Webinar: A Just Transition for a Post-Coronavirus World: Promoting Livelihoods and Job Security

Speaker: Brian Blankenship

The COVID-19 coronavirus has led to a crisis not only of public health but also of unemployment, both due to its direct health effects on workers and to the indirect effects of efforts to contain the virus through social distancing. This has created a need for public policies designed to cushion the effect of the crisis on workers, both through direct transfers as well as through policies targeted toward propping up industries affected by the sharp drop in consumer spending. This webinar aims to discuss the issue of worker livelihoods through the lens of “Just Transition,” a framework which has been used in the field of environmental and energy policy to understand how to manage the transition away from fossil fuels in a way that does not adversely impact the welfare of those who rely upon fossil fuel industries for their livelihoods. Drawing on research conducted in the state of Jharkhand in India on demand for jobs in the coal industry versus alternative sources of employment, this webinar aims to shed light on the characteristics that make livelihood alternatives more attractive, and what a Just Transition to a post-coronavirus world of livelihoods might look like.

To attend the Webinar, register here.