For approximately three decades following the end of the Cold War in 1989, the process of European integration and the international legal order developed within a context marked by economic liberalisation, multilevel cooperation, and the consolidation of democratic institutions. Underpinned by the Rule of Law, as well as the protection of fundamental rights and increasingly sophisticated forms of supranational governance, this framework long served as a key reference point for the evolution of contemporary legal and political systems.

Yet the contemporary context demonstrates increasingly different from that of previous decades. Democratic systems are confronted with simultaneous ecological, energy, digital, constitutional and geopolitical transitions, each of which raises complex legal and institutional challenges. Climate change, technological innovation, illiberal turns, shifting geopolitical dynamics, and evolving security demands call for renewed reflection on the capacity of democratic institutions to adapt while preserving constitutional guarantees, democratic legitimacy, and the Rule of Law. Against this backdrop, the Rule of Law has then reaffirmed as a fundamental principle in order to assess the capacity of democratic institutions as well as related legal and policy tools in responding to contemporary challenges while preserving constitutional guarantees and fundamental rights. Recent debates across a number of European and non-European jurisdictions proves that safeguarding the Rule of Law has become one of the defining challenges of contemporary constitutionalism after all.

It is in this context that the notion of «transition» has emerged as an interpretative category to understand the challenges of contemporary democratic systems. In fact, the concept encompasses a range of distinct yet deeply interconnected transformations that are reshaping legal orders, public institutions, and governance structures at both the national and supranational levels. Ecological and energy transitions, as well as digital transformation, are among the most significant processes of change shaping contemporary societies.

These transformations have also significantly redefined the meaning and scope of «security». In a sense, security can no longer be understood solely in military or defence-related terms, but it has become more multifaceted concept. It confronts several different questions, among which are those concerning energy security, environmental security, food security, economic security, digital security, and cyber security. This evolution raises new questions related to the relationship between collective protection, democratic legitimacy, the safeguarding of fundamental rights, and adherence to the principles of the Rule of Law.

Through the joint collaboration of Sapienza University of Rome and the European Law and Governance School (ELGS) by the European Public Law Organization (EPLO), the Course will provide participants with the theoretical and methodological foundations necessary to understand how European democratic systems are redefining their institutions, legal instruments, and public policies in order to govern these evolutions while preserving the principles of the Rule of Law and the guarantees inherent in constitutional democracy.

The aim of the Course «Rule of Law, Transitions, Security» is to equip participants with fundamental tools required to assess the impact of contemporary transitions on democratic systems and constitutional orders through an interdisciplinary and comparative perspective. The Course seeks to foster a critical understanding of the challenges posed by ecological, energy and digital transitions to contemporary democracies, with particular attention to the interactions between security, sustainability, technological innovation, public governance, and the protection of fundamental rights within both the European and the broader international context.  In this framework, the risk of illiberal trends and democratic backlashes will be considered.