Multi Level Governance

From an "intergovernmental" interpretation of public policies, this paper examines the trends towards differentiation and standardization. It uses a comparative case study, the cultural policies of France and Spain, with quite relevant models of similarities and differences. To do it, develops an analytical framework that combines five axis of governmental analysis: the institutional settings, the instruments of intervention, the distribution by levels of government, the lobby capacity of actors and logics, and the priorities, objectives and values of cultural policies. One hypothesis is that the twin trends towards differentiation or toward standardization is not limited to dialogue / tension between states and supranational bodies, but up to all interactions with subnational levels, and therefore beyond the federal or unitary state. The second hypothesis is that at every level of government there are tendencies toward differentiation and standardization. The analysis of ...

This paper analyzes the institutional design of the European competition policy system. Besides the multi-level public enforcement, the paper describes other two fundamental dimensions of the European competition policy system: the relationship between public ...

Biological invasions are human-induced processes affecting biodiversity. Information on biological invasions can be organized following the categories of the DPSIR model. This paper examines the state of the art in the application of this model to the study and management of biological invasions.The paper focuses on driving forces and pressures, clarifying the different levels at which drivers operate and promote invasion processes. Identifying driving forces is necessary not only to understand the processes behind biological invasions but also to generate policy initiatives that address threats to biodiversity at different levels of governance. Thus driving forces and pressures on biological invasions are identified taking into account the multi-level character of such processes. The final section reviews the role that different stakeholders play in biological invasion management and finally elaborates a list of indicators derived from the analysis that can be used in decision making concerning invasion processes.

This article takes initial steps in evaluating contending models of EU governance. We argue that the sovereignty of individual states is diluted in the European arena by collective decision-making and by supranational institutions. In addition, European states are losing their grip on the mediation of domestic interest representation in international relations. We make this argument along two tracks. First, we analyse the conditions under which central state executives may lose their grip on power. Next, we divide up the policy process into stages and specify which institutional rules may induce various actors to deepen EU policy-making.

The European Investment Bank is the largest multilateral lender in the world, facilitating total spending which is equivalent to the total of the EU budget. Its activity thus has a potentially huge effect on EU policy-making, yet research to date has failed to recognize this. This article addresses this, offering detailed empirical analysis and re-evaluating debates on multi-level governance.

Research on administrative reform in Europe has demonstrated a significant variation among countries in how they choose reform strategy. We know very little about what explains the variation with regard to the extent with which the countries conduct the reforms and how they effectively influenced modernization process. Since 1980s, reactions of countries have been to maintain, modernise, marketise or minimise their public sector (Pollitt, Bouckaert 2004). The paper investigates the markedly features of reform trends, similarities and differences in design and implementation, taking into consideration the effects of Europeanization and the multi-level governance of Public Management reforms; identifies conditions for lasting success of local governments reforms and the reasons for lack of success of different trends of modernisation and proposes a new perspective on the trajectories of modernization in public sector, through a comparative analyses between one of the founder member of...

In an effort to share local knowledge and best practices, online sustainability knowledge-action platforms of various types have proliferated. We conducted a review of 42 online sustainability knowledge-action platforms, which we define as digital tools that seek to manage and organize (local) knowledge and activities to advance a sustainability agenda. This interdisciplinary paper analyzes the structure and functionality of existing sustainability platforms through a systematic coding process. The coding is based on a review of the key issues highlighted in three bodies of literature: i) localization of the SDGs, ii) digital platforms and iii) multi-level governance of sustainability transitions. Our analysis indicates that numerous online collaborative tools, while offering an array of resources, struggle to provide context-sensitivity and higher-level analysis of the trade-offs and synergies between different sustainability actions. Context sensitivity and systemic thinking are e...

Based on comparative qualitative research in five local authority areas, this article argues that local context is key to understanding the roots of the U.K.’s crisis of political trust and the result of the 2016 E.U. referendum. The competing cultural and economic causes of discontent suggested by the literature were found to be deeply intertwined when analyzed from a local perspective. The sense of political disempowerment and negative attitudes toward migration were ingrained in and reinforced by locally specific socio-economic and political trajectories. These experiences were articulated and amplified by dominant discourses, which channeled frustration against the political elite and the E.U. These populist narratives, promoted by the Leave campaign and the tabloid press, became dominant in certain areas, decisively shaping citizens’ voting behavior. Overall, the article highlights the value of studying how local experiences and interpretations mediate the interplay of cultural and economic causes of discontent and political distrust

A main concern of debates on the changing role and form of the state and the relationship of these with the process of globalization has been the role of capitalism. Jessop, a well known exponent of Marxist political theory, tackles the broader range of issues but, like the urban sociologist Brenner, is most interesting when he writes about the institutional

In a comparative framework, the paper uses a recently observed shift away from cash transfers and towards the provision of rehabilitation services to identify barriers to welfare policy reform. The analysis relies on the assumption that some European welfare regimes have a similar initial structure but may differ in their speed of adaptation to the challenges posed by external shocks. A detailed comparison of fast moving and slow moving countries allows us to identify some of the barriers to change. Throughout the analysis, we focus on provisions for people with disabilities, where the above shift has been observed, and with much variation across member states. Comparing policy developments in Finland, Norway, and Sweden in the past twenty years we identify fiscal constraints, historical commitment to equal rights, policy making capacity, and centralisation as important drivers of change. While some of these factors are beyond the control of policy makers, some can be strengthened b...