This TUED Working Paper was written to inform discussion at the launch of “TUED South” meeting that took place in Nairobi, Kenya, in October 2022. Building on previous TUED Working Papers, the goal of this document was to bring to Nairobi an analysis and a series of broad proposals and considerations that might inform a public pathway alternative to the current neoliberal approach to energy transition and climate protection.
This is the document's second draft; the final document is in the editing process and will be published here when complete.

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In the newest Working Paper of Trade Unions for Energy Democracy, John Treat dives deeply into the conversations around hydrogen. Treat explains the entire rainbow of colors of hydrogen, their applications and potential, and then explains why comprehensive public ownership needs to be a prerequisite before any of these conversations.

Treat continues the TUED analysis around public ownership for unions and extends it into the hydrogen conversations. We hope this analysis assists unions in understanding the key topics and conversations around a really heated debate.

In TUED Working Paper 14, Beyond Disruption: How Reclaimed Utilities Can Help Cities Meet Their Climate Goals, Sean Sweeney and John Treat showcase how the energy transition that was promised has yet to come to fruition. They argue specifically the arguments around cities leading the transition have not been fully accurate and provide a sober analysis of where we stand.

Despite the hopes of many allies in the struggle for energy democracy, efforts to advance local and community ownership of energy have remained mostly on the margins of global energy systems, and have so far proven unable to rise to the challenges involved in the energy transition. In this thirteenth TUED Working Paper, we trace the background, policy context and data showing why these hopes may have been misplaced, and argue that only a comprehensive reclaiming of energy systems to true public ownership seems likely to allow us to meet the enormous challenges ahead.

In order to have any chance of reaching internationally agreed, science-based targets to avoid dangerous global warming, transport-related emissions need to stop rising almost immediately—and must fall by several percentage points each year for the next few decades. Public transport can make a vital contribution to achieving this goal, but realizing its potential will require a radical shift in policy.

Championed by unions, the term “Just Transition” has gained a firm foothold in the global policy discourse. But what do unions mean by Just Transition and how can it be achieved? How can worker-focused concerns become integrated into a broad program for social change that can address the need for a socio-ecological transformation?