What happened to "leave no one behind"? Just transition in the Norwegian welfare state.

Abstract

Abstract The Norwegian welfare state is at a crossroads, where climate change and climate policies pose new kinds of social risks and raise new concerns for equality and social inclusion in climate transition. Social justice is a prerequisite for sustainable transition and a core value of the UN Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals. For sustainability, Norway must mitigate climate change and provide social protection, justice and equality in the process. Policies with environmental and social policy goals must be reconciled in a way that “leaves no one behind” in climate transition. Social justice is a core concern for social work as a profession and academic discipline. Monitoring the situation for social protection and justice for groups at risk of vulnerability is an important part of social work during a major transition. In this master thesis, I analyse how social justice for low-income households is being ensured in the Norwegian climate transition. Based on international research, low income is presumed to be a high-risk vulnerability factor in climate change and transition. I do a qualitative, descriptive analysis of the current situation for distributional justice, procedural justice and recognition justice for low-income households in Norway. I also evaluate the situation on vulnerability assessment for social welfare in the Norwegian climate transition. For the analyses, I make use of critical theory and principles of climate justice. My empirical material is public policies and expert interviews. My research reveals few policy measures for a just transition in Norway except for general phrases. I find high risk of distributive injustice effects caused by policy design. For procedural justice, there are causes for concern due to lack of involvement of groups at risk of vulnerability, administrative silos, and a welfare sector not included in transition policy forming and authoritative policy boards. The knowledge base for national policy forming appears to be minimal. Injustice in recognition of low-income households appears through lack of transition policy mitigating negative effects for this group, lack of participation or representation in decision-making processes, and misrecognition.