NOVA School of Law joins a European doctoral network funded with €4.57 million to research the green transition

NOVA School of Law is a partner in a new European project funded under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions – Doctoral Networks (MSCA DN), dedicated to the theme “Reconfiguring Europe: Law and Political Economy of the Green Transition.”

The MSCA Doctoral Networks are one of the most competitive funding instruments under the Horizon Europe programme, designed to fund international networks for advanced doctoral training based on the highest standards of scientific excellence and doctoral supervision.

The project, titled LPE-GREEN (project no. 101311917), has been awarded funding totalling approximately €4.57 million, of which around €560,000 will be allocated to NOVA School of Law.

Coordinated by Erasmus University Rotterdam, the consortium brings together several internationally renowned academic institutions, including the University of Glasgow, Yale University, Sciences Po, Copenhagen Business School, and the University of Warwick, to name a few.

Project leadership at NOVA School of Law

At NOVA School of Law, Professor Fabrizio Esposito will lead the project as Principal Investigator (PI) and Professor Lucila de Almeida will lead as Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI).

The School’s participation in this consortium is the result of the scientific work and proposal developed by Professor Fabrizio Esposito (Principal Investigator) and Professor Lucila de Almeida (Co-Principal Investigator), who are also the scientific authors of the proposal and will coordinate its implementation at the School.

The proposal reflects the high evaluation of the supervisory teams involved under the scientific excellence and doctoral supervision capacity criteria required by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, thereby ensuring robust training and supervision for doctoral researchers.

Professor Fabrizio Esposito’s research focuses on Private Law, Economic Law, European Union Law and Economic Theory, particularly the relationship between Law, markets and political economy. His research examines the role of legal institutions in regulating contemporary economic and social dynamics.

Professor Lucila de Almeida specialises in Energy Law, Climate Law, and Sustainability Law, with a particular focus on the implementation of European policies on energy and environmental transition. Her work addresses the legal and regulatory challenges of the green transition and the implementation of the European Green Deal.

The combination of these two areas of research was crucial to the success of the LPE-GREEN proposal, strengthening NOVA School of Law’s contribution to the project’s objectives of analysing the legal and political dimensions of the green transition and understanding how it can be effective, just, and socially inclusive simultaneously.

The participation of NOVA School of Law and its impact on advanced PhD education

The school’s involvement will fund two doctoral researchers to be integrated into an advanced international research network, and will facilitate the development of a variety of scientific activities in collaboration with the other consortium members.

Adopting an interdisciplinary approach within the field of Law and Political Economy, the LPE-GREEN project examines the legal and political dimensions of the green transition, with a focus on the areas of production, natural resources, and finance. Alongside doctoral training, the initiative aims to strengthen the connection between academic research and institutional practice by fostering dialogue between the university community and public and private stakeholders.

NOVA School of Law’s participation in the LPE-GREEN consortium, led by Fabrizio Esposito and Lucila de Almeida, reflects the School’s international recognition for its research in Law, Political Economy and Sustainability. The project also highlights the relevance of the work carried out by its researchers and reinforces NOVA School of Law’s position as a key player in training the next generation of scholars who can engage critically with the legal frameworks of the green transition in Europe.