Keywords

The climate crisis is a unique collective action problem in terms of scale, complexity, and severity (Bäckstrand & Lövbrand, 2015). These problems require collective approaches, diverse knowledge systems, and therefore novel collaborations to confront a world in polycrisis.

Faced with the climate crisis, among others, the EU has committed to becoming the first climate-neutral continent by 2050 with multiple strategies, initiatives, and directives being developed to support this shift. The EU Green Deal provides a roadmap for achieving the EU’s climate neutrality ambition, outlining priority areas of action such as enforcing a reduction of 55% of their greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) by 2030 (compared to 1990 levels), supporting just and inclusive transitions that leave no one behind, and protecting and restoring ecosystems and biodiversity with more efficient resource use. The EU has also launched an ambitious Adaptation Strategy to become climate resilient by 2050 through smarter, faster, and systemic policy actions.

The achievement of these ambitions requires a complete transformation in the ways in which societies work, operate, mitigate, and adapt to the climate crisis. Social transformation is a complex process operating at different levels and spatiotemporal scales that require active and synergistic bridges (O’Brien et al., 2023). These bridges demand new forms of knowledge capable of breaking traditional silos once and forever to offer a comprehensive understanding and guidance on the challenges ahead (Fazey et al., 2020; Mauser et al., 2013). As a response, the number of inter- and transdisciplinary collaborative research projects has multiplied, looking for innovative ways to engage with diverse knowledge domains and conduct meaningful and people-centric research for transformative change (Augenstein et al., 2024).

In this edited volume, we present 10 interdisciplinary contributions forming unique SSH-STEM collaborations to strengthen European climate policy and governance. They include a range of different methodological approaches, from more quantitative ones (e.g., complex system models, multivariate and multi-criteria analysis) to qualitative and participatory ones (e.g., collaborative workshops, interdisciplinary seminars), as well as novel combinations of both. There are deep philosophical inquiries on whether everyone understands ethics and justice in the same way, beyond anthropocentric framings. Several chapters question whether the persistent economic growth paradigm needs to be fundamentally challenged and how the EU can establish relations of mutual learning with the Global South. There are central critiques on power dynamics and calls for decentralisation across stakeholders, Global North-Global South actors, and beyond—to include more-than-human worlds as well.

The book is organised around three main parts: #1 Learning from the Global South for EU Climate Policy; #2 Measuring and Advancing Justice in EU Climate Policy; and #3 New Frontiers: Exploring Themes in Climate Policy.

In the first part, we present three chapters focused on learning from the Global South where practical strategies for climate adaptation have been in place for centuries. This part emphasises that a vision beyond Eurocentrism is needed considering that the EU Green Deal might have disproportionate effects and unintended consequences beyond its borders.

Portugal-Pereira et al. (Chapter 2) focus on the overreliance of the EU on offshore Carbon Dioxide Removal strategies and its impacts in Brazil mirrored through deforestation, biodiversity loss, land-use conflicts, and the erosion of indigenous peoples’ rights and traditional knowledge. The chapter deploys a mixed-method analysis with the GLOBIOM-Brazil model and looks at environmental and social threats from Eucalyptus plantations in a monoculture regime risking additional land required in Brazil that is needed to meet the EU’s net-zero targets. Suarez-Visbal et al. (Chapter 3) focus on the impact of current overproduction and overconsumption of the textiles sector emphasising that the majority of textiles in the EU originate from the Global South. After an in-depth review of 11 selected EU policies and 25 actions using an interdisciplinary framework combining SSH and STEM methodologies, the authors conclude that current circular economy policies fall short of justice standards and lack adequate recognition of actors from the Global South. The authors call for a transformative Circular Economy policy encompassing dimensions of recognition, distributive, procedural, and restorative justice. With this detailed policy analysis, they not only deliver an important input to a redefinition of circular economy concepts but also a methodology to check policy in other domains against global justice challenges. Menatti et al. (Chapter 4) then take us to the impacts of extreme heat in India and draw attention to reframing adaptation to encompass situated, relational, and longer-term processes of improving social-ecological adjustments involving a dialogue across local and global scales. The authors propose an interdisciplinary framework for the translation of long-term adaptation strategies in the South within the EU Adaptation Strategy, such as reviving traditional climate-sensitive architecture, embracing sacred trees as social spaces and Nature-Based Solutions, and mechanisms for empowering women in climate-friendly solutions.

All three chapters make calls for accountability, responsibility, and empowerment: either through responsible carbon offsetting, and alternative practices focusing on regenerative agriculture and restorative forestry (Chapter 2), elevating the voices, interests, and visions of the most marginalised people working in textile production in the Global South (Chapter 3) or promoting a culture of mutual learning for adaptation between the EU and global South countries in (Chapter 4). This calls for a rethinking of climate action respecting socio-spatial vulnerabilities and embracing a relation of mutual learning and respect between different geographies.

