Making the Green Transition Work for People and the Economy 2025

22. Carbon Brief. (2023). Rishi Sunak confirms rollback of key green targets. https://www.carbonbrief.org/daily-brief/rishi- sunak-confirms-rollback-of-key-green-targets/. 23. Srouji, J. (2025). Are Countries’ New Climate Plans Ambitious Enough? What We Know So Far. World Resources Institute. https://www.wri.org/insights/assessing-2025-ndcs. 24. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (n.d.). Inflation and cost of living. https://www.oecd.org/ en/topics/sub-issues/inflation-and-cost-of-living.html. 25. Legacy, carbon-intensive goods and services are often becoming more costly through taxation and the phasing out of subsidies (for example, petrol or diesel prices), or are banned altogether (for example, high-emission cars in large cities). 26. World Economic Forum. (2024). Accelerating an Equitable Transition: A Framework for Economic Equity. https://www.weforum.org/publications/accelerating-an-equitable-transition-a-framework-for-economic-equity/. 27. Levy, C., H. Ahlawat, J. Patterson-Waterston, K. Das, et al. (2025). Climate Transition Impact Framework (C-TIF): Planning for a sustainable and inclusive future. McKinsey Sustainability. https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/sustainability/our-insights/climate-transition-impact-framework-ctif-planning-for-a-sustainable-and-inclusive-future. 28. A majority of surveyed CEOs indicated that they believe the business case for sustainability is improving, and plan to maintain or expand their commitments; United Nations Global Compact (UNGC). (2025). Turning the Key: Unlocking the next era of sustainability leadership. https://info.unglobalcompact.org/ceo-study-2025#form_001. 29. Social License to Operate is an unofficial yet powerful measure of community acceptance and approval. It is a dynamic and evolving concept that hinges on an entity’s ability to engage, respect, and address community concerns associate with their activities 30. In the 2024 edition of the survey, respondents were asked one question on socioeconomic impacts of the transition: “in your country, how will the decarbonization and green transition actions impact the economy?” (answered on a 1-7 Likert scale). In 2025, this question was repeated and accompanied by another: “which of the following factors are most likely to hinder your ability to remain competitive during the green transition?”, considering the sources and trends that impact the company’s business growth. This question had eight predetermined answers for respondents to choose from: affordability and demand for green products among consumers; higher cost of energy and key commodities; lack of reliable supply chains for sustainable products; limited access to critical raw materials; limited access to green skills; limited access to green technologies; limited investment capacity and access to finance; organization culture and resistance to change; regulatory uncertainty and compliance burden; and slow return on investment. 31. The Executive Opinion Survey is conducted on a yearly basis across a network of partner institutes active in more than 100 countries. More than 11,000 executives are surveyed. Results from the 2024 and 2025 edition of the survey are used throughout this report to complement other available sources of data and gauge the views of businesses on the socioeconomic impacts of the transition in their countries. 32. Dai, L., L. Clements, A. Meng, B. Schuck, et al. (2025). Investing in the green economy 2025. London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG). https://www.lseg.com/content/dam/lseg/en_us/documents/sustainability/investing-in-green-economy-2025.pdf. 33. World Economic Forum. (2024). Accelerating an Equitable Transition: A Data-Driven Approach. https://www.weforum.org/publications/accelerating-an-equitable-transition-a-data-driven-approach/. 34. These were aligned with the 2024 equitable transition framework: transitioning away from fossil fuels; scaling up low-carbon energy sources; greening transport and mobility; greening agriculture and food production; greening heavy industry; greening infrastructure and built environment; moving to a circular economy; World Economic Forum. (2024). Accelerating an Equitable Transition: A Data-Driven Approach. https://www.weforum.org/publications/accelerating-an-equitable-transition-a-data-driven-approach/. 35. See the appendix for responses cut by green transition sector. 36. World Economic Forum. (2025). The Future of Jobs Report 2025. https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/. 37. As defined by the International Labour Organization (ILO); International Labour Organization (ILO). (n.d.). ILOSTAT. https://ilostat.ilo.org/. 38. World Economic Forum. (2024). Accelerating an Equitable Transition: A Data-Driven Approach. https://www.weforum.org/publications/accelerating-an-equitable-transition-a-data-driven-approach/. 39. World Economic Forum. (2024). Accelerating an Equitable Transition: A Data-Driven Approach. https://www.weforum.org/publications/accelerating-an-equitable-transition-a-data-driven-approach/. 40. See the appendix for all relevant survey questions and response options. 41. Targets are clearly defined, science-based pathways for companies and financial institutions to decarbonize their operations and value chains, which have been reviewed and validated by SBTi Services. Net-zero targets set out emissions reductions companies need to achieve across all emissions scopes to reach net-zero emissions throughout the value chain no later than 2050 (or 2040 for the power sector); Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi). (n.d.). Target Dashboard. https://sciencebasedtargets.org/target-dashboard. 42. Analysis based on SBTi, CDP 43. Taskforce on Inequality and Social-Related Financial Disclosures (TISFD). (2025). Proposed Technical Scope. https://www.tisfd.org/downloads. Making the Green Transition Work for People and the Economy 175