Admission requirements
This course can only be taken as part of the minor European Approaches to Societal Challenges.
Description
Major challenges face European societies today posed by security, migration, climate change, economic inequality and health threats, among others. These challenges pose significant threats to European states, societies and international organizations. They are complex, transcend national borders, interact with each other and – as a result – require coordinated, innovative, and holistic policy solutions that can be best informed by a variety of disciplinary perspectives. To promote knowledge and tools to advance such solutions, the introductory course of the Minor on "European Approaches to Societal Challenges" provides students with the basic concepts, knowledge and analytical tools necessary for studying contemporary politics, societies and governance in Europe. It charts the institutional architecture of governance at the local, national, European and global levels and familiarises students with the concepts and theories of the policy process and the major actors in democratic politics. The course will integrate historical, legal, political, and governance insights to stimulate comprehensive, interdisciplinary understanding of the contemporary multilevel governance architecture in Europe and its strengths and weaknesses in addressing societal problems given the legal, institutional, political and economic context.
Course objectives
At the end of the course, students should:
1. have broad knowledge of the legal, institutional, and political aspects of governance in Europe at levels from the national to the European and beyond;
2. be familiar with the main analytic tools – concepts, theories and models – needed to discuss and analyse the contemporary multilevel governance architecture in Europe;
3. be able to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the European multilevel governance architecture in addressing transnational societal problems with effective and representative policy solutions.
Schedule
The timetables are available through MyTimetable (see the button in the upper right corner).
Teaching method
A combination of lectures and seminars as well as self-study.
Assessment method
Final exam, combining multiple choice and open-ended questions.
Resit, review & feedback
The time and location of inspection and debriefing of the exam will be announced via Brightspace no later than the publication of the grades.
Reading list
De Vries, Catherine E.; Sven Oliver-Proksch; Sara B.; and Jonathan Proksch (2021) Foundations of European Politics: A Comparative Approach. Oxford University Press.
Registration
See general information about the minor.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer(s) (listed in the right information bar). For questions about enrolment, contact the Student Services Centre: ssc@leiden.edu. For other questions related to the Minor, write to: minor.european.approaches@fsw.leidenuniv.nl.