Problem
The Welsh Government has stated its ambition for a target of net zero by 2050, but the impacts of climate change and decarbonisation are neither straightforward nor necessarily equitable.

Wales’ economic reliance on carbon-intensive sectors (oil, gas, and coal) underscores the scale of disruption that the transition could cause. These industries alone accounted for 10% of total employment as of 2021, making up to around 260.000 jobs. The shift away from fossil fuels and adaptation to global technological and structural changes will pose a risk of heightened socioeconomic inequalities due to potential job losses, economic instability, and fuel poverty. These challenges highlight the complexity of balancing environmental goals with economic dependencies and the social ramifications of such a transformative shift.

Responses
The Welsh Government has sought to develop legislative and consultative strategies to tackle these challenges head-on. The Well-being of Future Generations Act (WFGA) was passed in 2015 as an effort to ensure public bodies consider long-term social impacts across poverty, health, and climate issues in all its programs and initiatives. The WFGA seeks to put a major emphasis on inclusive and participatory processes, which took shape by involving various key stakeholders, namely trade unions, NGOs, business, academia, and the public sector, in its development and implementation. These efforts laid a legislative foundation to embed a consistent approach to just transitions in decision-making processes.

The WFGA seeks to align directly with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), framing the transition as a pathway to inclusive and sustainable progress. While promoting macro-level inclusion and sectoral integration, this framework aims to mitigate potential inequalities and socio-economic disruptions during the shift to a net-zero economy.

Find out more: The Climate Group