International Governance, Energy and Environment (IGEE)

About the Group

The research agenda of International Governance, Energy and Environment Research Group comprises three main streams.

International Governance

This research stream examines how state and non-state actors shape the evolution of global governance and international institutions. It investigates the conditions under which international institutions facilitate cooperation, manage conflict, and address transnational challenges in an increasingly contested international order. Particular attention is given to the effects of power shifts, strategic rivalry, and institutional interaction on the resilience and effectiveness of international organizations and regimes. Research topics include global governance, international organizations, international law and courts, regime complexity, multilateralism, and the politics of institutional adaptation in world affairs.

Global Energy Politics

This research stream focuses on key energy actors, the roles of international energy institutions, and the interaction between energy politics and markets, including issues of energy security. Specific research topics include energy turbulence – that is, how the energy policies of major players such as the EU must balance the fundamental goals of energy transition and energy security amidst a combination of sudden and gradual changes in circumstances such as the covid pandemic, wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, and market as well as policy responses to climate change. Researchers also work on the environmental impact of energy use and the role of renewable energy in global efforts to mitigate climate change.

International Resource and Environmental Politics

This research stream includes studies of international environmental negotiations in areas such as climate, biodiversity and marine living resources, as well as the politics of transitions to modes of production and consumption that reduce emissions and resource use. Researchers examine interactions among socio-economic and political processes at global, regional and national levels, including how economic recessions may encourage states to direct recovery measures towards decarbonization and green growth.

Purpose and Character of the Research Group

Members of the research group study international governance, energy politics and international resource and environmental affairs in Europe and around the world. They pursue research questions in these areas with a broad portfolio of methods, both quantitative and qualitative, including formalized or narrative comparison as well as interpretivist approaches. The group arranges a series of seminars centred on papers presented mostly by invited scholars working on subjects that are central to the research group; the seminars can also serve as a venue for presenting departmental staff work in progress.