Ecosocial transition
Ezio Costa Cordella
Eco-social transition is a process of systemic transformation through which social and ecological systems move from one state of equilibrium to another, leading to a fundamental reconfiguration of their functioning, organisation and the interface between society and nature.
However, beyond this general definition, the concept of eco-social transition is not unambiguous; rather, it allows for various interpretations depending on contextual and temporal factors. In particular, the distinction between the systemic concept of transition and its application when incorporating variables of justice is significant.
From a systemic perspective, the eco-social (or ecological) transition cannot be understood as a deliberate or fully governed process, but as a transformation that occurs independently of the will of social actors, even though it may be guided by public policies. In other words, the transition is taking place with or without public policies to guide it, but such policies may steer it towards desired and orderly outcomes.
In this approach, which draws on Loorbach’s (2009) theory of transition management and Gunderson and Holling’s (2002) panarchy model, the transition unfolds across multiple spatiotemporal scales, niches, regimes and landscapes, following non-linear patterns of pre-development, take-off, acceleration and stabilisation. This systemic understanding connects directly with the contributions of Fischer-Kowalski and Haberl (2007) on socio-ecological metabolism (see Social Metabolism) and with the idea that social systems exist in an open, interdependent relationship with their natural environment, such that changes in the latter produce systemic transformations that transcend any sectoral regulatory framework (see Interdependence).
The incorporation of justice variables into this systemic concept gives rise to a distinct framework: that of a just transition. The term began to be used by trade unions in the 1990s to address the need to provide economic security for people who lost their jobs as a result of environmental protection policies (International Labour Organisation [ILO], 2018). Thus, the idea of a ‘just transition’ was initially confined to labour safeguards in polluting industries and entailed that any productive transition should be planned around the four pillars of the ILO’s Decent Work Agenda (2008).
As the concept has evolved, two main definitions can now be identified. The first focuses on the public support that should be provided to workers and communities whose livelihoods are threatened by the decline of polluting industries. This definition is closer to that of the ILO, which adopted the ‘Policy Guidelines for a Just Transition to Environmentally Sustainable Economies and Societies for All’, incorporating a social consensus on just transition, fundamental labour rights, gender equality, inter-ministerial coherence, decent work, social protection against unemployment, territorial adaptation and international cooperation (ILO, 2015). The second, broader interpretation, emphasises the importance of ensuring that the transition does not take place at the expense of the well-being of vulnerable groups – a logic it considers inherent to fossil-fuel-based economies (Just Transition Research Collaborative, 2018).
In both definitions, the main concern of a just transition is to create conditions ensuring that the distribution of burdens and benefits arising from transition processes does not worsen the circumstances of vulnerable individuals and groups, nor make those who have contributed least to the crisis bear its costs (see Ecological vulnerability). These minimum distributional conditions address the allocation of present burdens and benefits, intergenerational justice, democratic participation in decision-making regarding the transition, and the remediation of damages (Costa Cordella, 2025).
In 2015, the term was included in the Paris Agreement. In 2021, with the Glasgow Pact, the concept of a just or eco-social transition evolved and was extended to broader issues, such as indigenous rights, gender considerations and human rights in general (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 2021).
This understanding is not without its tensions: the concept of a just transition has been appropriated both by conservative agendas aimed at ‘greening’ capitalism (see Green Capitalism) and by proposals for more profound structural transformation. The difficulty lies, ultimately, in the fact that just transition has been formulated primarily for scenarios of voluntary and governed transition, leaving unaddressed the numerous transition processes that occur in an uncoordinated manner and without active public policies – which are precisely those that concentrate the greatest vulnerability (Costa Cordella, 2025).
Indeed, the just transition has been incorporated as a guiding principle in areas such as the energy transition, meaning that state policy in this field must be approached with an awareness of its distributional effects. However, it has not been effectively extended to other ecological transitions, and is particularly absent where the social system’s response is not mediated by specific public policies. For example, the increase in heatwaves – which were less common in the past – is driving a transition in social systems across many regions: where, for instance, established timings for outdoor activities have had to be adjusted, or where household infrastructure previously sufficient to cope with the heat is no longer adequate. This poses a major risk to vulnerable populations who cannot adapt in an isolated or uncoordinated manner, as they are unable to acquire the necessary equipment to ensure their homes can withstand high temperatures effectively. In the absence of policies to address these effects, the concept of a just transition is not being implemented.
This is linked to the hegemonic use of the term ‘transition’ to refer specifically to the energy transition. Presumably, the popularisation of this usage over others is a consequence of promoting this technical solution as the sole means of resolving the climate crisis (see Ecologism), in line with the interests of big business and disregarding other proposals, including those framed within the degrowth approach.
Gradually, the notion of a just transition has evolved towards other social objectives. Through the adoption of the term by certain international organisations, the just transition is increasingly being linked to the protection of human rights in a broader sense. Thus, for example, there have been conceptual advances from the Global South.
Among others, in South Africa a presidential commission was established to draft the ‘Framework for a Just Transition’ (Government of South Africa, 2022), which set out the need to incorporate the principles of: (i) distributive justice; (ii) restorative justice; and (iii) procedural justice. For its part, the Chilean government, when revising its nationally determined contributions in November 2022, stated that this is a “process which, through social dialogue and collective empowerment, seeks to transform society into a resilient and equitable one, capable of addressing the social, ecological and climate crisis” (Ministry of the Environment, 2022).
In short, the socio-ecological (or ecological) transition is an ongoing material process through which interactions between society and the environment are modified in order to reach new possible points of equilibrium, given the new reality brought about by the climate and ecological crisis. For this very reason, the transition can be observed at different scales and across various sectors, although in most of these there are neither policies to guide or steer such transitions, nor, even less so, an active pursuit of a just transition.
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Costa Cordella, E. (2025). La inevitable transición ecológica y la deseable transición justa. Revista MAD, 52, 39–58. https://doi.org/10.5354/0719-0527.2025.79432
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