Dr Francesca Batzella

Francesca is a senior lecturer in Politics and International Relations at the School of Life and Medical Sciences, University of Hertfordshire. She holds a PhD from the University of Edinburgh (2015) as well as a BA and MA in International Relations from the University of Cagliari (Italy). Her research is mainly in the field of European Union (EU) studies and International Relations with a specific attention to EU external relations, EU governance, EU institutions and actorness, energy policy and climate change. 

Francesca’s research on EU’s external engagement in energy policy has been published in the Journal of Common Market Studies (2021) and the Journal of European Integration (2022). She also published a monograph (Routledge, 2018) on EU external energy relations where she tests and contributes to the literature on the Principal-Agent Model of Delegation. Her work has also appeared on several academic blogs and on The Conversation. She is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) as well as a member of the academic association for contemporary European Studies (UACES).

• European Union (EU)
• EU external relations
• EU governance and actorness
• EU and global energy policy
• International Relations

I am the module leader for International Relations Theory in the Modern World and for Global Energy Politics and Governance which I have designed for our undergraduate students.

At the University of Edinburgh, I have taught on international cooperation in Europe and beyond looking at the theorising on international cooperation as well as key international organisations such as the EU, the UN, the WTO and the IMF. I have also taught more advanced courses on approaches to Politics and International Relations to honours students.

At the University of Cagliari, I have given some guest lecture on EU energy policy in the framework of a module on European Integration.