Content
The course offers a mixture of theoretically oriented lectures, guest speakers, research talks from graduate and Phd students, experts from the field, as well as practical (group) work, which aims at the development and evaluation of practical research methods and projects related to the thematic area of SDG 7.
The main topics and learning contents are
• Individual types of (decentralized) renewable energy sources, distinctive features of the markets and policies linked to them including market failure; energy market regulation, energy technologies; innovation in general and in the energy sector; negative external effects on energy provision and internalising them.
• Understanding the relationship between energy access and economic development
• Overview of the most important approaches to rural electrification and understanding of the "Energy Ladder” framework
• Assessment of possible business ideas and entrepreneurial initiatives in the context of the development problems of the Global South
• Insight into a multitude of practical examples of "Social Entrepreneurship" and Organizational Models: social entrepreneurship in the area of conflict between profit orientation, social impact, sustainability, and innovation
• science-related topics in the field of energy access, distributed renewable energy systems and global development, especially economic, energy, environmental, and sustainability policy. Based on the preparation and presentation of current scientific publications, the students acquire presentation and presentation skills as well as the handling of scientific literature.
• Methodological approaches to energy, resource, and environmental policies from an institutional, microeconomic, and political economy perspective.
• Understanding the relationship between energy access and economic development
• Seminar paper on relevant related topics to explore the learned methods according to a concrete case study
