PUBLIC GOVERNANCE
Brenna
BPM mast
,All rights reserved to (guest) lecturers
Table of contents
Table of contents .................................................................................................................................... 1
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 3
1) Sustainability & SDG’s .................................................................................................................... 4
1.1 The concept and evolution of sustainable development ........................................................ 4
1.2 Facts and figures on sustainable development ....................................................................... 6
1.3 Evaluation of sustainable development .................................................................................. 7
1.4 SDG’s and the role of local government................................................................................ 11
2) Exploring governance ................................................................................................................... 13
2.1 The concept of governance ................................................................................................... 13
2.2 The concept of ‘the government’ .......................................................................................... 16
2.3 The complex reality of governance ....................................................................................... 17
2.4 Governance failures and metagovernance ........................................................................... 20
2.5 Finding the right governance mix .......................................................................................... 20
3) European Green Deal.................................................................................................................... 22
3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 22
3.2 EU Green Deal in a nutshell !................................................................................................. 23
3.3 Impacts of climate change..................................................................................................... 29
4) Modern Public Governance .......................................................................................................... 30
4.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 30
4.2 Sustainable development? .................................................................................................... 30
4.3 Enter science: building a fact base ........................................................................................ 32
4.4 Sustainable development: holistic by nature? ...................................................................... 33
4.5 Decision-making for sustainability transitions: a policy perspective .................................... 35
4.6 Transition management ........................................................................................................ 37
4.7 Focus on cities ....................................................................................................................... 38
4.8 3 mayor lenses on transition management .......................................................................... 38
4.9 Right to challenge .................................................................................................................. 43
5) Political ideologies and governance ............................................................................................. 45
5.1 What is ideology and why should we care? .......................................................................... 45
5.2 What are the most common ideologies and their typology? ............................................... 46
1
,All rights reserved to (guest) lecturers
5.3 Relevance of ideologies in modern governance debates . ................................................... 51
6) Waste management priorities and sustainable governance ...................................................... 53
6.1 Current EU challenges and opportunities ............................................................................. 53
6.2 Food waste and way to approach it ...................................................................................... 56
7) Transition towards a circular economy........................................................................................ 57
7.1 Why is a circular economy needed?...................................................................................... 57
7.2 History of the circular economy ............................................................................................ 58
7.3 Need for transition management .......................................................................................... 60
7.4 Several possible transition pads ............................................................................................ 61
8) Public policy, crises and more ...................................................................................................... 70
8.1 Why are we here today? ....................................................................................................... 70
8.2 Public Governance and Public Policy, Intersections .............................................................. 70
8.3 Case of Governance and Policy: COVID-19 in England and Belgium ..................................... 72
8.4 Discussion of governance failures ......................................................................................... 76
9) Policy innovation .......................................................................................................................... 79
9.1 Introduction: the concept of innovation ............................................................................... 79
9.2 Innovation as technology or culture? . .................................................................................. 79
9.3 In summary ............................................................................................................................ 82
2
,All rights reserved to (guest) lecturers
Introduction
‘governance’ & critical analysis of governance arrangements, applied to the context of
sustainability, sustainable development & transitions (management)
Voets, J., De Rynck, F., & De Weerdt, Y. (2022). Sustainable development as a public governance
challenge: Setting the stage of the course.
https://ufora.ugent.be/d2l/le/content/440345/viewContent/1231330/View
• Formulating & implementing sustainable policies requires a specific governance style
(participatory, network, public & private)
• Achieving sustainability requires transitions of societal systems
Sustainability – Sustainable Development – Transition
Societal systems
o Culture & traditions
o Policy & politics
o Interests
o Political decision-making
o Power
o Public administration & instruments
o Ideology
Different strategical meanings (< rhetoric & discourse)
o Sustainability: drastically changing our behaviour (ecological change, social change)
o Sustainability: technological development and mitigating climate change effects
Multi-level reality
o Different policy levels (local – regional – national – international)
o Coordination across public and private organisations
• If governments really want to achieve sustainable development, governance is the adopted
style that is required.
Governance
= the [public] process of steering society and the economy through collective action in accordance
with common goals
Network governance
In a multi-level reality (policy levels & across public/private)
Meta governance
Combining the right governing styles: governance of governance
o Weberian bureaucracy (hierarchy)
o New Public Management (market)
o New Public Governance (network)
3
, All rights reserved to (guest) lecturers
Governance arrangements (sustainable development)
= the whole of different institutional settings with different roles of government, the use and effects
of different kind of instruments, the creation of certain organisational forms for collaboration,
certain flows of money and staff and certain relations that develop around particular issues.
< Out of critique:
o ‘Governance’ often neglects complexity and multi-layered nature of ‘government’
o ‘Government’ is not something neutral, but should be assessed critically in terms of
positions, interests and actions
1) Sustainability & SDG’s
Voets, J., Panchuk, D., & Zaki, B. (2022). Public Governance [Slides]. Ufora.
https://ufora.ugent.be/d2l/le/content/440345/viewContent/1235901/View
1.1 The concept and evolution of sustainable development
“Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising
the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
→ Environmental issue & Global inequality
< Brundtland, G. H. (1987). Our common future. World Commission on environment and
development.
1972
UN Summit on Critiques: big engagements, but no legal enforcement
the Human
Environment
2017
Ocean
Conference
RIO 1992
➢ United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED)
➢ Concept ‘Sustainable Development’ became established
o Not a single meaning
Outcome of societal dialogue: What are the ecological boundaries of the planet?
