General information
Code: J5-2562
Period: 1.9.2020 - 31.8.2024
Project leader at FDV: izr.prof.dr. Marko Lovec
Research activity: Social sciences
Abstract
Environmental issues are making their way to the top of the political agenda in the EU, supported by the public expectations and scientific recommendations. It is expected that the body of environmental law in the EU is poised to grow and undergo an extensive overhaul. The coming of this wave of regulation is in need of careful scholarly attention in order to a) generate an accurate account of the process, b) offer a persuasive explanation of why it came along and thus enhance capacity to anticipate the future regulatory framework, and finally, c) offer an informed and critical evaluation of the proposed action, also to contribute to its improvement. The objective of this project is to introduce the role of paradigms and norm diffusion to the portrayal of the EU regulatory action related to environment, and thus to contribute to a theoretically rich and nuanced understanding of the recent EU and transnational environmental law, including its drivers, assumptions and the scope of ambition in relation to sustainability, but also of the voices that are excluded. The project will rely on multiple methodologies inherent in transnational environmental law (where problems do not fit neatly into a single legal category) and combine them with the work from international relations (in particular that on norm diffusion and discourse analysis). It will develop an analysis of norm change in two dimensions: horizontal (a time-focussed dimension exploring the EU policy discourse) and vertical (spatial dimension, involving governance levels of the EU and of the Member State Slovenia in two emerging policy areas – a transition to blue economy and sustainable food systems). This project has the ambition of contributing to the cutting-edge discussions in Europe, both at the scholarly and practical level. It aims to produce excellent-quality papers in peer-reviewed journals under open access. It will also engage in dissemination of the results to give the scholarly work the required visibility among the stakeholders, scholarly community and general public. It will result in a more pronounced normative dimension of the EU and transnational environmental law, which is typically approached in a strictly positivist, technical manner. It will highlight the role of environmental law that is capable of going beyond an instrumentalist tool. The research will also advance the study of norm diffusion as a two-way exchange, including a case study in two complex policy domains. Finally, it will nurture a reflective attitude among stakeholders and encourage their engagement in the strategic policy planning and coordination. These benefits are of direct relevance in the context of the Slovenian presidency to the EU in 2021 and beyond, and are the bedrock of a strong and beneficial EU integration.
Research Organisation
https://cris.cobiss.net/ecris/si/en/project/18325
Researchers
https://cris.cobiss.net/ecris/si/en/project/18325
Citations for bibliographic records
https://cris.cobiss.net/ecris/si/en/project/18325
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