On April 22 the last class of the Institute's pioneering seminar "An Introduction to Energy and Geopolitics" was held thus concluding this latest IENE educational activity.
On April 22 the last class of the Institute's pioneering seminar "An Introduction to Energy and Geopolitics" was held thus concluding this latest IENE educational activity. The seminar was organized in partnership with the Institute of International Relations (IIR) of the Pantion University of Athens and actually took place at the Institute's premises which are situated in Plaka, Athens's historic neighborhood in the foothills of the Acropolis. This was the second time that IENE convened such a seminar with the first one having taken place in 2015. The seminar, which was conducted at graduate level, comprised of 18 three hour sessions which took place mostly in the evening ( 17:00-20:00) and included lectures from 15 university and industry instructors. A total of 16 students participated coming from a diverse background with all of them actually being active energy professionals working for large energy corporations and law firms. A wide range of disciplines were represented among the seminar's students including mechanical and electrical engineers, petroleum geologists, software developers, policy makers and lawyers.
The subjects which were covered in this latest IENE seminar included the basic principles of geopolitics, a review of the parameters involved in the global energy system, the key role of oil and gas, oil and gas exploration, Energy Transition issues, decarbonisation and the role of renewables and energy efficiency. Also a review was presented of major energy infrastructure projects in SE Europe and in the East Med. In addition to subjects of direct energy relevance the seminar included lectures on the global economy, development issues in emerging economies, the military dimension of modern geopolitics, the role of USA and Russia ,the rise of China, an introduction to the Law of the Sea and the dynamics of geopolitical friction in the East Mediterranean. With nine students having opted to continue their studies with the preparation of a thesis,to be supervised by IENE and IIR,the next few months will be busy culminating in an award ceremony in early October. The successful students will receive a Diploma in Energy & Geopolitics Studies to be awarded by IENE and IIR.
