concept

realist review

Also known as: realist review analysis

Facts (12)

Sources

Realist Review on Just Transition Towards Low Emission, Climate ... link.springer.com Springer Jan 5, 2026 12 facts

referenceThe International Labour Organization’s ‘Guidelines for a Just Transition towards Environmentally Sustainable Economies and Societies for All’ served as the foundational framework for the GCF-IEU and ILO realist review.

measurementIn the realist review of just transition interventions, 64 interventions had no identified climate outcomes, and 58 interventions had no identified social equity or social gains outcomes.

claimThe realist review methodology excluded literature written and published in languages other than English due to budget and resource limitations, which limited the completeness of the study and introduced a degree of bias.

claimThe realist review analysis does not map direct causal pathways due to the large number of different activity combinations, but it supports a deeper understanding of which interventions appear to be working.

procedureThe realist review conducted by the GCF-IEU and ILO seeks to answer six specific research questions regarding just transition interventions in non-Annex I countries, including: 1) What evidence exists for interventions in energy, agriculture, infrastructure, and ecosystem services? 2) How can just transition outcomes be methodologically defined for workers, households, and firms? 3) What is the landscape of existing studies and how can they be clustered? 4) How effective are just transition approaches in key economic sectors? 5) How do underlying programme theories illuminate the effectiveness and efficiency of interventions? 6) How can the evidence base be synthesized to support programming by global climate funds and international agencies?

claimThe studies examined in the realist review rarely included explicit theories of change, but provided sufficient granular data regarding intended inputs, activities, outputs, and outcomes to allow the research team to reconstruct and refine an overarching theory of change for just transition in non-Annex I countries.

procedureThe research team evaluated the quality of studies for the realist review by asking three questions: (i) is the case good enough to provide evidence for synthesis, (ii) is it relevant to answering hypotheses, and (iii) is it rigorous in its own terms.

claimThe realist review on just transition towards low emission, climate-resilient development suggests that evidence on just transition interventions is currently less prevalent in Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

procedureThe research team conducted a realist review of just transition interventions in non-Annex I countries by mapping academic literature and grey material through an iterative search process that utilized bibliometric methods and pre-determined, transparent selection criteria for relevance and quality.

referenceThe realist review analyzed global evidence on interventions contributing to a just transition in developing countries across the sectors of energy, agriculture and food, infrastructure, and ecosystem services.

claimThe research team for the realist review on just transition used a purposive sampling approach to select studies based on their specific characteristics and relevance to the research question.

claimThe GCF-IEU and ILO realist review sought to answer six research questions regarding the evidence base, methodological definitions, study landscape, sectoral effectiveness, underlying programme theories, and synthesis of just transition interventions in non-Annex I countries.