Energy Community Summer School

Initiated by the Energy Community Secretariat in autumn 2015, the Energy Community Summer School aims to promote the development of participants’ competences in all topics related to energy through a dedicated multi-disciplinary programme. With the help of the school, participants are to understand the energy sectors in their full complexity and provide them a platform for exchange and contribution to shaping the sectors’ future. The Summer School is supported by a network of academic and research institutions from the Energy Community and beyond. 

It targets highly motivated postgraduate students (masters or PhD), researchers from all energy-related disciplines, young professionals from governmental institutions, companies, think tanks and NGOs from the Energy Community region. 

As regards hosting of the school, Energy Community Contracting Parties and Participants to the Energy Community Treaty take turns in acting as the host of the Summer School.  

  • Schools in brief

    Eighth Summer School 2024 

    Venue: Technical University of Moldova
    Date: 20 - 27 July 2024
    Duration: 1 week
    Organizer: Energy Community Secretariat
    Credits: 3 ECTS (for masters students)
    Application period: 22 January - 31 March 2024
    Fees: No tuition fee is required
    Accommodation: to be confirmed

    Seventh Summer School 2023

    Venue: Belgrade, Serbia
    Date: 19 -26 August 2023
    Duration: 1 week
    Organizer: Energy Community Secretariat
    Credits: 3 ECTS (for masters students)

    Sixth Summer School 2022

    Venue: Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
    Date: 20 - 27 August 2022
    Duration: 1 week
    Organizer: Energy Community Secretariat
    Credits: 3 ECTS (for masters students)

    Energy Community Summer Schools in brief

    Eternal Summer 2021 - 2022

    Venue: series of webinars (6th - 10th lectures)
    Date: 12/2021 - 12/2022
    Duration: 45 min / webinar
    Organizer: Energy Community Secretariat

    Fifth Summer School 2021

    Venue: Vienna, Austria
    Date: 21 - 28 August 2021
    Duration: 1 week
    Organizer: Energy Community Secretariat
    Credits: 3 ECTS (for masters students)

    Eternal Summer 2020 - 2021

    Venue: series of webinars (1st - 5th lectures)
    Date: 10/2020 - 06/2021
    Duration: 45 min / webinar
    Organizer: Energy Community Secretariat

    Fourth Summer School 2019

    Venue:

    Jagiellonian Univesity and AGH University of Science and Technology, Kraków, Poland 

    Date: 24 to 31 August 2019
    Duration: 1 week
    Organizer: Energy Community Secretariat
    Credits: 3 ECTS (for masters students)

    Third Summer School 2018

    Venue:

    Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture, Ruđera Boškovića b.b. 21000 Split, Croatia

    Date: 25 August to 1 September 2018
    Duration: 1 week
    Organizer: Energy Community Secretariat
    Credits: 3 ECTS (for masters students)

    Second Summer School 2017

    Venue:

    Congress Centre Ohrid, North Macedonia

    Date: 26 August - 2 September 2017
    Duration: 1 week
    Organizer: Energy Community Secretariat
    Credits: 3 ECTS (for masters students)

    First Summer School 2016

    Venue:

    POLIS University, Tirana, Albania

    Date: 3 -10 September 2016
    Duration: 1 week
    Organizer: Energy Community Secretariat
    Credits: 3 ECTS (for masters students)
  • Management

    Energy Community Summer School Management

    Dirk Buschle

    Dean of Energy Community Summer School
    Dirk Buschle is Deputy Director of the Energy Community Secretariat since 2011 and has led its legal unit since 2007. As Chairman of the Energy Community Dispute Resolution and Negotiation Center, he is also responsible for dispute resolution and negotiations and has acted as mediator in high-profile investor-state conflicts in the energy sector. He is a certified negotiation facilitator. Prior to his current position, Dirk was Head of Cabinet of the President of the Court of Justice of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) in Luxembourg. Dirk is also Professor and Chairholder of the European Energy Policy Chair at the College of Europe in Bruges. He teaches the annual course “European and International Energy Policy and Governance” He graduated in law from Constance University, Germany, and earned his Ph.D. at St. Gallen University in Switzerland. He has widely published in different areas of European policy and law, and has lectured at Universities of Reykjavik, Constance and St. Gallen as visiting professor.

     

     

    Adrian Jasimi

    Summer School Coordinator
    Mr. Jasimi joined the Energy Community Secretariat in May 2009 as Oil Expert. Before coming to the Energy Community Secretariat, he worked in the Oil and Gas Institute in Albania until 1994. In 1994, Mr. Jasimi joined the UK oil and gas company Premier Oil as project manager for 10 years. In 2004, he started to work as oil advisor and director of cabinet to the Minister of Energy and Industry of Albania. In 2005, he was reappointed Director of Cabinet of the Minister of Economy, Trade and Energy in Albania until April 2009. Mr. Jasimi is involved in many negotiations in oil and gas contracts. His university background is physicist.

