Shape Just Transition Pathways

The Challenge

Tomorrow’s energy system will look vastly different from today’s. Renewables will replace fossil fuels as the predominant source of energy. But what does it take to transform all parts of the energy system to achieve net-zero by 2050?

There are a multitude of decarbonisation solutions and many technically possible pathways to achieving net-zero, but there is a risk that some pathways will be incremental and others may perpetuate harm to people and the planet. For instance, electric vehicles require six times the amount of critical minerals compared to a conventional gasoline-powered vehicle. Carbon capture and storage, nuclear energy, hydropower and biofuels offer decarbonisation solutions, but come with inherent risks and uncertainties.

The transition out of fossil fuels to renewables and other clean-energy solutions thus embody uncertainties, challenges and risks. The challenge we face is to chart a pathway that delivers long-term decarbonisation along with just and regenerative outcomes.

Our Approach

Forum for the Future enables change actors in the energy system to navigate the rapidly evolving and uncertain energy landscape that is being driven by innovation in energy technologies, business models and government policy. We help change actors to adopt energy solutions that are just and regenerative and consistent with the goal of long-term decarbonisation of the energy system. This involves:

Tracking mature and emerging solutions to evaluate their social and ecological risks and opportunities.
Defining the conditions that must be met for the development and use of a clean-energy solution to be considered just and regenerative, and supporting actors deploy these solutions.
Understanding whether and how to develop so-called transition fuels and solutions as part of a long-term decarbonisation pathway, and how to exit in ways that serve long-term just and regenerative goals.

Examples of Our Work

Forum for the Future convened a High Level Panel of independent sustainability experts to conduct an inquiry into bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), a negative emissions technology. The inquiry identified the necessary conditions for BECCS from woody biomass to deliver positive outcomes for nature, climate and people. This independent inquiry was initiated on invitation from Drax Group, which plans to build what would be the world’s largest BECCS facility at its North Yorkshire power station in the UK.

What Our Partners Say

"We’re already in a Climate Emergency with a vanishingly small prospect of limiting temperature increase to no more than 1.5°C. We know that a wide range of Negative Emissions Technologies is going to be needed at scale, and BECCS sits at the cutting edge of those technologies. For too long, we’ve debated BECCS as either ‘good or bad’. This Inquiry dives into the nuance of that debate. It asks what conditions need to be satisfied for BECCS to deliver positive outcomes for people, planet and the economy. The Panel has operated on a strictly independent basis, calling on a wide range of Expert Witnesses and reviewing a huge amount of literature, to present recommendations that we hope will prove valuable at a critical moment for this debate," Jonathon Porritt, Co-Founder of Forum for the Future and Member of the BECCS High-Level Panel.

Get in Touch

Interested in developing energy solutions that are just and regenerative and consistent with the goal of long-term decarbonisation of the energy system? Get in touch with Saksham Nijhawan to explore more.

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