Europe is not only facing an energy crisis: it is simultaneously dealing with climate and social crises as well. With fossil fuel prices rising, it is often vulnerable households and communities that bear the burden when transitioning to clean energy solutions.

To this end, ICLEI Europe has signed an open letter in support of a bold and transformative Social Climate Fund (SCF), along with 37 other organisations devoted to combating climate change.

In 2021, the European Commission created the Fit for 55 climate package, a set of proposals intended to help meet the EU goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030. The SCF was established within the Fit for 55 package to provide financial assistance to vulnerable and lower income communities in the energy transition away from fossil fuels. The SCF acknowledges that not all communities will be equally impacted by energy transition, and those that are most vulnerable to energy poverty, job loss, and housing insecurity in the face of transition must be supported.

The open letter explains: a bold and transformative SCF would provide sufficient funding to assist in tackling these three crises by providing temporary financial support to cope with rising energy prices, and providing access to clean energy and transport solutions.

To read the open letter in full, and to browse the full list of committed signatories, click here.