Advancing Just Transitions in the Built Environment - IHRB Digital Report

Advancing Just Transitions in the Built Environment is a 2024 digital report published by the Institute for Human Rights and Business (IHRB). The authors are Alejandra Rivera, Giulio Ferrini, and Marta Ribera Carbó. The report examines how decarbonising buildings and construction can align with human rights, with a focus on housing rights, workers’ rights, participation in decision-making, and spatial justice.

The report situates the built environment as a central climate and social equity arena. Buildings and construction account for 37% of global energy-related carbon emissions, making decarbonisation in this sector essential for meeting climate goals. At the same time, urban areas concentrate inequality and affordability pressures, so climate policies affecting housing, land, and construction can either reduce or intensify disparities depending on how they are designed and implemented.

Based on a two-year research project, the report analyses climate actions and their social impacts across eight cities: Lagos, Prague, Lisbon, Melbourne, Copenhagen, Jakarta, Athens, and Valparaíso. It compares experiences across different political and economic contexts to identify patterns that can support a “just transition” in the built environment—one that reduces emissions while protecting rights and distributing costs and benefits fairly.

The report highlights that climate action can create human rights risks if it is not paired with safeguards. Examples include “renovictions” (displacement linked to renovation), green gentrification, and backlash from workers and tenants when policies are perceived as unfair. It notes that communities resisting decarbonisation are often those whose rights and basic needs remain unmet and who stand to lose from both inadequate climate action (e.g., exposure to climate risks in substandard housing) and poorly designed climate measures (e.g., rising costs or displacement).

Across the case studies, the report finds that inclusive approaches—those that meaningfully involve affected residents and workers—are associated with stronger legitimacy and support. Initiatives that integrate social goals with emissions reduction can attract further investment and reduce the likelihood of protests, reputational damage, or policy reversals. The report frames cities as facing a strategic choice between reactive responses to “greenlash” and proactive, holistic strategies that address climate and inequality together.

For the European cities examined, EU climate policy is described as a major driver of built-environment decarbonisation through national policies and resource mobilisation. The report links climate investment to opportunities to modernise inefficient and ageing housing stock, expand sustainable and affordable housing, and create employment in construction. It also stresses that retrofitting existing homes should be prioritised; one cited benchmark is that, within carbon budgets, EU countries can only build a combined 176,000 residential units per year, implying limits on new-build reliance and a stronger focus on renovation and sufficiency.

The report applies the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (endorsed in 2011) to built-environment actors. It sets out roles for governments to protect rights through policy, regulation, planning, and procurement; for businesses and investors to respect rights through operations and due diligence; and for both to ensure access to remedy when rights are violated. The report underscores that housing rights, labour rights, participation, and non-discrimination are materially connected to climate outcomes in cities.

The report provides 44 recommendations directed at governments, investors, or both, covering issues such as safeguards against displacement, stronger worker protections, improved transparency and reporting, participation platforms, and integrated planning. It also proposes three steering principles: committing to an inclusive ecological transition, empowering people through objective information and independent tools, and embedding human rights in everyday governance, finance, and business practices.