Unpacking the risks in ADB’s just energy transition agenda

As the Asian Development Bank (ADB) convenes its 58th Annual General Meeting (AGM), civil society organizations are stepping up to challenge the bank’s approach to the Just Energy Transition (JET). In a critical panel session titled "Unpacking the Risks in ADB’s Just Energy Transition Agenda," grassroots voices will confront the question: Is the ADB’s energy strategy truly just—and truly aligned with the 1.5°C goal of the Paris Agreement?

The session aims to provide clarity on how communities across Asia perceive the effectiveness and risks of ADB-supported energy projects and policy frameworks. It also seeks to examine how the bank’s investments stack up against climate science and global justice commitments.

Centering People in the Green Transition

Under the AGM’s thematic banner of "Frontiers for Green Transition," this civil society-led session offers a necessary counter-narrative. At the heart of the discussion is a demand for justice, not only in emissions reduction but in how energy transitions are planned and implemented. Without prioritizing human rights, local agency, and ecological integrity, civil society warns that ADB’s energy strategies risk becoming part of the problem they aim to solve.

Speakers will highlight how many ADB-backed energy projects continue to rely on false solutions—such as fossil gas, carbon offset schemes, and unproven technologies—that delay decarbonization and often come at the cost of community rights and environmental health.

Instead, the call is for renewable, community-led, and equitable energy models that truly reflect the spirit of a just transition: one that leaves no one behind and repairs historic harms.

Voices from the Frontlines

The panel will feature a rich array of civil society leaders and grassroots organizers, each speaking from lived experience and community engagement. Confirmed speakers include:

• Titi Soentoro - Aksi! for gender, social, and ecological justice

• Hussain Jarwar - Indus Consortium

• Jaybee Garganera - Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM)

• Isabel Patricia Soresca - Center for Energy, Ecology and Development

• Jiten Yumnam - Centre for Research and Advocacy, Manipur (CRAM)

• Hasan Mehedi - (CLEAN) Coastal Livelihood and. Environmental Action

• Sukhgerel Dugersuren - OT Watch Mongolia

• Miriam Azurin - Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) -  Asia Pacific

• Dr. Nora Sausmikat - Urgewald

• Asim Jaffry - Fair Finance Pakistan

Each will speak to reflect on the local consequences of energy projects and the policy gaps that continue to marginalize vulnerable communities. Their testimonies will cover issues ranging from land grabs and displacement to gendered impacts, environmental degradation, and lack of meaningful consultation.

On the institutional side, the session will be joined by:

• Dr. Priyantha D.C. Wijayatunga - Chief of Energy Sector Group, ADB

• ED Bertrand Furno - ADB Executive Director representing Belgium, France, Israel, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland

These exchanges aim to spark constructive engagement and push for alignment between the ADB’s JET framework and the realities on the ground.

Beyond Policy Rhetoric

Civil society is clear: a truly Just Energy Transition must go beyond technical fixes and market solutions. It must:

• End financing for all fossil fuels, including fossil gas

• Reject carbon offset mechanisms that enable polluters to delay decarbonization

• Ensure transparency and accountability in energy planning

• Support decentralized, locally managed renewable energy systems

• Guarantee the protection of land, water, and Indigenous rights

• Include gender-responsive and socially just frameworks that benefit all communities

Charting a Path Forward

This session is more than a critique—it is a call to action. ADB has a critical role to play in shaping Asia’s climate future, but only if it listens to and learns from those most affected. By integrating community-led solutions into its energy policy and investing in truly sustainable alternatives, the bank can pivot toward a development model that is not only green in name but just in substance.