OAFP 9605 - Clean Transitions in the EU: Investigating the policy challenges

The European Union (EU) aims to decarbonize the EU by 2050, while maintaining economic competitiveness and resilience. This clean transition is unfolding in an increasingly unstable and contested global environment. Climate policy is no longer only a question of emissions targets and technology deployment; it is closely connected to energy security, industrial resilience, critical resources, geopolitical positioning, but also internal social cohesion. The EU has responded to the global challenges with a rapidly evolving policy agenda, moving from the 2019-2024 European Green Deal to the Industrial Clean Deal, a concept that bundles competitiveness, resilience and climate ambition. The transition is multi-faceted, covering renewable energy and energy efficiency frameworks, building renovation policies, critical minerals, and just transition aspects, while trying to coordinate governance across the 27 Member States to align national and European action. This workshop invites students to analyse and reflect on trade-offs, dilemmas and challenges to the clean transition.

Basic knowledge of the functioning of the European Union (EU), including its main institutions (Commission, Parliament, Council) and core decision-making processes.

Familiarity with key EU policy areas (especially climate, energy, or economic policy) is an advantage but not strictly required.

Following an introductory set of lectures to frame the topic, the class will turn to a coaching format. Students will work in groups on challenges and dilemmas inherent to the clean transition. Each topic will based on draft chapters for the forthcoming 2027 “Handbook on Clean Transitions in Europe”, edited by Marc Ringel with E. Elgar. The chapters are drafted by policy experts and cover key fields of EU clean transition policies, including geopolitical aspects of the transition, the European Green Deal, the Clean Industrial Deal, renewable energy development, energy efficiency policies, building renovation, the just transition, governance, resources, and related areas of climate and energy policy.

Students will be able to choose their topic. They will work in group, each focusing on one handbook chapter as kick-off for their analysis. The goal is not to summarise the chapter, but to use it as a foundation for developing a structured policy analysis and proposal: identify the core European policy challenge, assess the logic and limits of the EU response, and apply a critical perspective to derive possible policy conclusions that could inform European clean transition policy. Based on this analysis, each group will develop evidence-based policy recommendations that could contribute to improving EU clean transition policy

Students will be coached by the instructor to support their analysis, identify potential interlocuters and develop their methods. In a peer review session, groups will have the opportunity to exchange about their methods, research procedures and tentative findings. Clustered final presentations will allow the class to gain on overview on the transition challenges and policy solutions at hand.

A policy analysis of approximately 5,000 words (excluding annexes and bibliography) in group. The paper should present a clear problem definition, analysis methodology, structured analysis of the EU policy response, discussion and evidence-based policy recommendations.

Oral presentations 10%

Two short group presentations (10–15 minutes each):

one for the mid-term peer review session

one for the final policy forum

Active participation in peer-review sessions and cluster debates, including constructive feedback to other groups.

Group summaries and slides will be showcased on the websites of Science Po’s European Chair for Sustainable Development and Climate Transition.