Actors of the European political system

Teacher(s)

Duez Denis;

Language

French

Main themes

The course firstly examines institutional actors (as mentioned in the European Treaties), both European (Commission, Parliament, Council of the European Union, Court of Justice, Committee of the Regions, Economic and Social Committee, European Central Bank, European Investment Bank, etc.) and national (national delegations to the Parliament, the Council of the European Union, to the Committee of the Regions, Economic and Social Committee, etc.). Secondly, the course examines non-institutional actors such as political parties, interest groups, trade unions, companies, advocacy groups, "think tanks", experts, media, opinion polling agencies, etc. It will analyse the way they are organized at the European and/or national levels (ex: European Trade Union Confederation, "BusinessEurope", European Environmental Bureau, etc.).

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :
1	On completion of the course, students will have a global understanding of the whole set of collective actors that contribute to the "European political game", as well as of the main type of interactions among them. They will be familiar with the actors' contribution to the dynamic and the development of the EU.

Content

The course combines two perspectives. On one hand, the course will identify all types of actors participating in the European political system. The course will present their composition, resources and main instruments for action, their identity and political orientations. The weight of each of these actors in the European political decision-making process will be underlined. On the other hand, the course will engage a more dynamic perspective, centred on the interactions among the actors. It will acknowledge the fundamental diversity of actors and levels of governance of the European "political game".

Teaching methods

The course tackles theoretical and empirical works on the functioning of the EU political system. PowerPoint presentations, including the structure of each lecture, tables, charts, images and links to videos or websites presented during the course, will be made available on Moodle.

Learning activities:

First, each lecture is associated with a list of readings. Of these reading(s), one or two is/are compulsory. Further readings are optional and allow students to go deeper into the subject of the course. The compulsory readings are available on Moodle.

Secondly, students may be invited to attend one or two events (conferences, seminars, debates) in connection with the course. These events will be selected either in the activities organized at UCLouvain or in the many activities organized in Brussels in the field of European affairs.

Evaluation methods

Written examination.
The examination aims to verify the student's mastery of the notions and concepts studied during the course. The questions presuppose a very good knowledge and understanding of the subject matter. The student could, for example, be asked to comment on a current topic by adequately mobilizing the concepts, theories or typologies presented during the course. One or more questions relate to learning activities (+/- 25% of the final grade).
The use of artificial intelligence for this course is governed by the rules set out in the university Academic regulations and procedures, which is available on the university's website. Unless explicitly instructed otherwise by the course teacher, the use of AI by students is forbidden.

Other information

Compulsory readings and list of recommended readings available on Moodle.

Faculty or entity

> EURO