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2026/2027  BA-BEBUO1019U  Europe and Global Megatrends

English Title
Europe and Global Megatrends

Course information
Language English
Course ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Mandatory (also offered as elective)
Level Bachelor
Duration One Quarter
Start time of the course Spring
Timetable Course schedule will be posted at calendar.cbs.dk
Study board
Study Board for Business, Language and Area Studies
Programme BSc in European Business
Course coordinator
  • Ole Willers - Department of Organization (IOA)
Main academic disciplines
  • International political economy
  • Organisation
  • Political Science
Teaching methods
  • Blended learning
Last updated on 30/01/2026

Relevant links
Learning objectives
  • Demonstrate knowledge of the nature of megatrends as grand social challenges, including their key characteristics and societal implications.
  • Define and analyze relevant policy problems pertaining to megatrends discussed in the course, drawing upon a range of qualitative and quantitative sources.
  • Apply relevant analytical skills learned in previous courses - including approaches to Political Economy - to assess how key megatrends create constraints and opportunities for European businesses, states, and societies.
  • Analyze and critically discuss the strengths and weaknesses of relevant EU policies in accordance with the expected academic standards of the European Business program.
  • Discuss how EU institutions could address and solve concrete problems posed by megatrends, drawing on the theoretical perspectives introduced in this course as well as relevant analytical skills learned in previous courses.
  • Communicate and discuss research results clearly and coherently, using appropriate disciplinary terms and concepts.
Course prerequisites
This is an advanced course and students are expected to have acquired good knowledge about the European Union. The course also draws upon a range of theories and approaches introduced in previous courses of the European Business program, including Varieties of Capitalism, Growth Models, theories of European integration, and welfare regimes.
Students who lack this knowledge are required to familiarize themselves with the above theories and concepts prior to the start of the course.
For a basic understanding of the functioning of the European Union, students should consult the following book: Simon Bulmer, Owen Parker, Ian Bache, Stephen George and Charlotte Burns (2020): Politics in the European Union. 5th edition. Oxford University Press.
Examination
Europe and Global Megatrends:
Exam ECTS 7.5
Examination form Oral exam based on written product

In order to participate in the oral exam, the written product must be handed in before the oral exam; by the set deadline. The grade is based on an overall assessment of the written product and the individual oral performance, see also the rules about examination forms in the programme regulations.
Individual or group exam Oral group exam based on written group product
Number of people in the group 3-5
Size of written product Max. 5 pages
Assignment type Synopsis
Release of assignment An assigned subject is released in class
Duration
Written product to be submitted on specified date and time.
10 min. per student, including examiners' discussion of grade, and informing plus explaining the grade
Grading scale 7-point grading scale
Examiner(s) Internal examiner and second internal examiner
Exam period Spring
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
a) If a group does not hand-in the synopsis the group has to prepare a new synopsis for the re-exam.
b) If students fail the oral exam, they have to revise the group synopsis and resubmit for the re-exam
c) If a student is ill on the scheduled oral exam day, the student will be examined based on the submitted group synopsis
Description of the exam procedure

Students are required to form groups of 3-5 to write the 5-page synopsis and participate in the oral exam. The synopsis takes the form of a policy brief. Students will receive detailed guidance on how to write a policybrief throughout the course.The exam question will be introduced during the beginning of the course and students are allowed to work on the assignment throughout the period of the course.

The oral exam is an opportunity for students to expand on the issues touched upon in the policy brief as well as to showcase their broader understanding of the course, including its theoretical and conceptual approaches. 
Course content, structure and pedagogical approach

This course deals with “megatrends” or ‘driving forces that are observable now and will most likely have significant influence on the future' in terms of the challenges and opportunities they pose for states, businesses and societies in the European context.

 

The course material focuses on four megatrends 1) New Forms of Social Change, 2) The Climate Crisis 3) New Forms of Technological Disruption, 4) Shifts in Global (Economic) Power. Each ‘global force for change’ brings about challenges and opportunities for societies, business and states in different sectors and industries.

 

Those challenges and opportunities that derive from each megatrend are discussed separately in each lecture around selected topics throughout the whole course.

 

The lectures and exercise classes explore the observable implications of the megatrends for the rapid shifts observed in the European economy and society. As such, they discuss each megatrend in terms of how it shapes and is shaped by firms, states and other relevant actors.  To make sense of these analytical linkages, the course introduces a set of focused concepts, theoretical frameworks and cases dealing with critical issues such as labour markets, natural resources, financial markets, commodity markets, social policy, wealth accumulation, green investment, digitalization and cyber security, and global trade disputes. The lectures discuss and touch upon each megatrend at both the global and the European level for private and public sectors, as well as for  societies.

