Besides being a major cause of climate change, the fossil fuel industry also has an impact on the local environment, including land degradation, waste production, water and air pollution and loss of biodiversity. People living near fossil fuel extraction sites are exposed to the harmful effects of industrial chemical emissions. For decades, the Konin Lignite Basin in Poland was one of the Polish centers of the mining industry. The region has been plagued by severe droughts exacerbated by the fossil fuel industry, against which farmers and environmental organizations have protested. Being covered by the Just Transition Fund, the region is currently undergoing an energy transition. Following the shutdown of the lignite mines and land reclamation of the remaining open pits, the local community is also witnessing a major social, cultural and environmental change. The former pits are to be flooded and new, post-industrial lakes created. The mining industry will be replaced by tourism and renewable energy. Do the environmental policy and reclamation plans meet the needs of the local community? What will happen to the former miners? Will there be room in the region's new future for pro-environmental activities? Will it serve as a sort of compensation for environmental degradation? The article will present the ongoing interdisciplinary ERICA (ERASMUS+) project on adult education in environmental monitoring through civic engagement and the results of focus group interviews conducted in the Konin Lignite Basin in Poland.