European Union as a Global Actor for Sustainability and Resilience(RI459)
| Course Code | Course Name | Semester | Theory | Practice | Lab | Credit | ECTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RI459 | European Union as a Global Actor for Sustainability and Resilience | 7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| Prerequisites | |
| Admission Requirements |
| Language of Instruction | English |
| Course Type | Elective |
| Course Level | Bachelor Degree |
| Course Instructor(s) | Beyza Çağatay TEKİN btekin@gsu.edu.tr (Email) |
| Assistant | |
| Objective | This course presents a comprehensive exploration of the European Union's pivotal role in promoting sustainability and resilience through a global public goods approach to global governance. Through engaging weekly themes, students will explore the complex intersections between EU policies and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The course will address sustainability as a global governance priority across its various dimensions, including economic development, the environment, international security, and peace. EU policies on the circular economy, regional development, agriculture, technology, industry, investment, and trade will be analysed in terms of socio-economic resilience and sustainability. The course will critically assess the potential impact of EU initiatives on enhancing resilience in the face of challenges such as the climate crisis, digital transformation, food security, inequalities, and pandemics. |
| Content |
This course is part of the Jean Monnet Chair in Migration Governance for Sustainability and Resilience (MIGOSUR) and is supported by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union. The course explores the European Union’s critical role in fostering sustainability and resilience within a global public goods framework. The course covers key EU initiatives, including the European Green Deal, industrial policy, and trade agreements, assessing their impacts on global governance challenges like climate change, food security, and socio-economic inequalities. |
| Course Learning Outcomes |
A student who successfully completes this course will be able to: 1. Recognise and explain the concepts of sustainability and resilience across various dimensions. 2. Evaluate how EU policies align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, focusing on sustainability as a multidimensional global governance priority. 3. Critically examine the EU’s initiatives in addressing global challenges, including the climate crisis, digital transformation, food security, and inequalities. 4. Identify the potential contributions of EU policies to enhancing international security, peace, and resilience in the face of contemporary global crises, such as pandemics and environmental degradation. |
| Teaching and Learning Methods | Lectures, student presentations, class discussions and a collaborative learning approach that allows students to work in groups and extend learning beyond the classroom through field trips and observations. |
| References |
Readings will be provided on a weekly basis. Indicative readings: Ben Hassen, T., & El Bilali, H. (2022). Impacts of the Russia-Ukraine war on global food security: towards more sustainable and resilient food systems? Foods, 11(15), 2301. Bourbeau, P. (2015). “Resilience and international politics: Premises, debates, agenda”. International studies review, 17(3), 374-395. Chaban, N., Niemann, A., & Speyer, J. (eds.) (2020). Changing Perceptions of the EU at Times of Brexit. Routledge. Chandler, D. (2014). Resilience: The Governance of Complexity (London: Routledge). Joseph, J., & Juncos, A. E. (2019). “Resilience as an emergent European Project? The EU's place in the resilience turn”. JCMS: journal of common market studies, 57(5), 995-1011. Kaul, I., Conceição, P., Le Goulven, K., & Mendoza, R. U. (Eds.). (2003). Providing global public goods: managing globalization. Oxford University Press. Korosteleva, E. (2020). “Paradigmatic or Critical? Resilience as a New Turn in EU Governance for the Neighbourhood”. Journal of International Relations and Development, 23: 682-700. Lütz, S., Leeg, T., Otto, D., & Dreher, V. W. (2021). European Union as a Global Actor. Springer International Publishing. Manners, Ian. 2002. “Normative Power Europe: a Contradiction in Terms?” Journal of Common Market Studies 40, 2: 235-258. Pe'er, G., Bonn, A., Bruelheide, H., Dieker, P., Eisenhauer, N., Feindt, P. H., ... & Lakner, S. (2020). Action needed for the EU Common Agricultural Policy to address sustainability challenges. People and Nature, 2(2), 305-316. Rayner, T., Szulecki, K., Jordan, A. J., & Oberthür, S. (Eds.). (2023). Handbook on European Union climate change policy and politics. Edward Elgar Publishing. Smith, Karen E. 2006. “Speaking with One Voice? European Union Co-ordination on Human Rights Issues at the United Nations.” Journal of Common Market Studies 44, 1: 113-137. Tagliapietra, S. (2024). “The European Union's Global Gateway: An institutional and economic overview”. The World Economy, 47(4), 1326-1335. Triandafyllidou, A., & Yeoh, B. S. (2023). Sustainability and resilience in migration governance for a post-pandemic world. Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Studies, 21(1), 1-14. Tocci, N. (2020). Resilience and the role of the European Union in the world. Contemporary Security Policy, 41(2), 176-194. Tocci, N. (2017) Framing the EU Global Strategy. A Stronger Europe in a Fragile World (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan). |
