In Canada, the federal government has taken steps to formalize a just transition in recent years to ensure that Canada’s transition to a net-zero economy leaves no workers or communities behind. In 2021, the Canadian government launched a just transition consultation process to inform proposed just transition legislation and an advisory board. In 2023, the government released their first just transition strategy, the Interim Sustainable Jobs Plan, in advance of the forthcoming just transition legislation, the Sustainable Jobs Act. Several research organizations, including IISD, have also made recommendations as to how Canada can learn from other jurisdictions in developing its own just transition legislation.
A 2030 coal phase-out is already well underway, with the engagement of a just transition task force—and several provinces are on track to achieving it several years earlier than initially planned. Government planning for the oil and gas sector in the context of both domestic and global declining demand, on the other hand, is less developed, despite evidence that the transition to a low-carbon economy will impact employment in the sector. The government must look into practical strategies to mitigate the risk of stranded assets, maintain economic stability, and protect Canadian workers and communities while facilitating the transition to secure, affordable, and reliable clean energy.
Applying this just transition monitoring framework in the oil and gas sector in Alberta, Canada, helps set the direction and track progress to ensure that workers in this sector are supported through the transition, serving two purposes. First, the data collected and presented on this site, which is intended be updated regularly, brings together a depth of just transition-related data from this sector in one place, showing how a just transition unfolds over time. Second, it reveals gaps in publicly available data and where further data collection efforts are needed. For example, the figure below shows the transparency and level of disclosure on just transition-relevant indicators for each of the building blocks in Canada based on analysis conducted in this project by collecting publicly available data provided by statistical offices, governmental agencies, international organizations, and other providers of data, such as independent research institutions. To date, for * Figure 1 shows the proportion of indicators within each of the building blocks for which full data (green), partial data (yellow), and no data (red) were found.
Figure 1. Data availability of the just transition monitoring framework
* Data is considered “full” if it is available on both the federal and provincial levels from the same source, available annually, regularly updated, and comprises the full information according to the name of the indicator, including all types of demographic information. Data is considered partial if any of these elements are not met. For this assessment, the following demographic factors were taken into account: gender, age, and Indigenous identity.