Journal of Advanced Research and Studies in Law Energy Transition Governance and Climate Constitutionalism: A Comparative Legal Analysis of Germany and South Korea in Renewable Energy Regulation and Sustainable Industrial Transformation

Abstract

The global transition toward renewable energy has fundamentally transformed contemporary legal systems, regulatory governance structures, industrial policy frameworks, and climate accountability mechanisms. Energy transition governance increasingly functions not merely as environmental regulation but as a constitutional and developmental project involving institutional coordination, technological transformation, industrial restructuring, and socio-economic adaptation. This article examines how renewable energy governance shapes sustainable industrial transformation through a comparative legal analysis of Germany and South Korea. The study argues that effective energy transition governance depends on coherent integration among climate law, industrial policy, energy market regulation, technological innovation governance, and institutional accountability systems. Germany represents a decentralized and climate-constitutional governance model emphasizing environmental rights, energy democratization, and market-based renewable integration, whereas South Korea adopts a state-coordinated industrial transition model prioritizing technological modernization, strategic energy planning, and export-oriented green growth. Using comparative legal analysis, institutional governance theory, and regulatory process tracing, the article analyzes climate legislation, renewable energy frameworks, industrial transition policies, energy market reforms, carbon neutrality strategies, and administrative coordination systems across both jurisdictions. The findings indicate that governance effectiveness depends not solely on renewable energy expansion but on institutional interoperability, regulatory stability, industrial adaptation capacity, and public legitimacy. The article contributes to comparative legal scholarship by developing an integrated framework linking climate constitutionalism, industrial governance, energy regulation, and sustainable development. It further proposes theoretical propositions concerning adaptive climate governance, institutional coordination, and sustainable industrial resilience in contemporary energy transition law.