In the European Union context, a just transition refers to the shift toward a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy in a way that is fair, inclusive and leaves no one behind. To support this effort, the European Environment Agency (EEA) is hosting a webinar that brings together insights from recent research and country-level practices to better understand the socio-economic impacts of the circular economy transition.

The webinar will explore opportunities and challenges in conceptualising a just transition to the circular economy and improving the assessment of its socio-economic impact. It will build on previous work on justice in sustainability transitions and showcase current practices and approaches.

The discussion aims to:

• Identify ways to strengthen social considerations in policy assessments and evaluations.
• Raise awareness of the social dimension of the circular transition among policymakers and stakeholders.
• Facilitate knowledge exchange across countries and institutions.

The webinar will be introduced and facilitated by Daniel Montalvo, Sanna Due and Martina Bisello.

There will be presentations from three expert contributors:

• Gillian Foster (Joint Research Centre): Towards a more comprehensive assessment of socio-economic impacts of circular economy policies – Lessons from an analysis of EU impact assessments and evaluations.
• Burcu Goezet (EEA’s European Topic Centre on Circular Economy and Resource Use): A just transition to circular economy – Exploring current and potential social implications in the batteries, plastics and textiles value chains.
• Astrid Mangs (The Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency): Presentation from the Dutch policy context to illustrate how just transition principles are being applied in national policymaking to ensure a socially inclusive circular economy.

The presentations will be followed by an engaging discussion.

The webinar is free and open to all. It will take place in English at 13:00 to 14:30 CEST on 18 June. Registration.