In the second part, we present four chapters that advance the idea of justice in climate policy, imperative not only for ensuring that no one is left behind but also advance effective and inclusive policies of the EU Green Deal.

Bobadilla et al. (Chapter 5) call for the integration of local knowledge as well as the advancement of epistemic justice in the EU Adaptation Strategy. The authors propose a process indicator to assist the policymaking process in two phases: the ex-ante (the problem framing) and the ex-post (the appraisal of the policy design). This indicator is set to advance distributive, participatory, and recognitional epistemic justice in adaptation but also in other EU policies, aiming to address existing gaps in the EU Better Regulation framework. Lara-García et al. (Chapter 6) draw attention to recognising heatwave vulnerability both as a climate and a prime public health problem, calling for an energetic rehabilitation of buildings to focus primarily on contexts of vulnerability, a foremost challenge in the Mediterranean. The authors propose a redefinition of heat vulnerability attending to social, environmental, and building factors such as energy poverty using a multi-criteria framework for its assessment. They apply this framework to the focus on the case of Seville, where 31.8% of heat-related deaths are caused by climate change, through a mixed-method approach: a multidisciplinary, expert workshop supported with a multivariate analysis. This framework can be used to prioritise European fund distributions within the Renovation Wave Strategy and the recently adopted Energy Performance of Buildings Directive. Seeland et al. (Chapter 7) focus on building justice-based carbon accounting mechanisms, highlighting the need to move away from purely emissions-based decision-making to one that also considers societal benefits. Combining Input–Output analysis with a collaborative workshop, the authors build a sustainability index that portrays trade-offs between the environmental impacts and societal well-being (e.g., employment, health, etc.). They introduce a concrete four-step plan for policymakers to achieve proactive, equitable, and targeted interventions towards carbon reduction. García-Mira et al. (Chapter 8) highlight the vitality of community engagement in transitioning coal and carbon-intensive regions, although reveal that local communities do not feel sufficiently engaged in the ongoing Just Transition Mechanism. The authors draw on the insights from four European research projects to reflect on the importance of tacit knowledge and socio-cultural configurations and highlight the need to support community energy projects and the development of visions, plans, and narratives at the local level for true transformation potential to unravel. Furthermore, they also show how modelling tools from STEM disciplines pose a golden opportunity to start a societal negotiation of transition pathways.

In this part, all four chapters draw on novel theoretical means and practical measures to further implement justice mechanisms in EU Climate Policy, all with a strong focus on social vulnerability. Chapters 5–7 propose alternative metrics to capture a more complex and nuanced vision of development, one that centres on human well-being and justice elements at its core, while Chapter 8 emphasises the importance, yet the recurrent lack, of community engagement in low-carbon transitions, and the need for novel tools to make this transition process really inclusive.

In the third part, we present three chapters that cover different areas and themes that are new frontiers to consider in climate adaptation policy and governance.

Abdel-Fattah et al. (Chapter 9) focus on land-and-sea interactions and draw attention to Maritime Spatial Planning as a decision-making tool and conflict resolution resource when confronted with issues such as deep-sea mining. By combining the insights from Social Sciences, Marine Ecology, and Climatology, the authors present two key case studies from Portugal and Norway to highlight how Maritime Spatial Planning could be a tool for the just and equitable distribution and use of maritime areas. They emphasise the importance of inclusive stakeholder participation processes that take into account the principles of distributional, recognition, and procedural fairness. Plaček et al. (Chapter 10) draw attention to ethical trade-offs in the construction sector (e.g., profit motives, conflicts of interests, accounting and integrity, corruption, privacy, and advertising) and draw insights from a participatory workshop managing the interests of different stakeholders within the supply chain, considering the risk of vulnerable stakeholders such as material producers and looking into ethical precautions in public procurement. The authors propose inclusivity in design and decision-making across the supply chain and accountability through transparency, highlighting the important role of public sector leadership in ethical transitions. Lastly, in the face of EU-wide wildfire control, Turhan et al. (Chapter 11) call for locally grounded, value-based response mechanisms (e.g., IPBES’s Nature’s Contribution to People framework) for climate change adaptation in Euro-Mediterranean forests. The authors bring together experts and communities to create synergies across local ecological knowledge and traditional and scientific practices for deterrence-focused firefighting strategies.

These three chapters reflect on natural (marine, forest) or artificial (building) spaces as heavily impacted socio-ecological systems suffering the consequences of the climate crises. Each one calls for recognising the multiplicity of actors, and knowledge claims brought forth by each for strengthening climate policy and governance.

This book can be read as: (i) stand-alone chapters, (ii) through common and cross-cutting themes that have been indexed, or (iii) as an evolving storyline, from looking at unbalanced global dynamics and unsustainable patterns (Part I) to diagnosing metrics and centring around justice elements (Part II) to advancing climate knowledge and policy into new frontiers (Part III).

As the editors of this collection, our hope is that novel SSH-STEM collaborations and interdisciplinary work bring forth a more holistic understanding and collaborative praxis of the many challenges and collective action problems that await.