Law & Politics Track in Kraków
Why study Law & Politics of Sustainability?
Sustainability challenges are not only scientific or technological – they are also legal and political. Decisions about climate change, energy, trade, investment, business and environmental protection depend on laws, institutions and the difficult choice between competing public interests.
Students learn to analyse complex problems, assess different interests and regulatory approaches, and develop practical solutions in an international setting. The track is particularly suited to those interested in careers at the intersection of sustainability, law, public policy, business and international organisations.
Interdisciplinarity is also essential because sustainability often requires effective communication between lawyers and non-lawyers. You can play a crucial role in explaining complex rules to policymakers, businesses, scientists and other stakeholders, while also understanding the technical, economic and social considerations that shape decision-making.
“The principle of sustainable development guides the interpretation of certain treaties and the determination of rules of customary international law” — International Court of Justice, Climate Change Advisory Opinion (2025)
Key information
There will be some courses which will take place every week. There will be also some which take place on selected weeks only, due to them being taught by incoming professors from Una Europa universities and other notable institutions. Please pay attention to the schedule.
The track is three semesters long. You are expected to complete the full three semesters of the track. The last semester of the track is structured in a way which utilises the knowledge you gained in the first two semesters. For this reason, switching between tracks is not planned.
1st semester (2026/2027) obligatory courses
1International Trade Law in the Context of Sustainability
Lecturer: Piotr Szwedo
Time: Thursdays, 14:00–16:15
Room: Bracka 12, room 300
Dates: 8 October, 22 October, 29 October, 5 November, 19 November, 26 November, 3 December, 17 December, 21 January
ECTS: 5
International Economic Law & Politics of Sustainability – Workshops
Lecturer: Lena Helińska
Time: Thursdays, 14:00–16:15
Room: Bracka 12, room 300
Dates: 12 November and 7 January (more in the summer semester)
ECTS: 1 (taught across the winter and the summer semester)
Environmental and Energy Law & Politics
This module is taught in intensive one-week blocks.
Time: 10:00–12:15
Room: Bracka 12, room 221
ECTS: 9
- 23–27 November – Xira Ruiz-Campillo
- 7–11 December – Yann Kerbrat
- 4–8 January – Kim Talus and Sirja-Leena Penttinen
- 11–13 January – Judith Rochfeld
- 14–15 January – Marta Torre Schaub, online
- 18–22 January – Lena Helińska
Please note that the schedule presented on this website includes obligatory courses only. Obligatory courses amount to 30 ECTS in the academic year 2026/2027 for II year students. You need to collect also 30 ECTS of elective courses for a full pass. These might be online courses offered by our partners or offline courses offered by the Jagiellonian University.
We will follow the JU academic schedule, available here.
Below you will find the winter/all-year selection of electives. Summer courses will be announced later.
Elective online courses
University of Helsinki / Una Europa
Registration
Go to the course on courses.mooc.fi.
Click Create new account, or Log in if you already have an account.
After logging in, click Start course.
Complete the six parts of the course.
Courses
| Course | ECTS | Availability | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Introduction to Sustainability | 2 or 5 | Available at any time during the year | The 2 ECTS version is a MOOC. The 5 ECTS version is an online course with live sessions, teachers, group work, and feedback. |
| Climate.now | 2 or 5 | Available at any time during the year | The 2 ECTS version is a MOOC. The 5 ECTS version includes live online sessions and is online-bound. |
University of Helsinki
Registration
To register, contact laura.karilainen@helsinki.fi and include the name of the course(s) you are interested in.
Courses
| Course | ECTS | Availability / Course period | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Introduction to Circular.now | 2 or 5 | Available at any date | The 2 ECTS version is a MOOC. The 5 ECTS version is an online course with live online sessions, teachers, group work, and feedback. |
| Forests and Climate Change | 2 | Available at any date | — |
| PlanetaryHealth.now | 3 | 01.08.2026–31.07.2027 | — |
| ATM379 SystemsChange.now | 5 | 18.01–07.03.2027 | — |
| ATM382 ClimateComms.now | 2 | 18.01–07.03.2027 | Includes online-bound sessions. |
| ATM373 Leadership for Sustainable Change | 5 | 18.01–07.03.2027 | Includes online-bound sessions. |
| ATM389 Living with Changing Climate | 5 | 26.10–07.12.2026 | — |
| ATM380 Solutions.now | 5 | 15.03–09.05.2027 | Includes online-bound sessions. |
| ATM308 Statistical Tools for Climate and Atmospheric Science | 5 | 02.11–10.12.2026 | Includes online-bound sessions. |
| GPC-001 Sustainable Consumption | 2 | Available at any time during the year | — |
| ECGS-204 Business in the Natural Environment | 5 | Available at any time during the year | Maximum 5 BASUS students. |
| MAAT-051 Introduction to Circular Economy | 5 | Available at any time during the year | Course information available through the University of Helsinki Studies Service. |
| MAAT-051B Introduction to Circular Economy | 3 | Available at any time during the year | — |
| TKT21018 Elements of AI: Introduction to AI | 2 | Available at any time during the year | — |
| TKT21031 Ethics of AI | 2 | Available at any time during the year | — |
| BSPH4001 Space Sustainability | 2 | Available at any time during the year | — |
| EIS-001 Introduction to Innovation and Entrepreneurship | 2 | Available at any time during the year | — |
| EIS-002 From Idea to Innovation – The Product Development Journey | 2 | Available at any time during the year | — |
| EIS-003 Basics of Entrepreneurship – How to Start and Run a Company | 2 | Available at any time during the year | — |
| EIS-004 IP 360°: Exploring the Full Sphere of Intellectual Property | 2 | Available at any time during the year | — |
| EIS-005 Business Model Canvas – Design Your Company | 2 | Available at any time during the year | Maximum 10 BASUS students. |
| MED-MOOC75 PlanetaryHealth.now | 3 | 01.08.2026–31.07.2027 | Maximum 5 BASUS students. |
| FAF101A Biodiversity.now | 2 | — | — |
KU Leuven
Registration
Go to the course page.
