Environmental Studies

This course provides an introduction to the EU and its policy on environmental protection and natural resources. After a brief recap of the basics of policy-making in the EU, students learn about the guiding principles and developments within the EU’s environmental policy. Subsequently, the course covers the major environmental challenges currently faced by the EU. The first part of the course discusses the functioning of the European Union to be able to better understand the factors influencing European environmental policy and politics. The course also looks at the European reaction to climate change and discusses the effectiveness of the main solutions to this global problem: the development of renewable sources of energy and the different ways of pricing carbon. The course devotes a special session to the EU’s role in climate negotiations. The second part of the course is devoted to different forms of pollution, such as air, noise, water, and soil pollution, as well as humanity’s impact on biodiversity loss. In this part of the course students discuss the main prerequisites for making the European transport sector more sustainable and European cities greener and smarter. The last session is devoted to discussing the challenges and the opportunities for the future of environmental policy.

This course uses key environmental debates to explore the challenges associated with the effective management of the environment. Environmental problems are complex and their resolution involves integrating science, knowledge, and values. Course topics are divided into five sections: environmental science, global marine issues, global water issues, global terrestrial issues, and global climate issues.

The protection of the global environment has become one of the major challenges of the international system. This course explores the main concepts and principles of international environmental law. It examines how international environmental law has emerged and developed, in particular by emphasizing the role and contribution of international courts and tribunals. The course also deals specifically with the legal regimes that have been shaped in order to preserve the global environment in different fields. With the emergence of the concept of sustainable development, international environmental law is now at the crossroads of different regimes. In this context, the course analyzes the relationship between international environmental law and international trade and/or investment law as well as the relationship between international environmental law and human rights.