Enhancing a Just Transition Finance System for Carbon-Intensive Industries

China’s overarching dual carbon goals of peaking its absolute CO2 emissions by 2030 and reaching climate-neutrality by 2060 are an ambitious vision that is being meticulously chased. To achieve these objectives, the countries’ policy makers are pushing to set up a transition finance system that supports energy-intensive industries in their efforts to become climate-neutral. At the same time, the associated structural change of ecological transformation is always related to major social impacts, which is why justice aspects and social concerns must be taken into account in planning and implementation.

By analyzing three pivotal industrial sectors (steel, ICT and shipping) in China, this research paper delivers a profound fundament of the current status of just transition finance inside the country. Deriving from their observations in China and internationally, the authors formulate social-ecological policy recommendations for the sectors as well as for strategic approaches towards transition finance on the national level.

The publication has been further shaped and developed using a participatory approach. In addition to the research conducted within China, experts from Germany were brought into exchange with the research team from Duke Kunshan University at internal workshops in order to provide European experiences of just transition finance, and incorporate them into the results of the study.

You can download the publication in English language here.