The course Mediterranean Politics explores the Mediterranean area and provides the theoretical and analytical tools to explain political processes and understand critical security issues in the area.
In order to explore EU relations with the southern neighbors, it investigates relations between regional and global actors, state and non-state actors (e.g. political parties and civil society organizations), transnational actors and International Organizations. The course focuses upon the most relevant cooperation processes in the Mediterranean area, namely EMP/UfM, ENP, democratization (or lack of), and crucial issues such as regional territorial disputes, security (maritime security in particular), migration, terrorism, energy security, etc.
The course includes a Negotiation Lab on Migration Politics that has a hands-on nature. Namely, it helps understanding the complex EU decision–making process concerning migration. The European Union is often said to be distant from EU citizens. This Negotiation Lab boosts interest on the EU migration policy, by zooming into intra-EU institutional and EUMS relations or tensions. This Negotiation Lab seeks to render the decision-making process more tangible and comprehensible to students by exploring the complex negotiations among EUMS in the EU institutions and EU inter-institutional dynamics.
Learning outcomes
Students will learn how to apply the analytical tools of Political Science to Euro- Mediterranean Relations. They will be able to understand patterns of cooperation, regional conflicts, territorial disputes, socio-economic unbalances, persistent authoritarianism or perspective trends of political change, security issues and relevant problems in the regional agenda such as migration.
The Negotiation Lab on Migration Politics provides students with the negotiations’ techniques acquired via a hands-on exercise.
Objectives
This teaching course relies upon a combination of traditional lectures and active learning, i.e. presentations in class and simulation of negotiations concerning migration issues.This seminar format fosters autonomous learning and the elaboration of personal opinions and critical stances on Mediterranean Politics.