Theory Topics
| Week | Weekly Contents |
|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction and Description of the Course Objectives. Global Governance Challenges: A Global Public Goods Approach |
| 2 | What Do We Mean by Sustainability? What Do We Mean by Resilience? The EU’s ‘Resilience Turn’ |
| 3 | The EU’s International Identity and Role as a Global Actor. The EU and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2030 |
| 4 | Rethinking the Capacity of the EU as a Global Actor in the Face of its Own Crises: Constitutional Treaty Referendums, Brexit and the Eurozone Crisis. Treaty of Lisbon and the Current State of the Union |
| 5 | The European Green Deal. Environmental Change, Green Economy, and Resilience in the Face of the Climate Crisis |
| 6 | EU Industrial Policy.The Resurgence of Industrial Policy and State Activism in Advanced Economies. Transnational Organisation of Production, Global Value/Supply Chains, and New Protectionism |
| 7 | Midterm Exam |
| 8 | The Global Gateway: A European Alternative to the Belt and Road Initiative? Great Power Rivalry or Cooperation? The Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, the Belt and Road Initiative, and the Global Gateway in a Comparative Perspective |
| 9 | The EU’s Common Commercial Policy, Trade Agreements, and Preferential Access to the EU Market for Developing Countries |
| 10 | The EU’s Development Policy and Partnerships for Sustainable Development. Conditionality and the Politics of Foreign Aid |
| 11 | International Politics of Food Security and Food Sustainability. EU’s Common Agricultural Policy and the Farm to Fork Strategy |
| 12 | Human Security and Human Rights Protection in the EU |
| 13 | Rethinking the EU’s Role as a Global Actor for Sustainability and Resilience in an Evolving Global Context. The EU as a Modest Force for Sustainable Peace and Security? |
| 14 | General Remarks and Conclusions |
Practice Topics
| Week | Weekly Contents |
|---|
Contribution to Overall Grade
| Number | Contribution | |
|---|---|---|
| Contribution of in-term studies to overall grade | 4 | 60 |
| Contribution of final exam to overall grade | 1 | 40 |
| Toplam | 5 | 100 |
In-Term Studies
| Number | Contribution | |
|---|---|---|
| Assignments | 2 | 20 |
| Presentation | 1 | 10 |
| Midterm Examinations (including preparation) | 1 | 20 |
| Project | 0 | 0 |
| Laboratory | 0 | 0 |
| Other Applications | 0 | 0 |
| Quiz | 0 | 0 |
| Term Paper/ Project | 1 | 10 |
| Portfolio Study | 0 | 0 |
| Reports | 0 | 0 |
| Learning Diary | 0 | 0 |
| Thesis/ Project | 0 | 0 |
| Seminar | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 0 | 0 |
| Make-up | 0 | 0 |
| Toplam | 5 | 60 |
| No | Program Learning Outcomes | Contribution | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 1 | To have a detailed knowledge on the principal concepts, actors and components of the international system | X | ||||
| 2 | To master the fundamentals such as history, law, economics, sociology and political science required by the multidisciplinary nature of International Relations | X | ||||
| 3 | Pouvoir analyser la pratique à partir d’une infrastructure théorique assimilée | X | ||||
| 4 | To have acquired the capability of specializing on a particular theme and/or region | X | ||||
| 5 | In the light of Galatasaray University’s traditional and institutional links with Europe, to have developed the ability to contribute to Turkey’s accession process to the EU in a concrete manner | X | ||||
| 6 | To interpret and explain Turkish foreign policy through its domestic components as well as from the perspective of the international system | X | ||||
| 7 | To have reached the necessary level of competence to be able to undertake a career at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as other state institutions and/or the private sector | X | ||||
| 8 | Possess the required skills to work at various international organizations and NGOs | X | ||||
| 9 | To be in perfect command of French, teaching language of Galatasaray University, and of English, its mandatory language, at the academic -with a view to write a thesis/project/book in the field of International Relations- as well as the professional level | X | ||||
| 10 | To have the capacity to utilize the methodological instruments acquired throughout the studies at any conceptual and/or academic work | X | ||||
| Activities | Number | Period | Total Workload |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class Hours | 14 | 3 | 42 |
| Working Hours out of Class | 10 | 4 | 40 |
| Assignments | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| Presentation | 1 | 9 | 9 |
| Midterm Examinations (including preparation) | 1 | 10 | 10 |
| Project | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Laboratory | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Applications | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Final Examinations (including preparation) | 1 | 14 | 14 |
| Quiz | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Term Paper/ Project | 1 | 4 | 4 |
| Portfolio Study | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reports | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Learning Diary | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thesis/ Project | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seminar | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Make-up | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total Workload | 122 | ||
| Total Workload / 25 | 4.88 | ||
| Credits ECTS | 5 | ||