Collaborative Governance for Local Economic Development: Lessons from Countries around the World

Although collaborations for local and regional economic development have been popular in recent years, it is not yet wholly clear when or how such efforts bring successful outcomes. Using an integrative conceptual framework for collaborative governance, this innovative collection provides a systematic and interdisciplinary analysis of real-world collaborative networks for local and regional economic development.

Focusing on a wide range collaborative economic development in diverse cities and regions in USA, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, and South Korea, the chapters explore what forces motivate the emergence of collaborative economic development efforts. Each chapter explores the factors which contribute to or hinder collaborative governance efforts for economic development and identifies lessons for overcoming challenges to creating communities that are economically resilient, environmentally sustainable and politically engaged in the era of globalization.

By focusing on collaborative governance and its implications for the ability of policies to meet the challenges of the 21st century, it provides lessons for researchers in public management, urban planning/development, public policy, and political science, as well as practitioners interested in promoting local economic development.

Denita Cepiku is an Associate Professor in Public Management at the University of Rome "Tor Vergata," where she teaches Business Administration and Global Public Management and serves as the coordinator of the PhD program track in Public Management and Governance. Her main research interests are in the areas of collaborative governance (network management and co-production), cutback management, and strategic performance management. Her publications have appeared in numerous academic journals and, most recently, she edited the Routledge Handbook of Global Public Policy and Administration in 2017. She has been board member of the International Research Society for Public Management (IRSPM) and is chair of the European Academy of Management (EURAM) Strategic Interest Group on Public Management.

So Hee Jeon is an Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science and Public Administration at Central Michigan University. Her research focuses on public and nonprofit management with an emphasis on human resource management, administrative ethics, and interorganizational networks. Dr. Jeon’s work has been published in various academic journals including Review of Public Personnel Administration, Public Performance & Management Review, Public Personnel Management, and International Review of Public Administration.

David K. Jesuit is a Professor in the Department of Political Science and Public Administration at Central Michigan University and Chair of his Department. He has been editor or coeditor of several academic volumes and journals, including the recently published book Making Governance Work: Policy Making in an Era of Polarized Politics (Routledge, 2017) Together with partners in Europe and Canada, he has taken the lead role in creating and expanding the Transnational Initiative on Governance Research and Education Network, or "TIGRE Net." This international group of scholars, students and field specialists is dedicated to identifying the opportunities and challenges public managers confront in the global economy and to providing them with the strategies and skills necessary to overcome obstacles to domestic, cross-border and international coordination.