Athanassios Gouglas (Senior Lecturer and Programme Leader, MPA Programme, University of the West of Scotland) and Mihalis Melidis (Lecturer, Department of Politics, University of Exeter).
This research seminar applies the Capacity–Intentionality Framework (CIF) to explain Greece’s persistent environmental underperformance (2000–2022). Drawing on European Union environmental infringement data and 42 elite interviews, the study challenges the dominant capacity-deficit thesis. Moving beyond institutional shortfalls alone, CIF demonstrates that implementation failures stem not only from systemic capacity weaknesses but also from deficits in sustained political commitment and strategic alignment. Particular attention is given to the 2010–2018 economic adjustment programmes. The analysis shows that the crisis did not create environmental underperformance but instead aggravated pre-existing gaps through capacity retreat and intentionality disruption, producing slower—and at times stalled—compliance correction relative to other EU member states. The findings contribute to wider debates on governance under mega-crisis and the resilience of environmental protection regimes.
Meet our speaker and chair
Athanassios Gouglas is a Senior Lecturer and Programme Leader of the MPA Programme at the University of the West of Scotland.
Mihalis Melidis is a Lecturer within the Department of Politics at the University of Exeter.
Professor Vassilis Monastiriotis is Director of the LSE Centre for Research on Contemporary Greece and Cyprus - Hellenic Observatory, Professor in Political Economy and Eleftherios Venizelos Chair of Contemporary Greek Studies at the European Institute, LSE.
The Hellenic Observatory (@HO_LSE) is internationally recognised as a leading research centre on contemporary Greece and Cyprus. In 2024, it became the LSE Centre for Research on Contemporary Greece and Cyprus with a strategy to expand its research base within LSE and beyond. The Centre produces world-leading, non-partisan research, critically engaging with key issues and fostering debate among academics, policymakers, and the public. Its work spans academic research, knowledge exchange, and policy impact.
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