This book argues that active citizenship and poverty are inextricably linked. A common sentiment in discussions of poverty and social policy is that decisions made about those living in poverty or near-poverty are illegitimate, inadvisable, and non-responsive to the needs and interests of the poor if the poor themselves are not involved in the decision-making process. Inside this intuitively appealing idea, however, are a range of potential contradictions and conflicts. These conflicts are at the nexus between active citizenship and technical expertise, between promotion of stability in governance and empowerment of people, between empowerment that is genuine and sustainable and empowerment that is artificial, and between a "war on poverty" that is built on the ideas of collaborative governance and one that is built on an assumption of rule of the elite. The poor have long been consigned to a group of "included-out" citizens. They are legally living in a place, but they are not afforded the same courtesies, entrusted with the same responsibilities, or respected in parallel processes as those citizens of greater means and those who behave in manners that are more consistent with "middle class" values. Poor citizens engaged in the "war on poverty" of the 1960s started to emerge and force their agenda through adversarial action and social protest. This book explores the clear linkages between engaged citizenship and poverty in the United States, revealing a war on poverty and impoverished citizenship that continues to develop in the twenty-first century.

A fascinating expose explaining why the government we have bears so little relation to the government we want-and why the recent expansion of government programs will only exacerbate the problem. Idealized views of government lead to bitterly unhappy citizens posits The Myth of Fair and Efficient Government: Why the Government You Want Is Not the One You Get. In fact, Michael L. Marlow says, government is the last place to look for efficiency. It is, rather, private markets that naturally drive toward efficient outcomes and it is unreasonable to expect governments to mimic those effects. This idea will startle many readers, especially given the widespread belief that private markets caused the current economic problems. The author's intention is to awaken readers to the invalidity of that assumption, to make us "pause before calling upon the government to somehow be efficient and fair in responding to the supposed collapse of private markets." To that end, this book demonstrates why romantic views of government promote a less efficient economy; why so many government programs are inefficient in practice; and why a more limited role for government is critical to reviving trust in our institutions.

Political Corruption and Democratic Governance explores the effects of political corruption on important aspects of democratic governing. Jongseok Woo and Eunjung Choi use a cross-national lens to analyze how political corruption influences different areas of politics and economics, including electoral outcomes, citizens' evaluations of democratic norms and values, economic development, distributional justice, and social and political trust in both developed and developing nations. While most works on political corruption focus on the causes of corruption, this book delves into various consequences of it. The discussion in each chapter engages both theoretical and empirical components of political corruption, introducing competing theoretical arguments on a given topic and puts them under rigorous empirical scrutiny. Each chapter involves large-N statistical analysis to make it truly global in scope and to overcome the limits of single (or small-N) case studies on political corruption. This book concludes with critical evaluations about anti-corruption efforts by various IGOs and NGOs and specific policy recommendations to deter corruption.

Protecting the natural environment and promoting environmental sustainability have become important objectives for U.S. policymakers and public administrators at the dawn of the twenty-first century. Institutions of American government, especially at the federal level, and the public administrators who work inside of those institutions, play a crucial role in developing and implementing environmental sustainability policies. This book explores these salient issues logically. First, it explores fundamental concepts such as what it means to be environmentally sustainable, how economic issues affect environmental policy, and the philosophical schools of thought about what policies ought to be considered sustainable. From there, it focuses on processes and institutions affecting public administration and its role in the policy process. Accordingly, it summarizes the rise of the administrative state in the United States and then reviews the development of federal environmental laws and policies with an emphasis on late twentieth century developments. This book also discusses the evolution of American environmentalism by outlining the history of the environmental movement and the growth of the environmental lobby. Finally, this book synthesizes the information to discuss how public administration can promote environmental sustainability.

