Date of Graduation

Spring 5-19-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in International Studies (MAIS)

College/School

College of Arts and Sciences

Department/Program

International Studies

First Advisor

Keally McBride

Second Advisor

Nora Fisher-Onar

Abstract

The current energy crisis and climate change are just some of the challenges that the European Union and its member states are forced to reckon with. The loss of fossil fuel supplies from Russia in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine forced the acceleration of the renewable energy transition and created a new set of problems to be addressed, namely the effectiveness of climate work that had already begun, and what the roadmap for the future would look like. Examining the history and infrastructure of Germany, France, and Italy presents insights into how this challenge can be met, and why countries take the paths they do when responding to such crises. Additionally, it demonstrates the most effective role of the European Union at this time. When the European Union does not enforce a single agenda on member states, and instead acts as a support structure that supports trans-European projects and partnerships, it more effectively maintains European unity and integration, allowing each member state to draw on its own resources most efficiently, while providing the financial and structural means to accelerate the renewable energy transition, improving Europe’s energy security as a whole, and working towards the climate goals established in the European Green Deal.

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