JETNET 2026: Just Transition Knowledge Network (JETNET) Annual Conference 2026: Transitions in Extractive Regions: Sustainable Closures, Repurposing and Developmental Pathways The International Centre Goa (ICG) Goa, India, October 26-27, 2026

Background

The Just Transition Knowledge Network (JETNET), an initiative of the Just Transition Research Centre at IIT Kanpur, invites national and international participants to its Annual Conference 2026.

As countries accelerate their transition toward low-carbon development, extractive regions stand at a critical juncture. The growing policy emphasis on mine and power plant closures, repurposing of fossil-fuel-based infrastructures and regional economic restructuring presents both complex challenges and transformative opportunities. For instance, in India, this is underscored by national efforts toward the simultaneous and sustainable closure of coal mines, alongside the need to ensure long-term socio-economic and ecological resilience in affected regions.

At the same time, global climate discourse increasingly recognises that transitions must be just, inclusive, and context-specific, particularly in the Global South where development imperatives, livelihoods, and resource dependencies intersect.

This international conference aims to bring together scholars, practitioners, policymakers, industry, and communities to generate actionable, interdisciplinary knowledge on sustainable transitions in extractive regions. It places a special emphasis on:

• Mine closure and repurposing pathways
• Land, ecological, and earth systems transitions
• Regional development and economic diversification
• Policy-relevant research that can inform national strategies and global climate processes

The conference seeks to bridge research, policy, and practice, fostering dialogue that contributes to ongoing national priorities and informs broader international conversations on just transitions.

Objectives

This year’s conference will:

• Build a global research cohort working on extractive transitions, land systems, and just transitions
• Create a platform for high-quality academic and field-based insights on mine closure, repurposing, and regional development
• Facilitate knowledge exchange between researchers, policymakers, and practitioners, particularly in the context of ongoing coal transition efforts
• Contribute to policy-relevant discourse by generating insights that can inform national strategies and global climate dialogues
• Advance interdisciplinary approaches, integrating geoscience, spatial technologies (GIS, remote sensing), and socio-economic research

Submission Guidelines

Call for Abstracts

We invite abstracts (200-350 words) that clearly outline the research question, methodology, and key findings or arguments.

Submissions are open to:

• Scholars and early-career researchers
• Civil society, unions, and grassroots representatives
• Policy practitioners, analysts, and consultants
• Entrepreneurs and industry professionals
• Public sector professionals

Contributors may be affiliated with universities, research institutions, government bodies, civil society organisations, international organisations, or public/private sector entities.

Submission Types

• Poster
• Research Paper
• Viewpoint/Perspective
• Review Paper
• Case Studies / Best Practices

Conference Proceedings

Our effort is to provide participants with an opportunity to contribute to globally visible, peer-reviewed knowledge outputs in the field of just transitions and sustainable development.

Selected abstracts will be invited for presentation in Goa. If accepted, authors will have the opportunity to publish full-length papers (minimum 6,000 words, excluding references) in the official conference proceedings. (More details will be announced shortly)

For publishing full papers,

• Authors must explicitly declare any use of AI at any stage of manuscript preparation
• At least one of the authors should have a PhD from a reputed institution
• Research scholars can submit by collaborating with their guides
• Industry experts can contribute, too, provided they have at least 15 years of industry experience

Themes

Submissions are invited with sectoral emphasis on energy and power, transportation, mineral-based, heavy, extractive industries and critical minerals, tourism, construction and buildings, textile, manufacturing, waste and circular economy and Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (AFOLU) under the following guiding themes -

(Select the most relevant theme during submission)

1. Extractive Economies, Mine Closure, and Regional Transitions

• Coal and mineral-based economies
• Mine closure, reclamation, and repurposing
• Critical minerals and future resource transitions
• Industrial transitions (steel, cement, manufacturing, textile, construction, etc.)
• Regional economic restructuring and development pathways

2. Land, Environment, and Earth Systems

• Land use transitions (AFOLU, industrial, urban, peri-urban and rural)
• Geoscience and subsurface perspectives
• Remote sensing and GIS for transition analysis and planning
• Ecological restoration and post-mining landscapes
• Palaeontology and long-term landscape histories
• Climate change impacts on ecosystems and land systems

3. Transition Pathways: Policy, Technology, and Finance

• Policy processes, legal and institutional frameworks
• Energy transitions and non-fossil pathways
• Science, technology, and innovation for sustainability
• Economic diversification, jobs, and skilling pathways
• Transition finance and green investment
• Circular economy models and sustainable production systems

4. People, Institutions, and Just Transitions

• Workforce transitions (formal and informal)
• Communities and dependent populations
• Gender, youth, and social inclusion
• Indigenous and local knowledge systems
• Governance and industry actors (state, civil society, industry, MSMEs, networks, etc.)
• Participation, rehabilitation, resettlement, and conflict resolution

Registration Fee and Conference Grants

There is no conference registration fee for existing JETNET members. Participants are advised to register for the conference only once they have received an acceptance notification for the academic conference.

*Registration fee is inclusive of annual JETNET membership

Participants with limited funding opportunities will be provided travel and accommodation grants based on their statement of purpose.

• 5 international travel grants
• 15 domestic travel grants
• 15 accommodation grants

Additionally, 5 best paper awards will be given to participants with outstanding research presentations.

Venue

The International Centre Goa, Dona Paula, Goa, India - 403 004

Contact

For queries,

Email us at jtrc@iitk.ac.in,

Drop us a WhatsApp message on +91 9519362930