Just Transition speaker charts a path to renew communities

The UNM Just Transition to Green Energy Grand Challenge team hosted Mijin Cha, assistant professor of Environmental Studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz, recently for a public event in their Fueling a Fair and Just Energy Future Speaker Series.

Cha spoke about her new book, A Just Transition for All: Workers and Communities for a Carbon-Free Future. The talk was attended by a diverse audience of community organizers, University of New Mexico faculty, staff, students and members of the public.

Cha, a seasoned climate policy researcher who also works with advocacy organizations and unions, discussed the life cycle of extractive energy production and the resulting economic hardships to communities when the local source is depleted, referencing the Powder River Basin of Wyoming, the nation's large coal-producing area. Currently, Wyoming relies on coal mining for nearly half the state budget; the depleted supply negatively impacts both local and state economies.

Cha advocated planning for energy transition as fossil fuel use declines and creating long-term funding streams to support impacted workers and communities displaced by fossil fuel plant closures.

"Dr. Cha is one of the academics who has pioneered thinking about how to ensure that the transition to a low-carbon economy benefits all communities, especially fossil fuel worker communities," said College of Population Health Assistant Professor and co-convener Shannon Sanchez-Youngman.

The Grand Challenge Just Transition team also envisions an inclusive system for energy transition, according to Gabriel Pacyniak, Professor at the Law School and team co-convener.

"New Mexico is well-positioned to be a leader in the low-carbon economy, but we are also very dependent on the fossil fuel industry - we are the second-largest producer of oil in the United States - and we have a high proportion of low-income people," Pacyniak said. "We will need to collectively develop and implement effective policies that support fossil-fuel dependent communities in attracting new industries and jobs, and making them accessible to all New Mexicans."

The 2019 New Mexico Energy Transition Act (ETA) directs the state to move away from coal and toward clean energy and provides support for communities through the Energy Transition Economic Development Assistance Fund and Displaced Workers Assistance Fund. The Just Transition team is currently analyzing ETA supports provided to displaced coal power plant workers after the closing of the San Juan Generating Station in northwestern New Mexico. They'll also be working with the state to support and evaluate new workforce development programs for oil and gas workers.

"We're grateful for the support from UNM's Grand Challenges program - we've been able to use that support to bring in speakers like Dr. Cha," said Melanie Sonntag, research assistant professor at the Center for Social Policy and team program coordinator "Not only has this support allowed us to learn from these speakers - it has helped us connect with nationally-prominent scholars and policymakers working on these issues."

A Just Transition for All: Workers and Communities for a Carbon-Free Future by Mijin Cha, 2025, is available in print and as a free download at MIT Press 2025.

The Grand Challenges program was launched in late 2018 by UNM President Garnett Stokes. Grand Challenges are problems of global, national, and regional significance that require researchers to work together across disciplinary boundaries to develop and implement solutions. Grand Challenges address problems that, when solved, have a significant positive impact on people and society. The University of New Mexico is the state's leading research institution, making it the ideal location in which to situate complex interdisciplinary research work.

For more information, visit UNM Grand Challenges.

Top photo: UNM Just Transition Grand Challenge Team with Professor Mijin Cha at the Fueling a Fair and Just Energy Future Speaker Series. From left: Melanie Sonntag, Mijin Cha, Shannon Sanchez-Youngman and Gabriel Pacyniak. Photo credit: Selene Diaz Martinez.