ORGANIZATION
The course is taught by Filip Černoch and Dominik David, the former being the contact person for the course. If you need a consultation, please send an e-mail or approach the teacher at the end of the lecture.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Modern society was built on the abundance of cheap and accessible energy from coal, oil and natural gas. At the same time, the burning of these energy sources endangers the local and global environment, with climate change being the greatest threat.
In this course we follow the development of modern energy systems based on fossil fuels. We observe the relationship between these systems and the environment. We analyse government efforts to limit the negative environmental impacts of these industries and assess the effectiveness of different measures. And we evaluate the ongoing energy transition to low-carbon economies.
The course builds on the theoretical concepts of environmental science applied to the energy sector. It also draws on political science, governance, and economics. By the end of the course, students should be able to critically engage with the current energy-environment debate with the necessary background from different academic disciplines.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
1) Active participation in class discussionS. Lectures are not compulsory.
2) Students are expected to do the required readings for each lecture. The readings serve to broaden and deepen the range of knowledge students acquire in the lectures.
3) Students are required to submit a final (lobbying) paper. The topic has to be discussed with and approved in advance by Dominik David.
4) Students must pass a final written exam based on the required readings and lectures.
GRADING
The final grade will be calculated as a sum of two parts. Final paper (up to 30 points) and exam (up to 30 points).
A 56-60 points.
B 51-55 points.
C 46-50 points.
D 41-45 points.
E 36-40 points.
F 35 points and less.
FINAL PAPER
This activity is organized by Dominik David. Please direct your questions to him.
Teams of 2 students are expected to write a policy paper addressing the following situation: The national, local, or municipal government is about to introduce, amend, or repeal some environmentally relevant legislative act and you want to lobby the relevant decision-makers to protect the interests of your institution.
A) Set-up
5400 characters, including spaces, and footnotes.
1) Choose an act relevant to the subject of the course (strategic guideline, legislative act, government decision, directive, etc.). Briefly present this act. Only real and ongoing cases could be studied.
2) Define your position: you could represent industry, environmental NGOs, or a concerned community. State your interests in relation to the issue.
3) Define and explain the relevance of the audience of your paper – who is the decision-maker you want to lobby? (Ministry of Industry, Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Treasury/Finance…).
B) Policy paper
24 000 characters of the text itself (including spaces and footnotes, +/- 10%) + brief introductory letter + references.
1) Your intention is to convince the target audience that your positions and arguments are the correct and should be reflected in given act.
2) Correct arguments and evidence to support your position are crucial. Do not compromise the credibility of your institution by using incorrect arguments or weak data.
3) Write the paper efficiently, knowing that the audience will often not have much time to read it.
4) A word of warning – a policy paper is a research paper focusing on some specific policy issues; it should provide clear recommendations for policy makers. It is not a historical analysis or an opinion essay.
C) POSTER
The results of the final project will be presented in the form of a poster in the last week of the course. This will include a description of the case, the position of each actor and a delineation of the arguments of the actor you represent.
DEADLINES
The deadline for choosing a topic is 11.10.2023. The topic must be discussed and approved by Dominik David.
A set-up is due on 1.11.2023, 23:55.
A final paper is due on 15.12.2023, 23:55. A penalty of 5 points will be applied for each day (or fraction of the day) that either the set-up or the final paper is late. No excuses will be accepted – I suggest you to submit the paper well in advance as a precaution against illness or other unexpected complications.
CHEATING AND PLAGIARISM
Cheating or plagiarism in the course will result in your final grade being reduced to an F. The Disciplinary Board (and your home university, if appropriate) will be notified. It is your responsibility to know the rules.