     

  • Alumni

    Energy Community Summer School Alumni Association

    About us

    The Energy Community Summer School Alumni Association (EnCSSAA) is a non-profit organization with a goal to establish a network of alumni of the Energy Community Summer School, as well as other interested parties, who meet the set requirements. Launched officially during the third Summer School, the network aims at providing a professional platform for discussion among young experts interested in energy and related topics. In addition, it shall strive to realize joint projects and build capacity, in order to promote the aims of the Energy Community as enshrined in the Treaty establishing the Energy Community.

    The core strength of the Alumni Association are its members, coming from all Energy Community Contracting Parties and beyond. Each member, as a highly qualified, young specialist with a diverse background covering energy, environment or climate matters, is highly motivated to contribute to the work of the Association.

    Prospective members of the Association will be offered professional advancement, an opportunity to develop joint projects which will contribute to regional development and to be part of the platform for lifelong learning.

     

    Membership

    Members of the Alumni Association may either be:

    • Ordinary Members;
    • Extraordinary Members; or
    • Honorary Members.

    The Executive Board decides about the admission of ordinary and extraordinary members.

    Ordinary members are successful participants of the Energy Community Summer School which fully contribute to the work of the Association. All physical persons can be ordinary members of the Association provided that they attended an Energy Community Summer School as student. There are no limits with regard to the nationality of members. The ordinary and extraordinary members shall pay in due time their membership fees at the level decided by the General Assembly on an annual basis.

    Extraordinary members are members who have not participated as students in the Energy Community School, but who fully support the activities of the Association.

    Honorary members are persons which are nominated as such due to their special contributions to the Association.

     

    Association Management

    Executive Board

    Quentin Boulanger (France)

    Association Chairman

    Quentin is an independent consultant specializing in energy and environmental issues in non-EU European countries. A former lecturer at EDHEC Business School and research fellow at the French Institute for International Relations, Quentin has been based in Ukraine since 2014. An energy economist and specialist of international relations, Quentin worked on numerous projects dealing both with conventional and renewable energy. Since 2017, Quentin has been increasingly focusing on sustainable cities’ problematics.

    As an independent consultant working with international firms in Eastern Europe, Quentin had been surprised by the difficulties these firms had to find local experts. His participation to the 2016 Summer School only confirmed that the region had a generation of promising experts that needed to be given more visibility and opportunities to realize their potential. Allowing the next generation of energy leaders to shape the future of the region was at the core of Quentin’s motivation to contribute to the creation of the Alumni Association.

     

    Nevin Alija (Albania)

     

    Association Deputy

    Nevin is a PhD Researcher at the Research Centre for the Future of the Law, at Universidade Católica Portuguesa in Lisbon. She is currently a Visiting Researcher at the IES working on her PhD thesis with focus on Subsidiarity in EU Energy Law. She has published in several renowned journals and law reviews and the focus of her work has frequently been on Support Schemes for Renewable Energy in the EU. She has been a Bluebook trainee at the European Commission, Directorate-General for Energy and a Research Fellow at the Energy Community Secretariat.

    Her career and personal network were greatly impacted by the participation in the Second edition of the Energy Community Summer School. The goal to further promulgate the teachings and inspiration achieved during the event were the spark for her participation in the founding and leading of the Alumni Association.

    Varvara Aleksić (Serbia)

    Secretary

    Varvara is an energy and environmental law expert with more than 4 years of experience in international organizations and governmental sector. In the Energy Community Secretariat (Vienna), she specialized in field of environmental protection and energy, with the focus on assessing the transposition and monitoring the implementation of the Energy Community acquis. In the European Commission (DG Environment, Brussels) she proceeded with her work in field of environmental protection, in particular dealing with water protection and EU Accession Process of the Western Balkan countries, while in the Government of the Republic of Serbia – European Integration Office she was engaged as lawyer linguist for environmental and energy legislation.

    Participating in the First edition of the Energy Community Summer School, back in 2016, was an honour and a life changing experience. Positive energy and aspiration of young professionals to make a difference and contribute to development of the Western Balkan region, motivate her to join and work on the Alumni Association.

    Andreas Schröder (Germany)

    Treasurer

    As Analyst/Modeller at the IEA International Energy Agency, Andreas Schröder is working on the World Energy Outlook. Andreas builds on a long-standing experience in energy economics with a specialisation in quantitative market analysis and energy trading. Before joining the gas market analysis of E.ON / Uniper in September 2015, he worked at Vattenfall Energy Trading GmbH in Sweden/Germany dealing with carbon markets and renewable energies as well as macroeconomics. Andreas defended his PhD Thesis on fundamental modelling of power markets in 2013 as part of the Graduate Center of DIW Berlin in collaboration with TU Berlin, supervised by Prof. von Hirschhausen and Prof. Kemfert. He previously obtained a Master’s degree in Economics from Vrije Univeristeit Amsterdam in 2008 where he wrote a Thesis on the EU Emission Trading System. After his studies he interned with the European Commission (DG Energy & Transport).

    Andreas first participated at the 2017 Energy Community Summer School in Ohrid, North Macedonia and became speaker at the 2018 session of the Summer School in Split, Croatia. Given his interest in Eastern European energy affairs, Andreas decided to pursue his affiliation to the Energy Community by joining the alumni association as active member.

     

    Controllers

    • Jolita Hoxholli (Albania)
    • Andrej Haug (Germany)