4
Brenna
BPM mast
,All rights reserved to (guest) lecturers
Table of contents
Table of contents .................................................................................................................................... 1
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 3
1) Sustainability & SDG’s .................................................................................................................... 4
1.1 The concept and evolution of sustainable development ........................................................ 4
1.2 Facts and figures on sustainable development ....................................................................... 6
1.3 Evaluation of sustainable development .................................................................................. 7
1.4 SDG’s and the role of local government................................................................................ 11
2) Exploring governance ................................................................................................................... 13
2.1 The concept of governance ................................................................................................... 13
2.2 The concept of ‘the government’ .......................................................................................... 16
2.3 The complex reality of governance ....................................................................................... 17
2.4 Governance failures and metagovernance ........................................................................... 20
2.5 Finding the right governance mix .......................................................................................... 20
3) European Green Deal.................................................................................................................... 22
3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 22
3.2 EU Green Deal in a nutshell !................................................................................................. 23
3.3 Impacts of climate change..................................................................................................... 29
4) Modern Public Governance .......................................................................................................... 30
4.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 30
4.2 Sustainable development? .................................................................................................... 30
4.3 Enter science: building a fact base ........................................................................................ 32
4.4 Sustainable development: holistic by nature? ...................................................................... 33
4.5 Decision-making for sustainability transitions: a policy perspective .................................... 35
4.6 Transition management ........................................................................................................ 37
4.7 Focus on cities ....................................................................................................................... 38
4.8 3 mayor lenses on transition management .......................................................................... 38
4.9 Right to challenge .................................................................................................................. 43
5) Political ideologies and governance ............................................................................................. 45
5.1 What is ideology and why should we care? .......................................................................... 45
5.2 What are the most common ideologies and their typology? ............................................... 46
1
,All rights reserved to (guest) lecturers
5.3 Relevance of ideologies in modern governance debates . ................................................... 51
6) Waste management priorities and sustainable governance ...................................................... 53
6.1 Current EU challenges and opportunities ............................................................................. 53
6.2 Food waste and way to approach it ...................................................................................... 56
7) Transition towards a circular economy........................................................................................ 57
7.1 Why is a circular economy needed?...................................................................................... 57
7.2 History of the circular economy ............................................................................................ 58
7.3 Need for transition management .......................................................................................... 60
7.4 Several possible transition pads ............................................................................................ 61
8) Public policy, crises and more ...................................................................................................... 70
8.1 Why are we here today? ....................................................................................................... 70
8.2 Public Governance and Public Policy, Intersections .............................................................. 70
8.3 Case of Governance and Policy: COVID-19 in England and Belgium ..................................... 72
8.4 Discussion of governance failures ......................................................................................... 76
9) Policy innovation .......................................................................................................................... 79
9.1 Introduction: the concept of innovation ............................................................................... 79
9.2 Innovation as technology or culture? . .................................................................................. 79
9.3 In summary ............................................................................................................................ 82
2
,All rights reserved to (guest) lecturers
Introduction
‘governance’ & critical analysis of governance arrangements, applied to the context of
sustainability, sustainable development & transitions (management)
Voets, J., De Rynck, F., & De Weerdt, Y. (2022). Sustainable development as a public governance
challenge: Setting the stage of the course.
https://ufora.ugent.be/d2l/le/content/440345/viewContent/1231330/View
• Formulating & implementing sustainable policies requires a specific governance style
(participatory, network, public & private)
• Achieving sustainability requires transitions of societal systems
Sustainability – Sustainable Development – Transition
Societal systems
o Culture & traditions
o Policy & politics
o Interests
o Political decision-making
o Power
o Public administration & instruments
o Ideology
Different strategical meanings (< rhetoric & discourse)
o Sustainability: drastically changing our behaviour (ecological change, social change)
o Sustainability: technological development and mitigating climate change effects
Multi-level reality
o Different policy levels (local – regional – national – international)
o Coordination across public and private organisations
• If governments really want to achieve sustainable development, governance is the adopted
style that is required.
Governance
= the [public] process of steering society and the economy through collective action in accordance
with common goals
Network governance
In a multi-level reality (policy levels & across public/private)
Meta governance
Combining the right governing styles: governance of governance
o Weberian bureaucracy (hierarchy)
o New Public Management (market)
o New Public Governance (network)
3
, All rights reserved to (guest) lecturers
Governance arrangements (sustainable development)
= the whole of different institutional settings with different roles of government, the use and effects
of different kind of instruments, the creation of certain organisational forms for collaboration,
certain flows of money and staff and certain relations that develop around particular issues.
< Out of critique:
o ‘Governance’ often neglects complexity and multi-layered nature of ‘government’
o ‘Government’ is not something neutral, but should be assessed critically in terms of
positions, interests and actions
1) Sustainability & SDG’s
Voets, J., Panchuk, D., & Zaki, B. (2022). Public Governance [Slides]. Ufora.
https://ufora.ugent.be/d2l/le/content/440345/viewContent/1235901/View
1.1 The concept and evolution of sustainable development
“Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising
the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
→ Environmental issue & Global inequality
< Brundtland, G. H. (1987). Our common future. World Commission on environment and
development.
1972
UN Summit on Critiques: big engagements, but no legal enforcement
the Human
Environment
2017
Ocean
Conference
RIO 1992
➢ United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED)
➢ Concept ‘Sustainable Development’ became established
o Not a single meaning
Outcome of societal dialogue: What are the ecological boundaries of the planet?
4
