Accelerating just climate transitions in urban regions with a focus on trans-disciplinary learning: Examples from the Netherlands

In line with the EU Climate Law, the Dutch Climate Act requires emissions to be cut by 55% by 2030 and to reach net-zero by 2050. To speed up a fair climate transition, various policy and research initiatives have been undertaken. In this transdisciplinary research project, we aim to understand the learning processes and how they can best be facilitated to drive just climate transformation at the neighbourhood level. In our research we identified key obstacles and catalysers for learning to create climate-neutral and climate-resilient neighbourhoods, while recognising the links between sectors and stakeholders. The main goal is to advance the implementation of neighbourhoods that are climate-neutral, resilient, equitable, and healthy. This includes co-designing policy measures that support a just transition by actively involving and empowering stakeholders. A learning cycle was developed that includes ongoing action, extracting lessons from context, designing pathways for action, and refining local learning questions. This research is part of the “Accelerating Just Climate Transitions in Urban Regions (ACT)” project, funded by KIN-NOW. Within ACT, local action pathways and agendas are co-created through collaboration among previously unconnected stakeholders, such as residents, housing associations, civil servants, local businesses, and sustainability experts. The project provides a strong foundation for initiating and supporting just climate transitions at the neighbourhood scale, as well as for future KIN activities.