ENSn4675 Green transition from international and european perspective

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2024
Extent and Intensity
0/0/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Rastislav Vrbenský, MSc, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Martin Chovančík, Ph.D. (assistant)
Guaranteed by
doc. Mgr. Karel Stibral, Ph.D.
Department of Environmental Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Mgr. Kateřina Hendrychová
Supplier department: Faculty of Social Studies
Timetable
Thu 7. 3. 14:00–17:40 U32, Fri 8. 3. 8:00–11:40 U32, Thu 11. 4. 14:00–17:40 U32, Fri 12. 4. 8:00–11:40 U32, Thu 9. 5. 14:00–17:40 U32, Fri 10. 5. 8:00–11:40 U32
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course introduces and analyses the concepts of green transition and decarbonization in the context of sustainable development/ Agenda 2030 along with its regulatory and policy framework, pathways, taxonomy, monitoring and reporting framework as well as financing at the global, regional, and national levels. Special attention will be given to the green transition in the European Union context. The course will then continue by looking more closely at the decarbonization of key sectors such as energy, industry and transport among others. This will be complemented by exploration of the concept of ‘just transition’ in the framework of ‘leaving no one behind’ principle. The ability to innovate and continuous change management has been recognized as one of the key aspects of successful implementation of green transition. The course will therefore explore the role of innovation and new technologies in green transition. Last part of the course will concentrate on executive aspects of green transition such as leadership, organizational management and change management, this will be illustrated on the examples from both public and private sector entities. The course puts particular emphasis on combining the understanding of overall concepts and their theoretical underpinnings with practical examples and hands-on experience from implementation of public polices and development initiatives.
Learning outcomes
Upon successful completion of the course, the students will be able to i) demonstrate comprehensive understanding of genesis, theoretical underpinnings and aims of green transition and challenges of its practical implementation, ii) specifically illustrate this understanding through knowledge of decarbonization approaches in key climate-relevant sectors as well as of the concept of just transition. They will also iii) understand the role of innovation and new technology in promoting green transition as well as the motivation, leadership and organizational management aspects of green transition in the governments and private sector. As the course will use numerous real-life examples, the course learning will lead to building practical skills applicable in the development and public policy jobs related to green transition.
Syllabus
  • Block I. - Green Transition – Origin, Drivers and Frameworks (180 minutes)
  • Lecture 1: Origin of green transition, key drivers, policies and implications in international and European context
  • Lecture 2: European Green Deal Faculty members and guest lecturers, required and recommended literature as well as case studies to be added for each block.
  • Block II. - Decarbonization of Climate-relevant Sectors
  • Lecture 3: Introduction to decarbonization, regulatory and policy framework, pathways, taxonomy, monitoring and reporting framework
  • Lecture 4: Decarbonization in energy, industry, transport, agriculture and cities (or sub-set of these)
  • Block III. Innovation and Leadership/ Management Aspects of Green Transition
  • Lecture 5: Innovation and new technologies for green transition
  • Lecture 6: Leadership and Management aspects of green transition
  • Block IV. Just Transition and Circular Economy
  • Lecture 7: Just transition in European and international context
  • Lecture 8: Circular economy in European and international context
  • Block V. Greening of Public and Private Finance
  • Lecture 7: New Trends in Sustainability Financing
  • Lecture 8: Climate Finance
  • Block VI: Conference Day
  • Conference 1: Group presentation of research assignments/ case studies
  • Conference 2: Group presentation of research assignments/ case studies
Literature
    required literature
  • Žižlavský O., 2020: An Analysis of Innovation Classification and Typology: A Literature Review, available online: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280233077_An_Analysis_of_Innovation_Classification_and_Typology_A_Literature_Review
  • Politico (2020): The Wonk´s Survival Guide to the European Green Deal (chapter 1, 2, and 3). https://www.politico.eu/policy-guide/
  • UN DESA Policy Brief: A just green transition: concepts and practice so far, November 2022 https://www.un.org/development/desa/dpad/publication/un-desa-policy-brief-no-141-a-just-green-transition-concepts-and-practice-so-far/
  • Financed emissions: Global GHG accounting and reporting standards: https://carbonaccountingfinancials.com/files/downloads/PCAF-Global-GHG-Standard-exec-summary.pdf
  • State and trend of carbon pricing 2021, World Bank: https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/35620
  • Bruegel, How to make the European Green Deal Work, Policy Contribution, Issue n˚13, November 2019 https://www.bruegel.org/policy-brief/how-make-european-green-deal-work#:~:text=Green%20investment%20should%20be%20promoted,support%20for%20European%20promo
