Bjorn Egner – författare

Some cities manage to mobilize innovation potentials and respond to challenges, such as demographic change and immigration as well as economic restructuring, while others do not. This book solves this problem by answering the following question: what are the conditions for the development of local innovation?

In order to identify these conditions, the book explores case study cities which are perceived as success cases of local innovation by the respective local community, and sometimes also nationally or internationally. The conditions for local innovations are not sought primarily in economic, social, or institutional circumstances. Instead, this book focuses on the communicative interactions by which local actors develop locally embedded knowledge or a specific social imaginary about those circumstances, as well as the constraints and opportunities deriving from them. The authors focus on a comparative case study of ten cities—Bensheim, Frankfurt, Kassel, Leipzig, and Offenbach in Germany, and Athens, Chania, Elefsina, Kalamata, and Thessaloniki in Greece. The book is based on content analysis of policy documents and local newspapers as well as in-depth interviews with key local actors.

This book will be of interest to scholars and students of political science and policy analysis, as well as sociology, geography, urban studies, and planning. It will also interest local politicians and bureaucrats concerned with achieving innovation in cities.

Some cities manage to mobilize innovation potentials and respond to challenges, such as demographic change and immigration as well as economic restructuring, while others do not. This book solves this problem by answering the following question: what are the conditions for the development of local innovation?

In order to identify these conditions, the book explores case study cities which are perceived as success cases of local innovation by the respective local community, and sometimes also nationally or internationally. The conditions for local innovations are not sought primarily in economic, social, or institutional circumstances. Instead, this book focuses on the communicative interactions by which local actors develop locally embedded knowledge or a specific social imaginary about those circumstances, as well as the constraints and opportunities deriving from them. The authors focus on a comparative case study of ten cities—Bensheim, Frankfurt, Kassel, Leipzig, and Offenbach in Germany, and Athens, Chania, Elefsina, Kalamata, and Thessaloniki in Greece. The book is based on content analysis of policy documents and local newspapers as well as in-depth interviews with key local actors.

This book will be of interest to scholars and students of political science and policy analysis, as well as sociology, geography, urban studies, and planning. It will also interest local politicians and bureaucrats concerned with achieving innovation in cities.

Debates about multi-level governance have led to a profound restructuring of regional and local government. The second level of local government is under review in most European countries, with the aim to strengthen the institutional capacity of municipalities or to develop appropriate institutional structures for governing fragmented urban areas.

This book provides a thematic and cross-national analysis of the key actors in local government that form the crucial components of effective and democratic policy making. Focussing on the second tier of local government, it examines new empirical data on councillors from this level of government in 15 European countries and integrates important variables such as party politics, notions of democracy, finance, multi-level settings. Divided into five parts, it addresses:

This book will be of interest to students and scholars of local government, urban studies, regional studies, political science, sociology and geography.

Debates about multi-level governance have led to a profound restructuring of regional and local government. The second level of local government is under review in most European countries, with the aim to strengthen the institutional capacity of municipalities or to develop appropriate institutional structures for governing fragmented urban areas.

This book provides a thematic and cross-national analysis of the key actors in local government that form the crucial components of effective and democratic policy making. Focussing on the second tier of local government, it examines new empirical data on councillors from this level of government in 15 European countries and integrates important variables such as party politics, notions of democracy, finance, multi-level settings. Divided into five parts, it addresses:

This book will be of interest to students and scholars of local government, urban studies, regional studies, political science, sociology and geography.

This book provides a comparative assessment of housing policies in Europe, paying particular attention to the causes and consequences of rising rents and energy costs, and the various policy instruments implemented to deal with these challenges. Adopting a country case study approach, the book examines the ways in which housing costs differ across the continent, and the reasons behind these variations. Each chapter examines the idiosyncrasies of issues such as tenure structure, housing stock and housing supply structures within a particular country, and their impact on housing and energy costs. A concluding chapter offers a comparative analysis of developments across Europe. With housing and energy costs proving to be a significant issue currently facing policymakers, this book provides important insights for all those interested in public policy, housing policy, sociology, and political science.

Councillors are the essence of local representative democracy, linking ordinary citizens and decision-makers in municipal arenas. In cross-national perspective, and taking in countries from across Europe, this book analyses the recruitment patterns, career, party associations, role perceptions, and attitudes to democracy, representation, and participation of local councillors. Matters such as gender, parties, institutions, municipal reform, functions in governance networks, and councillor influence are considered using data collected in an international survey, covering some 12,000 members of the local political elite. Drawing on diverse and eclectic literature, the contributions in this volume comprise a comprehensive and revealing analysis of modern councillors.

Dieses Buch basiert auf einer im Jahr 2023 durchgeführten repräsentativen Online-Befragung von Ratsmitgliedern aus 500 ausgewählten Städten und Gemeinden. Auf der Grundlage von fast 3.000 beantworteten Fragebögen wird dem Sozialprofil der Befragten nachgegangen, aber auch ihren Problemsichten, Einstellungen und Rollenverständnissen. Dabei gewonnene Befunde werden mit denen einer ähnlichen Befragung von 2007/2008 verglichen, wodurch es möglich wird, Veränderungen im Zeitverlauf darzustellen. Es geht aber auch um Fragen, die sich erst in den letzten Jahren mit Nachdruck stellen – nämlich um die Nutzung „sozialer Medien“ durch Ratsmitglieder und ob Aggressionserfahrungen ihre politischen Aktivitäten im Rat und in der Öffentlichkeit beeinflusst haben.