By Alicia Phillips and Laura Kaschny, editors of New Engagement Strategies for Energy Justice - Perspectives from the Next Generation

Energy justice has evolved from an emerging concept into a foundational framework guiding the global energy transition. It aims to ensure the fair distribution of the benefits and burdens of energy systems, recognising and addressing social, economic, and environmental inequalities in both decision-making and outcomes. As the shift toward decarbonisation accelerates, it becomes increasingly important to consider how benefits and burdens are distributed, whose interests are prioritised, and whether existing inequalities are being challenged or reinforced. Energy justice offers a multidimensional lens – grounded in distributive, recognition, procedural, restorative and cosmopolitan justice – that brings these concerns to the forefront. A newly developed Toolkit to Achieve the Just Transition using the Energy Justice Framework provides a structured way to unpack these themes, offering insights that are as actionable as they are interdisciplinary.  
 
1. Responsible Governance and the Role of Institutions   
 
A cornerstone of the energy justice toolkit is responsible governance, understood as the interplay of effective policymaking, regulatory innovation, and corporate social responsibility. As the energy transition unfolds, the responsibilities of governments and market actors are being reshaped. International and supranational institutions increasingly offer guidance, but the national level remains decisive in translating global objectives into lived realities.

Public trust is essential. Poorly designed just transition policies risk undermining public support, especially when they fail to deliver on promises or when economic development is pursued at all costs. To mitigate this, policymakers must embrace methods such as wide reflective equilibrium to evaluate how costs and benefits are distributed, and how policies affect citizens’ well-being – not just on paper, but in practice.

Equally pressing is the need to hold transnational corporations accountable. Voluntary commitments are no longer enough. Binding due diligence frameworks are necessary to ensure that corporate actions align with climate goals and human rights. However, structural exclusions persist, especially for indigenous communities and migrants, which are groups often left out of both the benefits and protections of transition policies.  
 
2. Rethinking Technology Through a Justice Lens  
 
Another central challenge in aligning the energy transition with justice is the integration, deployment, and repurposing of energy infrastructures. This includes not only emerging technologies but also the adaptation of existing systems. The shift to low-carbon energy solutions compels regulators and policymakers to reconsider how technologies, such as nuclear power or hydrogen, can be deployed responsibly.  

A key dimension is the interplay between multi-level and cross-sectoral collaboration. Transnational engagement remains vital for aligning standards and ensuring systemic sustainability, while coherent coordination across domestic governance layers – from institutions to citizens – is equally critical for fostering inclusive and equitable energy systems.

Persistent gaps, however, highlight the challenges of procedural justice, as local actors often remain sidelined from meaningful participation, transparency, and legal safeguards. Technological debates must be anchored in civil and democratic rights, with a strong focus on environmental protection, health, and safety.  
 
3. Energy Poverty: An Evolving, Multidimensional Challenge  
 
Another critical axis of energy justice is affordability. Energy poverty, long a concern in energy governance, is becoming more complex as the transition drives up costs and increases technological dependency. In the EU alone, an estimated 40 million citizens live in energy poverty, underscoring the urgent need for equitable policies.

Energy poverty can be understood as the burden of economic trade-offs households face – between heating, cooling, mobility, education, and health. But the issue goes beyond income. The concept of energy vulnerability introduces important nuances, showing how restricted access to technology, like solar PV or air conditioning, can worsen hardship. These technologies can provide relief but are often out of reach due to high upfront costs or increased operational expenses. This complexity makes defining and measuring energy poverty difficult, let alone solving it. Demographic, climatic, and economic conditions influence its expression and the effectiveness of interventions. Yet one thing is clear, energy poverty is not a marginal issue. It is a persistent, intergenerational challenge that sits at the core of distributive justice.  
 
4. The Path Forward: From Concept to Action  
 
The journey toward energy justice is far from over. In fact, many of the most pressing challenges – technological, socio-economic, and political – are not entirely new. They are often existing problems intensified or reframed by the energy transition. The energy justice framework offers a powerful way to navigate these evolving dynamics. It invites policymakers, scholars, and citizens to move beyond binary debates and engage with the complexity of real-world energy dilemmas. It provides both a vocabulary and a toolkit for action grounded in the principles of affordability, participation, accountability, and sustainability.

Ultimately, the future of energy justice will be shaped by the next generation of scholars and practitioners. Their interdisciplinary, forward-looking approaches blend long-standing concerns with innovative strategies, ensuring that justice remains central not just in theory, but in the everyday lived experience of energy systems. 
 
This Blog Post is based on A Phillips and L Kaschny (eds), ‘New Engagement Strategies for Energy Justice - Perspectives from the Next Generation’ (Palgrave Macmillan 2024). 
 
Alicia Phillips is an attorney-at-law and a PhD Researcher at the Université de Pau et des Pays de l'Adour (UPPA), TRansitions Energétiques et Environnementales Laboratory (TREE) & the CNRS- France. 

Laura Kaschny is a Postdoctoral Researcher in Energy Law at the Erasmus School of Law at Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands.