Publications

In recent years Just Transition has been the subject of significant research and analysis and is increasingly enshrined in legal obligations at national and supranational level. It has been widely acknowledged that just transition policies and initiatives can deliver useful measures and on the ground action to address the social risks of industrial decarbonisation and make decarbonisation socially fair and...

This independent research report titled ‘The Environment, Human Rights and the Windsor Framework’ was commissioned by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and authored by Dr Ciara Brennan, Dr Mary Dobbs, Dr Orla Kelleher, Ms Alison Hough BL and Dr Lisa Claire Whitten. The report examines the relationship between Article 2 of the Windsor Framework, which deals with the rights...

Brexit poses a significant threat to environmental governance on the island of Ireland due to regulatory divergence between Northern Ireland (UK) and the Republic of Ireland (EU). This divergence—differences in laws, standards, and implementation—risks creating regulatory gaps, enforcement issues, funding loss, economic imbalance, conservation problems, cross-border cooperation difficulties, and transboundary pollution. There are three main areas of divergence: Covered by...

The 2023 Linking the Irish Environment (LIE) Report examined cross-border environmental cooperation in Ireland and recommended creating an all-island civil society forum, which was held in 2024. The forum highlighted ongoing questions about environmental governance and the evolving complexities introduced by post-Brexit arrangements, particularly under the Windsor Framework. This short report aims to clarify these legal and political developments affecting...

Summary The European Climate Law requires the European Commission to propose an intermediate climate target for 2040. The European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change (ESABCC) has recommended that the EU should adopt a domestic target of 90-95% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2040. The 2040 target is not a new target but is an interim target to help...

The concept of a just transition has broadened from focusing mainly on protecting workers in high-emission industries to addressing the unequal impacts of climate policies on vulnerable and marginalized groups. Closely tied to ideas of climate justice and equity, it has legal relevance in Ireland and Northern Ireland. In Ireland, just transition principles are indirectly supported under section 3(3) of...

Ireland must submit a Social Climate Plan (SCP) to the European Commission by 30 June 2025, outlining how it will use EU Social Climate Fund (SCF) resources to address the social impacts of the new EU Emissions Trading System 2 (ETS2), which extends carbon pricing to buildings and road transport. Although Ireland has a derogation from ETS2 from 2027 to...

This document is a compilation or ‘bibliography’ of research and resources connected to the concept of a ‘Just and Fair Transition’.

On 15 January 2025, a public inquiry into the controversial Curraghinalt Gold Mine application in Co. Tyrone was suspended due to the Northern Ireland Department for Infrastructure's failure to notify the Irish Government and conduct required transboundary consultation. The mine, the largest in the island's history, is located in an environmentally sensitive area, including the River Foyle and River Finn...

The Social Climate Fund (SCF) is part of the European Union's Fit for 55 package and is the first fund dedicated to counterbalancing the negative socio-economic effects of the extension of the Emissions Trading System (ETS2) that will apply to the transport and heating & cooling sectors.1 Social Climate Plans (SCPs) outline how Member States will allocate SCF resources and...

EU Member States are required to prepare, consult upon, and submit a national Social Climate Plan (SCP) to the European Commission before June 30th, 2025. This briefing explains the public participation requirements for the production of Ireland’s SCP in detail.

This call for evidence seeks views on the UK’s compliance with the Aarhus Convention’s access-to-justice provisions (Article 9), focusing on three issues raised by the UN Aarhus Compliance Committee about Northern Ireland’s justice system: Costs protection – ensuring justice is not prohibitively expensive, covering the effectiveness of current regulations, appeals and cost caps, shared caps, cross-undertakings in damages, and costs...

Peaceful protest has been a key tool in many of the most significant social movements for equality and against oppression, and the right to protest is a fundamental part of our democracy. This guide tells you about: ■ Your right to protest under Northern Ireland (NI) law1 ; ■ What you are allowed to do at a protest; and ■...

The Social Climate Fund (SCF) is part of the European Union's Fit for 55 package and is the first fund dedicated to counterbalancing the negative socio-economic effects of the extension of the Emissions Trading System (ETS 2) that will apply to the transport and heating & cooling sectors.1 Social Climate Plans (SCPs) outline how Member States will allocate SCF resources...

Tackling the ecological crisis at Lough Neagh requires urgent interventions viewed through an environmental justice lens. This approach highlights three key areas: Distributive justice: Issues around ownership and environmental governance. Procedural justice: Gaps in accountability, conflicts of interest, lack of cross-border cooperation, and insufficient public participation in decision-making. Recognition: Addressing the legacy of colonial dispossession. To create a just and...

Almost all environmental challenges facing the island of Ireland – and there are many – will ultimately require cooperation across the border. This has been recognised at government and policy level, and explicitly in the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement (GF/BA) where the environment is identified as a key area for cooperation.i Despite this, Northern Ireland and Ireland have developed (with some...

In June 2024, the first all-island conference on costs and funding was held in Queens University Belfast. The conference, 'Demystifying the cost of environmental justice on the island of Ireland', was organised by Environmental Justice Network Ireland (EJNI), the Climate Bar Association, Public Interest Litigation Support NI (PILS), Friends of the Earth Northern Ireland and Queen’s University Belfast Centre for...

This joint assessment represents the collaborative work of the Environmental Justice Network Ireland (EJNI), and the Stop Climate Chaos Coalition Ireland.  This document is an assessment of Ireland’s final draft NECP.

The concept of ecocide is gaining traction globally, with several countries, including Member States of the European Union, adopting or considering legislation. • The EU is moving towards greater environmental corporate responsibility by revising its Environmental Crime Directive (2008/99/EC) directive to include “offences comparable to ecocide”. • Both jurisdictions on the island of Ireland have environmental laws, but neither effectively...

‘Rights of nature’ (RoN) is an emerging and evolving paradigm that recognises the intrinsic rights of ecosystems and species to evolve, flourish, and regenerate. The possibility of adopting a rights of nature approach on the island of Ireland has been the subject of increasing attention, with academics, NGOs and grassroots communities exploring how a concept that has been adopted in...