Interview with Martin Jirušek - associate professor, Department of International Relations and European Politics teaching in the Master´s program Energy Policy Studies
Interviewed by Priya, March 2024
1. Can you tell us about your academic journey and how you became interested in energy security?
Well, my academic journey started a bit unexpectedly. My path wasn't straightforward. I studied European Studies and International Relations for my bachelor's and master's but wasn't sure of my next step. Then, the 2009 gas crisis happened. I was already interested in energy, and energy security back then, but this event showed me that international relations can happen right in front of us, so much so that we can even touch it. You know, when I was studying for my bachelor’s, I didn't understand why we're supposed to study theories of international relations. To me, it was too theoretical and maybe a bit obsolete, but then I realized that when you understand the theories, you can understand what's happening around you. You can use those theories to read, understand, and assess the events, but the crisis showed me its real-world impact. It made me realize the importance of energy security and its connection to international relations. Another lucky coincidence was that the department back then was looking for a PR specialist, someone who would deal with communication, and I applied for the job and was accepted. Initially, my academic career started in a very non-academic way, you know, and that's when I became more and more hooked on the topic. When I finished my master's, I applied for a PhD which was solely focused on energy security. I am happy that I made this choice.
2. Beyond the 2009 crisis, what drew you to the field of energy?
I would say it was a combination of things. Still, most importantly, I think that energy security, energy in general, is a very cross-cutting theme, and you can see the impact of energy and its importance on all parts of people's lives. It's very interdisciplinary, that's also my response when people ask me why I'm from the Faculty of Social Studies studying energy. That's my usual response, which is that it takes an interdisciplinary approach to understand it. That's why I like it, because you need to understand the history and the geography, which I loved during my high school studies. Also international relations, a little bit of psychology, and sociology. It's all combined with a little bit of mathematics, as well. I think it is the interdisciplinary nature of energy studies that drew me towards this field. I can learn to understand the whole world, starting from the point of view of how energy is consumed and distributed. For better or worse, in the past 15 years, we've seen a lot of events that proved us right that we have to apply the interdisciplinary approach to understand what's happening around us. Understanding energy requires knowledge from various disciplines.
3. What is the most exciting project you participated in during your career?
I enjoy case studies of individual countries or actors. These involve field research, traveling, meeting new people, data collecting, and a lot of analyzing. It's not mechanical work; it requires all your skills. That's why I like it - it's colourful, and you get to meet a lot of people, and you have to work with a lot of sources of data. My favourite project involved researching the politicization of energy supplies in Central, Eastern, and South-Eastern Europe.
4. You have published many remarkable papers and books, one of which is ‘Czech Security Dilemma: Russia as a Friend or Enemy?’ Would you like to tell us more about your thoughts on Russia, specifically from the point of view of energy?
My general area of interest is how energy is used and misused in foreign policy. I call it energy geopolitics, that is, how energy is used and misused with regard to the geography or the geographical location of the particular actor. Obviously, we are in Central Europe hence, in many ways, it concerns Russia, so that was the book that we wrote along with our colleagues. It was a broad project we took. We looked at the relationship between the Czech Republic and Russia from many different angles, including also energy, and we were trying to gauge the nature of the relationship. It was written in 2019, so the situation was a bit different. We were assessing the trade, whether the trade was beneficial for one part of the relationship or the other, and what the benefits were. What are the dangers? Whether it's being misused by one side or another, it is very interesting. Again, the multidisciplinary approach was used, such as cooperating with colleagues from the Department of Political Science, the Faculty of Philosophy, and the Faculty of Economics. We sat together, and we wrote this book together. It was very enriching because I saw that there were different approaches, we had colleagues from the Department of History or Philosophy from just across the street, from the Faculty of Arts. I would love to do a sequel, especially these days it would be interesting to see what changed.
5. What’s your favourite course to teach? Or any course you would want to recommend students to keep an eye out for?
While I focus on post-communist countries, Central, and Eastern Europe, and Russia, I'm also interested in the foreign and energy policy of the United States. My focus is on major energy players and the role energy plays in their policies. Geopolitics and energy security are my favourite areas.
Being from the Department of International Relations, I would definitely suggest people study not just courses concerned with energy security, but also courses focused on the history of the continent or this region because, you know, understanding the history of this part of the world is essential. I recently came across a map of Central Europe with all borders and the border changes throughout the 20th century. It almost looked like a patchwork. It was so intricate you could hardly recognize the countries and it only shows how complicated the history was. I recommend courses focused on European history, the European Union, and European integration. Understanding the continent's history is crucial. I think that before focusing on a particular area or topic, anyone should have a basic understanding of the most important events that took place.
6. As our program, Energy Policy Studies is fairly new, what would you like to convey to anyone who is contemplating applying to this program? (Someone who is not sure about the prospects of studying energy)
If you want to understand how the world works, this is the right choice. The interdisciplinary nature forces you to understand the broader context, historical background, political developments, and even some technical aspects. It sounds like a cliché, but if you want to know how the world works, you should apply for our program, Energy Policy Studies. I think the interdisciplinary nature of the program is the biggest selling point. When I look at our alumni and where they end up working, this only proves my point because they end up working in state administration and in private companies, not just in energy. In analytical positions, they are also journalists, they work for the European Union, they are entrepreneurs, etc. I think that we provide our students with a very wide skill set.
7. What can international students expect and what job prospects might they have?
We have a program for international students and our courses are taught in English. Masaryk University is very welcoming to international students. As for job prospects, our curriculum equips students with a versatile skill set. Staying open-minded to opportunities will certainly help because the program structure is really flexible. It offers several compulsory courses and then elective courses, but most of the time, you don't have to sit here. Attendance is not compulsory, and when you secure a job or internship that is beneficial for your future, we will definitely not put any obstacles between you and your future jobs. We even encourage people to seek internships. We organise field trips with the students to visit the companies in the energy sector to see what they are doing, during which students can get in touch with those people and get internships. We are very practical and experience-oriented.
8. Do you have any messages for our current students and incoming students?
Be open-minded. We are here to help you learn and improve. Universities are here to expand your knowledge and help you make a difference in the world. We believe our alumni are great, and they will make a positive impact.