Time for Plan B - The Role of Social Work in the Ecosocial Transition

The just transition is not only a question of justice but also a question of equality and gender. Social work has an important role in the multidisciplinary network that aims to find new, greener employment opportunities for people working in the peat production sector. There are many reasons why an ecosocial transition needs Plan B.

Author: Mari Lehtonen

One of the most praised quotes in Finnish literature is by Väinö Linna: “In the beginning, there was a swamp, a hoe – and Jussi” (Linna 1959). This story also begins with swamps and especially with peat. The contraction of the peat production sector is affecting particularly rural areas where there are already weak employment conditions. This form of green transition especially affects men. Plan B – Future politics is a development project lead by the LAB University of Applied Sciences that aims to create new prospects and directions of employment during the transition from peat production to greener energy. The project aims to identify and promote the recognition of skills among young men and men aged over 55-years. The project funding comes from the Just Transition Fund. The European Union established the Just Transition Fund to mitigate the adverse effects of climate transition. The fund aims to support regions and individuals that are most affected by the transition and promote a balanced socio-economic transition. (LAB University of Applied Sciences 2023.)

Finding the Connected Theories

The just transition is a concept that aims to meet climate goals in a way that is inclusive to all counterparts and creates new work opportunities (United Nations Development Programme 2024). It is linked to the sustainable development framework. Julie Drolet, Haorui Wu and Allison Dennehy (2016) name the three pillars of sustainable development: environment, society, and economy. From these are also derived the Sustainable Development Goals that are universally applicable priorities focused especially on poverty eradication. (Drolet al. 2016, 42-43.) Ingo Stamm notes that sustainability is about justice and considering the nature and its resources as part of expanded understanding of social justice. Justice is also basis of social work along with human rights. Said so, there is a connection between social work and sustainability by the principle of justice. (Stamm 2024.)

When speaking of the concept of transition Aila-Leena Matthies (2017) present the new transition that moves towards ecological energy sources and away from carbon-based fuel. That seems to link to just transition that tries to find greener choice to replace carbon-based industry. It’s not just giving up the old but gaining new skills and employment opportunities. Matthies presents three scenarios of ecosocial transition according to Hopkins (2008) and Fischer-Kowalski and others (2012): No policy change, conventional environmentalism, and the transition approach. The no policy change is literally scenario where there is no aim for change and current level of consumption and production is defended. The conventional environmentalism is trying to find greener choices for production and consumers, so the role of individual choice is big here. The most radical scenario is the transition approach where there is aim for global and holistic change and the ideology of degrowth is supported. (Matthies 2017, 17-21.)

Heather Boetto (2017) presents the methodological dimensions of the transformative ecosocial work where the core is self and one’s personal growth, moving all the way through holistic wellbeing in individual level, collective and communal based approaches to the outer sphere of structural social work. (Boetto 2017, 58-63.) Kati Närhi and Aila-Leena Matthies (2018) studied the framework that ecosocial approach has in structural social work. Especially two themes are critical considering Plan B and the just transition: a holistic ecosocial transition of society and environmental and ecological justice.

The exploitation of environments resources affects the poorest people of the population most. Yet the environmental justice is criticized for being human centered and not seeing people as part of the environment. Matthies and Närhi suggest that structural social work should develop the concepts of environmental and ecological justice also considering the critical dimensions by widening the understanding of justice and moving further away from human-centered thinking. (Närhi & Matthies 2018, 497-498.) Social work itself has a humane core but it’s true that there is a need for holistic view of the operational environment. Närhi and Matthies point out the holistic ecosocial transition that shifts to degrowth, equal distribution of wealth and wellbeing of the planet. They also note that social work is dependent on growth that funds the welfare state. (Närhi & Matthies 2018, 496-497.)

Niina Rantamäki and Mari Kattilakoski (2017) present the rise of local welfare systems (LWS) as a counteract to the neoliberalism and public service reforms where services are centralized and moved away from rural areas. They refer to the core principles of sustainability by Gibbs (2000) that include decent quality of life, fairness and equity, participation and partnership, care for environment and thought for the future. (Rantamäki & Kattilakoski 2017, 2-4.) Plan B operates in rural areas where a restructuring of local system is forced by the transnational transition politics. The transition could either make it or break it: It could leave the areas deteriorated or it could be a kick start for a more sustainable community. The Plan B supports the latter scenario.

If it’s Just, Why is There Room for Social Work?

Rantamäki and Kattilakoski (2017) note that nature is a source of livelihood in rural areas. That is also the case in the peat industry. The production of peat has a long history in rural areas of Finland and now the political decision making and green transition force it to be terminated. Rantamäki and Kattilakoski also note that local welfare systems are more potential to meet the needs of people because they are developed close to their specific context and allow the citizens to participate in provision and decision-making. (Rantamäki & Kattilakoski 2017, 18-22.) It is important to allow the people whose lives are negatively affected by green transition policy to take part in planning the corrective services. Plan B helps the people and companies in rural areas to survive the transition and find new greener ways to make a living. After all, one important aspect of sustainable development is the aim of decent work and economic growth, that is in fact the 8th sustainable development goal set by the United Nations (UN 2024).