  • https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/2051AAAA_Outcome.pdf
  • University of California, 2016: SMART Goals: A How to Guide, available online: https://med.stanford.edu/content/dam/sm/s-spire/documents/How-to-write
  • Global climate finance landscape 2021: https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Full-report-Global-Landscape-of-Climate-Finance-2021.pdf
  • McCauley, D., Heffron, R (2018) Just transition: Integrating climate, energy and environmental justice, Energy Policy, Volume 119 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0301421518302301#preview-section-introduction
  • Financial markets and climate transition.OECD: https://www.oecd.org/finance/Financial-Markets-and-Climate-Transition-Opportunities-Challenges-and-Policy-Implications.pdf
  • The Greenhouse Gas Protocol. A Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard. Available at https://ghgprotocol.org/corporate-standard
  • Science Based Net Zero. Scaling Urgent Corporate Climate Action Worldwide. SCIENCE BASED TARGETS INITIATIVE ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT, 2021. Available at https://sciencebasedtargets.org/resources/files/SBTiProgressReport2021.pdf
  • https://ungc-communications-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/about_the_gc/UN-GLOBAL-COMPACT-STRATEGY-2021-2023.pdf
    recommended literature
  • Collective Climate Ambition - a Joint Statement at COP26 by the Multilateral Development Banks https://thedocs.worldbank.org/en/doc/8b63ef9b33c96b80138ac1b1528bd65e-0020012021/original/COP26-Joint-MDB-Climate-Ambition-Statement.pdf
  • ILO (2015), Guidelines for a just transition towards environmentally sustainable economies and societies for all https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/@ed_emp/@emp_ent/documents/publication/wcms_432859.pdf
  • https://hlpf.un.org/sites/default/files/vnrs/2022/VNR%202022%20Montenegro%20Report.pdf
  • https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2020/08/01/introduction-to-esg/
  • ILO, Frequently Asked Questions on Just Transition https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/green-jobs/WCMS_824102/lang--en/index.htm
  • https://unfccc.int/process/conferences/pastconferences/paris-climate-change-conference-november-2015/paris-agreement
  • Kuhnhenn K. et al., 2020: A Societal Transformation Scenario for Staying Below 1.5°C, availableonline: https://www.boell.de/sites/default/files/2020-12/A%20Societal%20Transformation%20Scenario%20for%20Staying%20Below%201.5C.pdf
  • Terzi, A (2020), Crafting an effective narrative on the green transition https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S030142152030598X
Teaching methods
The course consists of lectures combined with interactive class discussions and 2 conferences dedicated to the key topics of the course, special attention will be given to sharing and discussing practical case studies and examples from public sector and development field. The lectures and subsequent discussions aim at maximizing learning on practical application of acquired knowledge of various aspects of green transition and decarbonization in concrete, real-life public sector and development situations. Lectures serve as important introduction to the issues of the course, it is however assumed that additional part of subject matter knowledge will be acquired through self-studying of required and recommended literature. The course will also include a group research assignment/ practical case study linked to course subjects to be prepared by a group of students and presented during the last block of Conferences. This will represent an integral part of overall assessment and will be complemented by a written exam.
Assessment methods
During the course the students need to prepare and present one presentation on assigned topic as a result of group work as well as successfully complete the written exam.
Grading: 30 points will be awarded for presentation, 70 points for written exam, overall assessment with be as follows: 100-92 points = A, 91-84 points = B, 83-76 points = C, 75-68 points = D, 67-60 = E, less then 60 points = F (failed)
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
Information on the extent and intensity of the course: Výuka probíhá blokově, celkem 6 termínů dva bloky po sobě.
Teacher's information

Dr, Rastislav Vrbensky - Lecturer, Adviser and Business Developer in Sustainability, Climate and Innovation. Former UNDP Deputy Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative/ Country Director Linkedin: https://bit.ly/3eE4C9W, personal web: https://vrbensky.eu

doc. Mgr. Filip Černoch, Ph.D. - Associate Professor, Department of International Relations and European Studies, Masaryk University, https://www.muni.cz/en/people/65444-filip-cernoch

Dr. Aleksandra Novikova - IPCC Lead Author, Senior Expert, IKEM - Institute for Climate, Energy and Mobility, Berlin, Germany

Oldřich Sklenář - Research Fellow of Association of International Affairs, Prague, Czech Repubic, https://www.amo.cz/en/autor/oldrich-sklenar-2/

Prof. Igor Luksic - Prime Minister, Minister of Finance and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Montenegro, PwC Southeast Europe, ESG Business Development Leader

The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2023, Spring 2025.
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