Contact Details for Dr Katarzyna Radzik

katarzyna_radzik@yahoo.com

Leadership and Local Democracy

Outline of the course

In recent years the issue of leadership has frequently appeared in the context of local government and local democracy. This can be attributed to the changes inspired by the concept of New Public Management introduced to public administration in the 1980s (Pollitt, Bouckaert 2011). With the emphasis on local government’s economy, efficiency and effectiveness, the position of elected local authorities have been undoubtedly weakened.

Second, the Nineties of last century saw a shift from traditionally understood local government to local governance. Contrary to the former, governance is based on horizontal networks of cooperation, lack of hierarchy, and a flexible decision-making process (see John, 2001; Swianiewicz 2005). Moreover, unlike New Public Management, the new concept emphasises the quality of democracy. Thus, many countries decided to implement new mechanisms of citizen participation, includingreferenda, consultations or participatory budgeting. As a result, local authorities have again been forced to redefine their role and position.

In this context, many European countries have decided to introduce institutional reforms inspired by the idea of leadership (Berg and Rao 2005). Increasingly, collective executive bodies have been replaced with directly elected mayors. Such a solution was adopted in Germany, Greece, Italy, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and in 2002 also in Poland. Some countries, like England decided to experiment with different models of executive power (Rao 2005), whereas in others, e.g. Ireland, the Czech Republic, and Croatia - these reforms are still under discussion.

The aim of the course is to present the idea of leadership in local government and to identify areas in which it affects the process of governing and the quality of local democracy. In particular, the following issues will be addressed:

· models of local leadership in European local governments;

· links between the institutional position of the leader and leadership styles;

· relations between the leader and the other actors in the process of governing (political parties, entrepreneurs, and the civic society);

· impact of leadership on urban governance (e.g. New York, London, Paris, and Warsaw).

The course will offer a comprehensive outlook on the concept of local leadership both from theoretical and practical perspectives. The experience of some European countries (e.g. England, France, Germany, Slovakia, and Poland) in introducing the reforms mentioned will be more thoroughly discussed.

Additional information

In the end of the course students will get certificates confirming their participation in Leadership and Local Democracy classes.

The course evaluation

· Class participation (50%)

· Group project (30%)

· Engagement (10%)

· Critical thinking (10%)

Literature

Denters B., 2011, Local Governance In: The Sage Handbook of Governance,
M. Bevir (ed.),SAGE;

John P., 2001, Local Governance in Western Europe, SAGE.

Leadership at the Apex. Politicians and Administrators in Western Local Governments, 2002, P.E.Mourtizen, J.H.Svara (eds.), University of Pittsburgh Press.

Pollitt Ch., Bouckaert G., 2011. Public Management Reform. A Comparative Analysis: New Public Management, Governance, and the Neo-Weberian State, Oxford University Press.

Rao N., 2005, From Committees to Leaders and Cabinets: The British Experience In: Transforming Local Political Leadership, 2005, R. Berg, N. Rao (eds.), Palgrave Macmillan.

Swianiewicz P. 2005, Nowe interpretacje teoretyczne polityki miejskiej, Studia Regionalne i Lokalne 2005, Nr 4.

The European Mayor. Political Leaders in the Changing Context of Local Democracy, 2006, H. Bäck, H. Heinelt (eds.), A. Magnier, VS Verlag;

The New Public Governance. Emerging perspectives on the theory and practice of public governance, 2011, S. P. Osborne (ed.), Routlege.

The Oxford Handbook of Local and Regional Democracy in Europe, 2010, (eds.)
J. Loughlin, F. Hendriks, A. Lindström, Oxford University Press;

Transforming Local Political Leadership, 2005, R. Berg, N. Rao (eds.), Palgrave Macmillan.