210075 SE BAK11: European Union and Europeanisation (2019S)

Title: Crises and Power Shifts in the EU (engl)

Summary of the course contents:
The year 2010, shaped by the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon (ToL), began a new stage in the historical developments of the European Union (EU). The ToL aimed the improvement of the democratic legitimacy and making the Union a more coherent actor at home and abroad. It provided more powers for the European Parliament (EP) and greater scope for the qualified majority voting (QMV) among member states (MS) in the EU Council: the Ordinary Legislative Procedure (OLP) was to become the standard decision-making procedure used in adopting EU legislature in many (not all) EU policy fields.
For the better part of the last decade, though, the EU has been hit with various crises and characterised by a 'politics of emergency'. Voices have been raised arguing that the EU has failed to fulfil expectations of propelling forward and a discourse on its demise has gained salience. Many argue that the EU at best has muddled through and at times has appeared powerless when faced with the challenges of various crises. Some of the topics included in this course will be the impact to the EU institutions/actors from the financial & euro/debt crisis; Brexit crisis; rise of populist movements/highly Eurosceptic sentiments as well as pressure from illiberal democracies within and across the EU; etc.
Completion of the seminar will enable students to have a broader and deeper understanding of the role of the EU as well as the challenges it currently faces.

Objective of the course:
The aim of the course is twofold: a) to enable students gain in-depth understanding of the effects the crises had/have on the conceptualisation of the European integration process, the reinterpretation of the functions of select/crucial EU institutions; b) advance students' ability to produce spoken and written analyses by critically engaging with and applying relevant theoretical/methodological approaches.

Learning outcomes:
• Detailed understanding about issues affecting the European integration process
• Awareness about the debate on power shifts within the EU, its institutions as well as member states
• Understanding on institutional powers and their changed status as a result of the crises
• In-depth-analysis on the changes that the crises have brought on the domestic politics of selected EUMS and how these are manifested at the EU-level as well as the inter-relationship between EUMS themselves.
• Recognition of the specific causes and effects of various current EU crises
• Awareness about the way in which the regional and domestic implications of the concerned issues impact upon each other
• In –depth knowledge of as well as critically apply the theoretical and methodological approaches related to the study
• Class is designed to develop students’ analytical thinking and presentation techniques.
• Research work and essay writing target the improvement of students’ research and academic writing skills, consequently students will be able to:
o Independently produce spoken and written analyses in accordance with good academic practices,
o Practice on raising analytical questions concerning provided topics,
o Plan and present own research, and
o Critically analyse and think conceptually about the EU in crisis debate by using reasoned/well-informed arguments.