The report Enabling Adaptation: Sustainable Fiscal Policies for Climate-Resilient Development and Infrastructure explores the labour market implications of climate adaptation. As economies transition toward greener models, the share of environmentally driven jobs—already at 20% in OECD countries—is set to grow. This shift will not only create new roles, particularly in sectors developing sustainable technologies, but also reshape existing occupations to incorporate more environmentally sustainable practices. These changes will increase demand for higher-order skills, especially those linked to critical thinking and the knowledge economy.
To navigate this transformation, the report points to the importance of policy interventions that support workers directly. Measures such as income support, wage insurance, and training programmes are highlighted as key tools to help people transition into emerging sectors. Without this kind of support, workers displaced from carbon-intensive industries risk long-term wage losses and structural unemployment.
The report also draws attention to the distributional effects of climate policy. It notes that reforms such as carbon pricing can have regressive impacts, hitting low-income households hardest due to their higher relative spending on energy and food. To offset these effects and promote equity, the report recommends revenue recycling and targeted compensation mechanisms, ensuring that climate adaptation efforts do not exacerbate existing inequalities.
Read the full report here: https://www.inet.ox.ac.uk/publications/enabling-adaptation-sustainable-fiscal-policies-for-climate-resilient-development-and-infrastructure
