The EU and Democracy: Challenges and Per

The course will introduce students to the key political, institutional and democratic challenges the EU is currently facing. The course will start with an overview of the EU’s institutions different roles throughout the last decade. It will look at how crises – economic, geopolitical, Covid-19, the green transition and war in Ukraine – have challenged governance and Europe’s political landscape. It will delve into the restructuring of Europe’s political landscape, with the rise of populism and the erosion of traditional parties. It will end on how EU could foster democratic resilience, inside its institutions and abroad through deepening transatlantic ties, to adapt our modes of participation and policy-making to new challenges and demands from citizens. Students will learn how the EU - confronted with multi-faceted crises - attempts to chart a unique model in a tumultuous world from the perspective of a former European Commissioner, Vice-president of the European parliament and Minister for the economy and finance.