As climate negotiators in Bonn work through another round of technical discussions, social movements gathering outside the UN venue see this as a moment – nearly a decade after Paris – to bring the voices of real people into the room and make the COP process something communities can  see themselves reflected in.

As climate action comes under attack from populist elites and Big Tech billionaires, decision-makers must shift gears – climate policy must start delivering for those who keep our societies running: working people.

From factory workers and waste-pickers to Indigenous leaders and feminist economists, dozens of groups have come together under the banner, “Just Transition Rising”, to insist that real climate action must start from the ground up.

“A transition is happening, but justice is nowhere to be found,” said Boitumelo Molete of South Africa’s trade union federation COSATU. “Not enough support is going to communities to find alternative livelihoods nor to workers to find decent jobs – we need recognition, finance and space to lead, especially for South Africa’s women workers who are the first affected by the climate crisis.”

Of the US$12.8 billion pledged to support South Africa’s transition away from coal, only about US$1.9 billion has so far been disbursed – and just US$676 million of that was in the form of grants.

An analysis of roughly half of these grants (US$330 million) found that less than a quarter went to South African entities, while the bulk was channelled back to foreign implementers – most based in the donor countries themselves.

Picket-nicking with purpose: People before profits

Wednesday’s rally outside the World Conference Center Bonn took the form of a picnic – with a twist. Called a “picket-nic” to reflect the participation of workers and unions and the fighting spirit of the convergence, the event featured music, food, a massive banner for people to gather around, and a clear call: climate policies must put the workers and communities on the frontlines of the transition first.

Organisers hope the event will also help build diplomatic consensus – by reminding government negotiators to focus on the needs of their people, not just rehearse entrenched positions.

This mobilisation builds on an online assembly held in May, which brought together more than 1,000 participants from across the globe. Workers and community leaders shared powerful stories of resistance, reinvention, and leadership in the face of the climate crisis.

Challenging global economic rules

Italian workers from the GKN automotive factory described how they turned a mass layoff into a cooperative of 100 workers focused on building low-carbon transport technologies. “We weren’t just fighting job loss,” said GKN worker Dario Salvetti. “We were asking: What should this factory build for society?”

Members of India’s Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) explained how informal women workers contribute up to a month’s income into collective climate resilience funds to protect their communities from floods and droughts. Mansi Shah explained, “Last year, when the temperatures crossed 40 degrees and it became unbearable to work in the field, it was the payout from SEWA’s parametric heat insurance that helped with sustaining families and provided two square meals per day.”

Speakers also challenged the global economic rules that block fair transitions. Feminist and Indigenous economists offered alternative models rooted in care, reciprocity and community self-determination.

Youth, disability rights advocates and children’s representatives joined the call, insisting that realising their rights is not peripheral but essential to truly transformative climate action.

Five demands on the table

As communities demand real change, these and other grassroots organisations are advocating for the Just Transition agenda as a pathway to turn that demand into actionable policy – anchored in finance, inclusive governance and international cooperation.

Emboldened by the spirit of the global online assembly, a collective of groups active in the UN climate process (UNFCCC) has put forward five concrete proposals, with the hope that they will be reflected in the draft decision on Just Transition emerging from Bonn: 

1. Protect the core values of Just Transition: Ensure that Just Transition is aligned with the Paris Agreement and rooted in human rights, labour rights, inclusion, social dialogue and public participation, and international cooperation.
2. Make Just Transition financeable: Recognise Just Transition policies as eligible for climate finance, acknowledging their critical role in enabling higher ambition.
3. Integrate Just Transition into national planning: Embed Just Transition strategies into Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), national adaptation plans and long-term development strategies.
4. Institutionalise participation and co-creation at the national level: Establish formal spaces for consultation and co-design of Just Transition pathways – bringing in workers, communities and civil society.
5. Launch the Belém Action Mechanism (BAM) for a Global Just Transition: A multilateral initiative to accelerate and support country efforts to transition, making funding and technical support more accessible, taking action to remove barriers to the transition, such as trade or debt, and build a global peer network for shared learning and collaboration.

“Communities and workers aren’t waiting for permission,” said Gina Cortés, a Colombian feminist and a member of the Women and Gender Constituency at the UN talks. “What we need is for governments to stop ignoring the people who sustain the world with their work when moving ahead with climate plans – the international process can move us closer to getting things done better and accelerate a movement that is gaining pace on the ground.”

Eyes on Belém

These proposals are intended to shape the road to the COP30 climate summit in Belém, Brazil – a milestone moment for advancing the UNFCCC’s Just Transition Work Programme.

“The UN process didn’t invent the concept of Just Transition,” said Tasneem Essop from Climate Action Network. “But it has the opportunity to contribute to its realisation and help scale it – if it listens to the people.”

After Baku setback, activists call for ‘just transition’ to be front and centre at COP30

At a time when nationalism and climate action delay are gaining ground, campaigners see Just Transition as a rare point of convergence.

“It’s more than a policy space,” said Lidy Nacpil, from the Asian Peoples’ Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD). “It’s a way to connect our struggles – to show that climate justice isn’t just possible, it’s already happening.”

Whether that message reaches negotiators remains to be seen. But for those gathering in Bonn this week, Just Transition Rising is only getting started.