Green Transition: Between Realism and Fairness

This Special Section examines the normative challenges of the Green Transition under non-ideal political conditions marked by institutional inertia, distributive conflict, citizens’ motivational deficits, and increasing public contestation. Interpreting the Green Transition both as a set of concrete policy programs aimed at carbon neutrality and as a normative political imaginary oriented toward a just future green society, the Section brings together three original contributions by Luigi Caranti, Nunzio Alì, and Diana Piroli, along with a reply by Darrel Moellendorf. The contributions explore the persistent tension between realism (broadly understood) and fairness in contemporary climate philosophy, with particular attention to liberal democracies. Caranti highlights the structural failures of political systems and defends a strategically realistic reliance on advanced green technologies as a residual source of hope. Alì focuses on the distributive dimension, arguing that effective and legitimate climate policies require containing economic inequality through a principle of proportionality. Piroli emphasizes democratic legitimacy, stressing the role of conflictual public spheres and climate counterpublics in mobilizing support and contestation. Moellendorf concludes by offering a synthetic response centered on mobilizing hope through technology, activism, and existing international norms. Together, the contributions argue that realism and fairness are mutually reinforcing, and that only their integration can render the Green Transition a realistic utopia worth persuading citizens to endorse.Keywords: Green Transition; Fairness; Realism; Hope; Realistic Utopia.