Just green transitions – Practising utopia?

Abstract

"Just green transitions – Practising utopia?." disP - The Planning Review, 59(2), pp. 4–5 Notes1 The European Green Deal is only the last step in conspicuous legislative and policy activities conducted by the EU Commission in the field of energy and the environment, following the inclusion of environmental competence in the treaties in the 1970s (Cotella et al. Citation2016).2 To achieve this, the EU has set intermediate targets, including a 55% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 1990 levels.3 The Just Transition Mechanism provides targeted support to help mobilise around €55 billion in the most affected regions over the period 2021–2027, to alleviate the socio-economic impact of the transition.4 In their thorough literature review on the matter, Samper et al. (Citation2021) point out that transitions are deeply political and involve considering the power relations and vested interests within energy systems.Additional informationNotes on contributorsGiancarlo CotellaGiancarlo Cotella is an Associate Professor of Spatial Planning at Politecnico di Torino and, since 2023, he has served as the Secretary General of the Association of European Schools of Planning. His research is positioned within comparative spatial planning studies, focusing, in particular, on EU multilevel territorial governance and the Europeanisation of spatial planning.