What do just green transition policies actually do in practice?

Date and location:

February 23, 2026

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Publications

Case Studies

The case studies in the GreenPaths project (Horizon Europe) aim to generate a rich, empirically grounded understanding of how green transition policies shape both environmental sustainability and social wellbeing across diverse contexts.

By examining 15 cases that span different countries, welfare models and transition challenges, they provide concrete evidence on how European policies operate in practice, including their intended effects and unintended social or environmental impacts, both within Europe and in the Global South. Through this comparative lens, the case studies help identify patterns, externalities and context‑specific dynamics that are essential for designing fairer, more effective and more sustainable policy interventions.

They cover a wide range of topics and address concrete and often contested realities across Europe and the Global South – from lithium mining in Serbia, coastal touristification in Croatia, and “green” finance through the European Investment Bank, to the impacts of the Common Agricultural Policy on land governance.

You can explore the 15 case studies, interactive map and reports here: https://greenpaths.info/greenpaths-case-studies/

The GreenPaths project has developed 15 case studies to evaluate the social and environmental impacts of just transition policies in diverse contexts. Due to the geographical, sectoral, methodological, and conceptual diversity of these cases, it is challenging to establish a systematic comparison that yields clear conclusions. The Analytical Framework (D2.4) and the Conceptual and Methodological Matrix (D3.1) were designed to help align the case studies and were already used throughout the execution of T3.2 (“Carry out a set of 15 case studies”) and thus, in the production of contributions for D3.2 and D3.3.

To address the diversity of results, an internal webinar was organised, aimed at identifying common patterns or specificities linked to sectors or cases, as well as insights that can inspire the redesign and improvement of just transition policies. The purpose of this session was to invite reflection and discussion in an argumentative, critical and open tone, and the outcomes led to the present discussion paper.

The webinar and the corresponding discussion paper contribute to the alignment of case-study questions and the overarching project questions, inspired and guided by the Analytical Framework (D2.4). This exercise aims at improving the coherence and quality of the inputs generated for subsequent stages of the project, especially in what concerns the co-design of green transition pathways (WP5).

Synthesis of the case studies

The green transition brings significant environmental benefits, such as emissions reduction, biodiversity protection, and ecosystem restoration, alongside potential social gains like job creation, energy security, and improved living standards. However, these benefits are often unevenly distributed and remain largely aspirational, while negative impacts are immediate and tangible. Key challenges include degraded public participation, governance fragmentation, and persistent inequalities affecting vulnerable groups and regions. Extractivist practices, “green grabbing” of land, and carbon leakage perpetuate global asymmetries, while precarious employment, rising costs, and social conflicts deepen injustice, foster fragmentation and endanger mutual trust. Methodological gaps in data collection and impact measurement further hinder accountability.

Promising initiatives aim to strengthen democratic governance and transparency through participatory mechanisms, legal reforms, and free, prior, and informed consent processes. Civil society mobilises through activism, litigation, and territorial defence movements, while innovative frameworks promote social dialogue. State-led strategies advance renewable energy and industrial capacity, complemented by technology transfer and skills training. Local initiatives, including sustainable public procurement and agricultural diversification, demonstrate socially inclusive models. At the international level, tools for the monitoring of climate funding and offshoring of emissions enhance financial transparency and mitigate carbon leakage.

Reflection on GreenPaths case studies: identifying impacts of just transition policies in the EU and Global South.

Policy Lab’s case study

At Policy Lab, we contributed research on how the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) shapes land use and land concentration in Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia.

What do just green transition policies actually do in practice?