In 2019, leaders from across the European Union agreed that the EU must be climate-neutral by 2050. In 2022, they reaffirmed this commitment in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This thesis examines how these ambitions have been translated into policy. It analyses the European Emissions Trading System, the Social Climate Fund and renewable energy. Climate policy is complex: it has a major impact on citizens and businesses, and requires cooperation between different sectors and levels of government. This research demonstrates how leadership and crises can be utilised to accelerate decision-making on European climate policy. Furthermore, European climate policy also has an impact on national governance, for example because it requires greater coordination between ministries. At the same time, despite recent crises, changes in governance have been limited by the influence of previous decisions, limited resources and political preferences. This research offers three recommendations to national and European policymakers and politicians: 1) Member States can learn from each other’s ‘best practices’ for coordination; 2) by building on the strategies of others, Member States can have a greater impact on European decision-making; and 3) although crisis decision-making must be swift, it is also important to ensure participation and transparency in the decision-making process.
Emma Leenders studied Liberal Arts and Sciences at University College Roosevelt in Middelburg. She subsequently obtained her MSc in International and European Politics from the University of Edinburgh and her MSc in Global Governance and Ethics from University College London. Prior to her PhD, she worked as an analyst at RAND Europe in Cambridge. There, she conducted research into child development, security and crime for, amongst others, European institutions, civil society organisations and Dutch government departments. As a PhD candidate at Radboud University, she researched European climate and energy policy. She was also a visiting researcher at the University of Heidelberg. During her PhD research, Emma gave seminars on European governance, lectured on European climate and energy policy, and supervised Master’s theses. Emma currently works as an adviser at the Scientific Climate Council, where she continues her research into climate policy.