 

The theoretical and conceptual backbone of this course is introduced in two first two lectures, dealing with competing conceptualizations of the state in the economy. These approaches – spanning theories of the regulatory state, the entrepreneurial state, the market-oriented state, and the self-regulation promoting state – provide different theoretically informed understandings about the relationship between state and market actors in dealing with emerging risks and long-term trends. Further, the readings and the lectures will enable students to synthesize the knowledge and skills acquired in the program as a whole, including in courses such as ‘Denmark in Comparative Perspective’, ‘Internationalization beyond Europe and Qualitative Methods’, or ‘Political Economy of European States.’ 

 

The course is an integrative platform for the European Business program, mobilizing the knowledge and skills develop through the program in order to understand and analyze the complexity and the challenges that the megatrends pose to European businesses, societies and states.

 

Nordic Nine: You will learn how to formulate and answer policy questions related to grand societal challenges shaping the European political economy in ways that pose trade-offs between competitiveness, security and a compassionate society. You will develop arguments, critically reflect on conventional wisdom and assess the plausibility of your suggestions about how to deal with the megatrends (NN2, NN3, NN6, NN8). You will learn how to approach key societal challenges and ethical dilemmas with conceptual depth and analytical rigor and clarity by identifying and articulating the tradeoffs entailed by alternative policy approaches to the megatrends (NN3, NN4, NN5). 

 

 
Research-based teaching
CBS’ programmes and teaching are research-based. The following types of research-based knowledge and research-like activities are included in this course:
Research-based knowledge
  • Classic and basic theory
  • New theory
  • Teacher’s own research
Research-like activities
  • Development of research questions
  • Data collection
  • Analysis
  • Discussion, critical reflection, modelling
Description of the teaching methods
The course consists of a combination of lectures and exercise classes, both organized around concrete megatrends. Students obtain knowledge through participating in group discussions, lectures, and exercise classes. Each lecture explores the implications of a megatrend for specific issues faced by European businesses, states and societies. The exercises will deepen these aspects and, most importantly, allow students to work hands-on with concrete policy problems, assessing their implications for European business and society, and drafting policy proposals.
All content will be available on Canvas, which will be structured according to the activities of each week where lectures and exercise classes are carried out.
Feedback during the teaching period
Student feedback will occur regularly throughout the course in the following venues and ways:
1. Students are encouraged to take advantage of office hours for a one-to-one dialogue with lecturers. Office hours can be made use of individually, as well as, by groups and can be booked by contacting the respective teacher.
2. During exercise classes, students will receive feedback from both lecturers and fellow students on specified discussion questions.
Student workload
Preparation time 146 hours
Lectures 36 hours
Exam 24 hours
Further Information

Minor changes may occur to this course description until 30 June.

Expected literature

 

Mariana Mazzucato (2016) From market fixing to market-creating: a new framework for innovation policy, Industry and Innovation, 23:2, 140-156, DOI: 10.1080/​13662716.2016.1146124

 

Kathleen R. McNamara (2024) Transforming Europe? The EU's industrial policy and geopolitical turn, Journal of European Public Policy, 31:9, 2371-2396, DOI: 10.1080/​13501763.2023.2230247

 

Lerner, Josh, and Ramana Nanda. 2020. "Venture Capital's Role in Financing Innovation: What We Know and How Much We Still Need to Learn." Journal of Economic Perspectives 34 (3): 237–61. DOI: 10.1257/jep.34.3.237

 

Karlson, N., Sandström, C. & Wennberg, K. (2021). Bureaucrats or Markets in Innovation Policy? – a critique of the entrepreneurial state. Rev Austrian Econ34, 81–95. https:/​/​doi.org/​10.1007/​s11138-020-00508-7

 

Majone, G. (1994). The rise of the regulatory state in Europe. West European Politics, 17(3), 77–101. https:/​/​doi.org/​10.1080/​01402389408425031

 

Bradford, Anu (2019) The Brussels Effect

 

Gunningham and Rees (1997). Industry Self-Regulation: An institutional perspective. Law & Policy Vol 19(4).

 

Renckens (2020). Private governance and public authority. Introductory chapter. 
Last updated on 30/01/2026