Choose Microcredential/Credit Track.
Click Apply via this form.
KU Leuven will check whether you meet the requirements.
If your application is accepted, you will receive an email with further instructions.
Follow the instructions to create or activate your KU Leuven student account.
You will then receive access to the full version of the MOOC on edX.
Course
| Course | ECTS |
|---|---|
| MOOC Statistical Data Analysis for Engineers & Scientists | 3 |
Universidad Complutense de Madrid for Una Europa
Registration
Go to the Una Europa website and select Section 6.
Choose the course.
If you are not a UCM student, click “Registration instructions for non-UCM students.”
Set up an account on the UCM platform following the instructions.
Log in and start the course.
Use your university email address for registration. Una Europa requires a university-domain email.
After registering, allow up to 48 hours before course access becomes available.
Course
Sustainability: Social Sciences in the Face of the Anthropocene
Part of a 10 ECTS Micro-credential project.
Elective offline courses
1. The Baltic Sea Region – Nature and Man — 3 ECTS
Please note – this is a course from a different faculty. Please let us know if you would like to join it so that we could discuss it with the lecturer. Please note there are some instances of overlap with the obligatory Environmental and Energy Law and Politics course.
- Every Wednesday, 11:45 - 14:15
- USOS code:
ESCW-50-F
2. Case-Based Legal Reasoning in practice — 4 ECTS
This is a course you can join at the Faculty of Law and Administration. Please note there are some instances of overlap with the obligatory Environmental and Energy Law and Politics course.
- Monday 09:45–11:15, Krupnicza 33a room 12
- USOS code:
WPA-P-703
3. EU procedural law – 3 ECTS
This is a course you can join at the Faculty of Law and Administration.
- Selected Fridays: 14:00–18:00 on 23 Oct, 13 & 27 Nov, 11 Dec, 8 & 22 Jan
- USOS code:
WPA-10.P-3240
4. Fundamentals of Anglo-American and Polish Legal Systems
This is a course you can join at the Faculty of Law and Administration. Please note there are some instances of overlap with the obligatory Environmental and Energy Law and Politics course.
- Tuesdays, 8:45-10:15
- USOS code:
WPA-10.P-3107
5. Green Revolution(s) in Europe – 6 ECTS
Please note – this is a course from a different faculty. Please let us know if you would like to join it so that we could discuss it with the lecturer.
- Every Friday, 17:00 - 19:15
- USOS code:
BAES-IE-31
6. EU in the Multilateral Order – Legal Aspects – 6 ECTS
Please note – this is a course from a different faculty. Please let us know if you would like to join it so that we could discuss it with the lecturer.
- Every Wednesday, 15:00 - 16:30 and 16:45 - 18:15
- USOS code:
BAES-IE-12
7. Domestic and International Law – 6 ECTS
Please note – this is a course from a different faculty. Please let us know if you would like to join it so that we could discuss it with the lecturer.
- Selected Wednesdays, 13:15 - 16:30
- USOS code:
WSM-BA-GLAD-16
8. Introduction into Polish Constitutional Law and Political System – 3 ECTS
Please let us know if you would like to join it so that we could discuss it with the lecturer.
- Wed 13:15–14:45
- USOS code:
WPA-10.P-ER-01
9. Animal Law – 2 ECTS
This is a visiting lecture. Please let us know if you would like to join it so that we could discuss it with the organisers.
- 26–28 Oct, 10:00–12:30
- USOS code:
WPA-PP-1
10. Experimental Jurisprudence – 3 ECTS
Please let us know if you would like to join it so that we could discuss it with the lecturer.
- Every Tuesday, 15:00 - 17:15
- USOS code:
WPA-P-707
11. Earth-Life system evolution through the time – 4 ECTS
Please note – this is a course from a different faculty. Please let us know if you would like to join it so that we could discuss it with the lecturer.
- Every Monday, 14:15 - 16:45 and every Tuesday, 17:00 - 18:30
- USOS code:
WPA-P-70
Do you want to add obligatory classes to your calendar?