Syllabus
1
Lecture 1
J. Baxa, V. Semerák
Negotiation rules and general guidelines. Vote on the topic for the semester. 2
Lecture 2
J. Baxa
(Depending on the topic) 3
Lecture 3
V. Semerák
(Depending on the topic) 4
Lecture 4
J. Baxa
(Depending on the topic) 5
Lecture 5
V. Semerák
(Depending on the topic) 6
Time for elaboration of the proposals and meeting with students
Teachers will meet with each group separately to ensure that all groups do understand their roles and tasks. 7
Group presentations – analytical proposals
Groups are presenting their position papers 8
Analytical proposals – review of the reports by other groups
Groups are reviewing the reports of the competing groups. Goal is to find weak and strong sides. 1st voting round
Groups must elect the binding analytical proposal / Groups must select alternatives for negotiations. 9
Group presentations – policy maker perspective
Groups are presenting the policy proposals. 10
Policy solution proposal – review of the reports by other groups
Groups are reviewing the reports of the competing groups. Goal is to find weak and strong sides. 2nd voting round
Groups must elect the final policy solution. 11
Follow up
J. Baxa and V. Semerák
Critical review of the experience with all activities: negotiation within and between groups, voting negotiations, analysis of the winning proposals, etc. 12
Follow up
J. Baxa and V. Semerák
Philosophical perspective – do we decide according to the facts and scientific arguments? Role of values, falsification criteria, etc. Discussion about the personal assessments.
Annotation
In this course, students negotiate a resolution of one of the current events. The topic is voted in the first week of the semester by the students from a list provided by the instructors. The purpose of this simulated negotiation is (i) to learn negotiation techniques (ii) to understand the obstacles of negotiations of political and economic agreements and (iii) to broaden and deepen understanding of the EU affairs.
The course is divided into three parts. Firstly, we start with four lectures introducing the topic, to provide the key information to all participants. The negotiation follows. The course is concluded by a follow-up and short essay.
A detailed description of the game is provided in the syllabus. All materials are posted in moodle (course name Philosophy, Economics and Politics II: Current Debates).
Topics to choose from in 2023/2024:
(1) What if Trump wins - and (i) stops exporting gas to Europe, (ii) announces that he no longer considers Article 5 of the NATO treaty as binding, and orders the U.S. Army to withdraw from Germany in 2025, and from other EU countries by 2027. How shall the EU react? How to boost EU-wide spending and how to fund it? What about fiscal rules, energy policy, and trade policy?
(2) Climate: How shall the EU climate goals be updated? There are new recommendations from the expert team, and a letter from 11 countries asking to strengthen the efforts to cut emissions, but there are countries that oppose these plans. So, how fast shall the EU proceed? What shall be done for faster implementation? Shall the EU be responsible for implementing the EU policies considered crucial?
(3) European economic security. Are current proposals enough? Critical Raw Materials Act has been proposed, but still, there are voices that the proposal is not enough. What shall be done to secure the EU's strategic autonomy?
(4) Housing crisis: Do we need EU-wide policies to tackle the problem?
(5) The future of automotive in Europe. Do we need EU-wide industrial policies to support the automotive? Or shall we rely on market forces and survival of the fittest?
If you wish to read more about some of those issues, you can check the report for the European Parliament at https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/IDAN/2024/757592/EPRS_IDA(2024)757592_EN.pdf.
Topics in previous years: 2021/2022: European Energy policy after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 2020/2021: Covid-19 Vaccination in the EU: Shall the member states cooperate? 2019/2020: Climate Change: Shall the EU countries adopt the European Green Deal? 2018/2019: EU budgetary framework for 2021-2027: Shall countries that do not accept migrants receive less EU funds in the future? 2017/2018: Brexit negotiations, in particular the arrangement of the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. 2016/2017: Italian banking crisis and the obstacles of the EU-wide resolution mechanisms of banking and fiscal crises.