcated approaches established in such treaties; and, finally, (iv) ensure that developed countries contributing the most to greenhouse gas emissions take the lead now and act while the GS effectuates national contributions sustainably.

Across global divides and territories, the realities of global warming and climate change have stirred up discussions, resolutions and actions (‘strategies’) that are aimed at significantly reducing the emission of greenhouse gases and promoting sustainable development. One strategy is to transit from the use of emission-laden sources of energy to low-carbon and renewable sources of energy, a process known as energy transition. While the drive towards energy transition appears to be gaining significant ground in the Global North, the South appears to be grappling with series of issues that slow down their pace, one being energy poverty. In some quarters, Africa is regarded as the world’s most energy-poor continent, a description that bespeaks extremely low levels of primary energy demand, consumption, access and security. While this is a generalised description of the continent, the epicentre of energy poverty within the continent is Sub-Saharan Africa, a region where most people contend with lack of access to power and reliance on traditional biomass for cooking. While the region grapples with energy poverty, there is the increasing push for the continent as a whole to upscale its energy transition process. Relying on doctrinal research methodology, this paper considers the energy poverty situation in the region, analyses the energy transition movement, and argues that Sub-Saharan Africa needs to firmly focus on working towards the achievement of energy adequacy that can in turn lead to energy autonomy in the region.

Energy justice has emerged as a matter of vital concern in energy law, with resonances in the attention directed to energy poverty, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. There are energy justice concerns in areas of law as diverse as human rights, consumer protection, international law and trade, and in many forms of regional and national energy law and regulation. The book covers main themes related to justice. Distributive justice, the equitable distribution of the benefits and burdens of energy activities, is challenged mainly by the existence of people suffering from energy poverty. This concept is also associated with substantive energy equity through such measures as the realization of ‘energy’ rights. There is also a procedural (or participation) justice, consisting in the right of all communities to participate in decision-making regarding energy projects and policies that affect them (this dimension of energy justice often includes procedural rights to information and access to courts). Under the concept of reparation (or restorative) justice, the book includes even-handed enforcement of energy statutes and regulations, as well as access to remedies when legal rights are violated. Finally, the idea of recognition or social justice means that energy injustice cannot be separated from other social ills, such as poverty and subordination based on caste, race, gender, or indigeneity, the need to take into account people who are often ignored. These issues are given specific momentum by thinking through how we might achieve a ‘just’ energy transition as the world faces the climate change challenges.

An energy justice index for the energy transition in the global South

In the name of the European Green Deal that “leaves no one behind,” energy transition projects multiply. Amid this rush, scholars warn about their justice concerns: uneven distribution of costs and benefits, marginalization of certain sections of society, and absence of mechanisms for remediating injustices. However, energy justice scholarship often overlooks how energy transitions can facilitate authoritarian dynamics. Many assume that democratic progress supports just energy transitions, while democratic backsliding halts them. Others argue that the urgency of low-carbon transitions justifies sidelining democracy, despite evidence from authoritarian regimes where such projects trample Indigenous rights, suppress activists and enable corruption. Authoritarian states maintain complex relationships with disadvantaged communities, often using energy poverty to justify policies that reinforce their power under the guise of just transitions. This article examines how rising authoritarianism can hamper just energy transformations and calls for integrating democracy into energy justice research. I explore two key challenges: (a) how authoritarian regimes manipulate energy poverty narratives to tighten control and (b) how struggles over energy justice can expose cracks in authoritarian rule. By theorizing democracy within energy justice, I aim to shift the research agenda toward more inclusive and just energy transformations, emphasizing democracy as a central concern.

Recent political, economic and policy change in the US, Australia, and Europe, in particular, have put transitions towards low-carbon energy futures at the forefront of local and national policy agendas. How these transitions are managed is likely to affect the feasibility, timing and scope of transition policy. Recognizing the existing maldistribution of the benefits and burdens of fossil fuel-based extraction, energy generation, and distribution, advocates and scholars increasingly call for policies that not only support decarbonization goals, but also those of equity. Proposals that do not contain such goals may be met with resistance. This review examines the politics of achieving more just outcomes by asking, what is our current understanding of justice advocacy and the impacts of such advocacy on the energy transition? In this study, we systematically review articles that include the key concepts of ‘just transition’ or ‘energy justice’ and that examine advocacy in energy transition contexts. We find advocates from diverse communities and affiliated with varied organizational types are involved in advocacy. Diverse issues motivate advocates and the most common advocate type in the literature are residents that are affected by local impacts of energy transition decisions. Extra-institutional tactics are the most common means of advocate action. We also find that advocacy is often motivated by issues related to decision-making processes and environmental degradation. These findings illuminate that: (a) energy systems and transitions are governed by processes and institutions that are often inaccessible, (b) advocates often attempt to affect change using tactics external to such processes and institutions, and (c) issues of environmental degradation are often prominent in advocacy discourse concerning the energy transition. Future research should seek to more clearly determine advocates’ primary motivations and the tactics and actions that ultimately aid or hinder more equitable outcomes.

The threats climate change poses require rapid and wide decarbonization efforts in the energy sector. Historically, large-scale energy operations, often instrumental for a scaled and effective approach to meet decarbonization goals, undergird energy-related injustices. Energy poverty is a multi-dimensional form of injustice, with relevance to low-carbon energy transitions. Defined as the condition of being unable to access an adequate level of household energy services, energy poverty persists despite the emergence of affordable renewable energy technologies, such as solar photovoltaics (PV). Historical injustices and the modularity of solar PV combine to offer new possibilities in ownership, production and distribution of cost-competitive, clean and collectively scalable energy. Consequently, emerging policy priorities for positive energy districts call into question the traditional large-scale modality of energy operations. We report from a case study of solar power in Lisbon, a frontrunner in urban energy transitions while also home to high energy poverty incidence. The study focuses on scalar aspects of justice in energy transitions to investigate whether and how solar PV can alleviate urban energy poverty. It features 2 months of fieldwork centered on community and expert perspectives, including semi-structured interviews and field observations. We mobilize a spatial energy justice framework to identify justice aspects of multi-scalar solar PV uptake. By showing how energy justice is shaped in diverse ways at different scales, we demonstrate ways in which scale matters for just urban energy transitions. We argue that small- and medium-scaled approaches to electricity distribution, an integral component of positive energy districts, can address specific justice concerns. However, even as such approaches gain attention and legitimacy, they risk structurally excluding socio-economically vulnerable users, and proceed slowly relative to large-scale solar rollout.

Do renewable energy communities deliver energy justice? Exploring insights from 71 European cases