Heather Boetto (2016) notes the dual role of social work in the ecosocial and sustainability framework. On the one hand there are individual day-to-day practices and on the other hand the role of structural social work including environmental, social and economic impacts. Boetto presents ways to integrate sustainability and ecosocial approach in the whole case work process: engagement, assessment, intervention, and evaluation. (Boetto 2016, 63–69.) The project objective of Plan B is to create a generalizable model on how new operational opportunities can be developed in a changing situation, who are the different actors in the multidisciplinary network and what are their roles. It is also considered how regional needs and information can be made visible and collected. The model considers how this information can be used to lead and create concrete new places for employment or education, as well as how social phenomena and structures, such as the strongly gender-segregated labor market affects the population unequally. (LAB University of Applied Sciences 2023.)

It appears that the case of Plan B covers both individual and structural aspects of social work. On the individual level there is an aim to find new skills and motivation to seek new job opportunities. The role of social work in this multidisciplinary case work is to secure the individual’s income and everyday living conditions with targeted social services. There is an aim to promote higher education, especially in the field of energy industry and green transition or seek job opportunities in green care and ecotourism. (LAB University of Applied Sciences 2023)

On the structural level social work can both produce data and information on the current situation of the people affected by just transition, but also provide the theoretical framework of ecosocial transition and work towards more holistic approach. It is also important to see the gender and equality issues and structural social work’s contribution to make them visible.

As mentioned before, the transition is not only a matter of justice but there are also present the questions of equality and gender. When reviewing the case of Plan B most of its target group consist of low educated men living in rural areas. During the project planning it was mandatory to do a gender impact evaluation, and it shows that the contraction of peat production sector effects specially on men under 25 and over 55 years of ages (LAB University of Applied Sciences 2023). Hanna Lempinen and Annukka Vainio (2022) studied the peat producers affected by the just transition. Peat producers have the average age of 44 years old and 87 % of them are men with on-the-job learning background. The 60 % of the people that participated the study mentioned that the peat production form ¾ of their annual income. (Lempinen & Vainio 2022, 153.) It is important to notice that the social and health care and employment service professionals working with these men are mainly women. The project aims to promote gender sensitive approach as part of the client work. (LAB University of Applied Sciences 2023.)

If we look at the concepts of transition presented by Aila-Leena Matthies (2017, 17-21) one could say that the Plan B falls between the conventional environmentalism and the transition approach. There is still a thrive for economic growth, but the holistic change is at least partly present. The project team tries to find greener ways for companies and entrepreneurs to continue their business and keep the rural areas viable. Even if the concept of degrowth is not promoted, there is a significant difference in how the companies are using our environmental resources for business. There is an ongoing structural transition towards ecological and environment friendly industry in the areas that traditionally have been dependent on peat production.

Moving Towards the Holistic Ecosocial Transition

Moving away from human centered thinking and embracing purely the holistic ecosocial transition would not be practical in this case. Plan B focuses on people, and that for the human cetered view is justifiable. The just transition provides the larger political framework that means moving towards sustainable society, business, and work life. At the micro-level there are still human-centered case work needs to be met. The just transition may not appear so just to the people losing their livelihood. The Plan B aims to find sustainable solutions at the micro and macro level and moves towards a more holistic approach.

The transition from peat production to sustainable industry could also open space for the local welfare systems. Keeping rural areas inhabited and vital requires people and business. In Finland, a two-income household is a norm and for one of the breadwinners to lose their job could mean a family catastrophe. There is also a need to acknowledge the impact of employment peat production companies have on the rural areas. Helping the project’s target groups to create new sustainable businesses and jobs in the rural areas also creates demand for different services in the same area.

Not every person who loses their job because of the contraction of the peat production sector needs social work or other services that are present in the multidisciplinary network created by Plan B. But the fact is that social work as a discipline needs projects like Plan B to bring knowledge and experience from the people affected by ecosocial transition policies. The transition is inevitable and for that we need more plan Bs.

References

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Boetto, H. 2017. A Transformative Eco-Social Model: Challenging Modernist Assumptions in Social Work. British Journal of Social Work. Vol. 47, 48–67.

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Rantamäki, N. & Kattilakoski, M. 2017. Local welfare systems in rural Finland as a representation of sustainable development. In Matthies, A.-L. & Närhi, K. (eds.), The Ecosocial Transition of Societies: The Contribution of Social Work and Social Policy. London: Routledge. 174–189.

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