Advancing representations of equity and justice in climate mitigation futures

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dc.contributor.authorPachauri, Shonali
dc.contributor.authorBrutschin, Elina
dc.contributor.authorKikstra, Jarmo S.
dc.contributor.authorKrey, Volker
dc.contributor.authorMintz-Woo, Kian
dc.contributor.authorPelz, Setu
dc.contributor.authorTavoni, Massimo
dc.contributor.authorZimm, Caroline
dc.contributor.authorRiahi, Keywan
dc.contributor.funderEuropean Research Council, 951542-GENIE-ERC-2020-SyG
dc.contributor.funderHorizon Europe, 101056873 (ELEVATE)
dc.date.accessioned2026-02-17T12:50:04Z
dc.date.available2026-02-17T12:50:04Z
dc.date.issued2026-02-11
dc.description.abstractIn this work, we conduct a narrative review of pressing equity and justice issues within global modelled scenarios and propose a new research agenda to strengthen their consideration in future model developments and applications. We begin by introducing a typology of equity and justice limitations in climate mitigation scenarios, distinguishing among structural, methodological, and epistemological issues that shape what integrated assessment models (IAMs) can reveal at policy-relevant scales. Reflecting on these concerns, we develop a research agenda that describes new avenues of work and draws together distinct emerging initiatives, ranging from incremental improvements to structural reforms and alternative participatory approaches. Drawing on reflexive insights from integrated assessment practitioners, this agenda prioritizes embedding equity principles directly into scenario design through differentiated effort sharing and finance flows, developing new frameworks that incorporate sufficiency and demand transformations while protecting decent living, and establishing genuine co-production with underrepresented communities beyond mere consultation. Underlying this research agenda is a recognition that modeling communities must engage more critically with the implicit assumptions in scenario and model design and use that have equity and justice implications. Achieving equitable climate futures will require transformative actions that integrate diverse justice concerns, advance sustainable development, and confront systemic inequities across both human and ecological dimensions. Although models will never capture all these aspects, these can be significantly enhanced to support more informed discussion and practical application. Our contribution proposes a way forward to achieving this goal.en
dc.description.sponsorshipThis research received funding from the innovation programme under the European Research Council (ERC) for the GENIE project (Grant Agreement No. 951542-GENIE-ERC-2020-SyG) and from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement no. 101056873 (ELEVATE).
dc.description.statusPeer reviewed
dc.description.versionPublished Version
dc.format.extent23
dc.format.extent1129867
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.articleide0000763
dc.identifier.authororcidPachauri, Shonali
dc.identifier.authororcidBrutschin, Elina
dc.identifier.authororcidKikstra, Jarmo S.
dc.identifier.authororcidKrey, Volker
dc.identifier.authororcidMintz-Woo, Kian§0000-0002-9216-9561
dc.identifier.authororcidPelz, Setu
dc.identifier.authororcidTavoni, Massimo
dc.identifier.authororcidZimm, Caroline
dc.identifier.authororcidRiahi, Keywan
dc.identifier.citationPachauri, S., Brutschin, E., Kikstra, J. S., Krey, V., Mintz-Woo, K., Pelz, S., Tavoni, M., Zimm, C. and Riahi, K. (2026) 'Advancing representations of equity and justice in climate mitigation futures', PLOS Climate, 5(2), e0000763. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pclm.0000763
dc.identifier.doi10.1371/journal.pclm.0000763
dc.identifier.issn2767-3200
dc.identifier.issued2
dc.identifier.journaltitlePLOS Climate
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10468/18534
dc.identifier.volume5
dc.language.isoen
dc.rights© 2026 Pachauri et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, istribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subjectSDG 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
dc.subjectSDG 17 - Partnerships for the Goals
dc.subjectClimate ethics
dc.subjectClimate change
dc.subjectClimate justice
dc.titleAdvancing representations of equity and justice in climate mitigation futuresen
dc.typeArticle (Peer reviewed)
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