As is true in most aspects of daily life, the expansion of government in the modern era has included a move to a technologically-based system. A method of evaluation for such online governing systems is necessary for effective political management worldwide. Proliferation of Open Government Initiatives and Systems is an essential scholarly publication that analyzes open government data initiatives to evaluate the impact and value of such structures. Featuring coverage on a broad range of topics including collaborative governance, civic responsibility, and public financial management, this publication is geared toward academicians and researchers seeking current, relevant research on the evaluation of open government data initiatives.

In the new world order, conflicts between countries are increasing. Fluctuations in the economy and imbalances in the distribution of scarce resources to developing countries can result in wars. The effect of the recent COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis has caused changes in the strategies and policies of countries. Technological changes and developments have also triggered cyber wars. Despite this, many countries prefer to fight on the field. The damage to the international economy of wars, which kills civilians and causes serious damage to developing countries, is a current issue. The Handbook of Research on War Policies, Strategies, and Cyber Wars examines the factors that lead to war and the damages caused by war strategies and policies. It is a guide for future generations to develop constructive policies and strategies for living in a peaceful world. Covering topics such as geopolitical consequences, civil liberty, and terrorism, this major reference work is a dynamic resource for policymakers, strategists, government officials, politicians, sociologists, students and educators of higher education, librarians, researchers, and academicians.

A common refrain when policy diverges from 'ideal' is 'if only we could take the politics out of the policy process'. The authors of this book argue that rationalist dreams of this nature fail to recognize that policy making is inherently part of politics; policy is the mechanism for giving citizens in a democracy the societal outcomes they seek. In a new and innovative way of thinking about public policy, the book places values at the centre of the analysis. It argues that citizens have differing visions of the good society and different values priorities. In making decisions on behalf of the whole community, policy makers need to recognize and manage these values differences. And in the same way, students of the policy process need to connect what government does with the wider political processes typical of a democratic society. The book casts a critical eye over public policy theory, introduces the reader to research on human values, explores the importance of language, rhetoric and persuasion, and draws on the insights from various strands of psychology in order to understand the realities of policy making in liberal democracies. In so doing, Interrogating Public Policy Theory offers a refreshing alternative to existing analyses of the policy process. This book will be a vital tool for public policy scholars, as well as those upper-level students searching for a map of the policy studies field and a critical examination of the dominant theoretical perspectives. It will also be a unique, and innovative, reference for public policy practitioners seeking more realistic accounts of the policy process that help conceptualize the nature of policy conflict.

This book is about changing the way we do public administration. It is about the wielding of administrative discretion in the implementation of a constitutional power: eminent domain, taking private property for public use. Administrative Discretion in Action: A Narrative of Eminent Domain, emphasizes the normative, constitutional perspective of public administration to study administrators' decision-making process that balances economic, political, and community interests-often in that order. It is about facilitating dialogue between public officials and the public. This book is a tool for interested scholars, practitioners, students, and community members about the dynamic of administration of public affairs in a political context. Grounded in public administration theory, this book utilizes an in-depth, comprehensive analysis of the US Supreme Court's landmark 2005 decision in Kelo v. New London-from the perspective of public officials and community members in the state of Connecticut (home of Kelo case)-to share a balanced narrative.

This book is an excellent resource for academics and students interested in ethics and accountability in the public sector, as well as for practitioners, NGO workers and policymakers. Over the last decades, issues in ethical leadership have become central to the global call for higher moral standards on the part of corporate organisations and their leaders and managers. The book's chapters investigate these concerns in Africa, where governance gaps often reflect poor leadership. Parenthetically, in 2001, a UNDP report found difficulties in applying anti-corruption laws and managing public institutions in the continent. Twenty years on, significant efforts have been made to improve the situation, yet extensive challenges still subsist. In this first volume, contributors discuss the practice of ethics, anti-corruption, and performance management, and propose solutions, some general to the continent and others country-specific.

In many countries, government and society have undergone a major shift in recent years, now tending toward 'smaller government' and 'bigger society'. This development has lent increased meaning to the notion of interactive governance, a concept that this book takes not as a normative ideal but as an empirical phenomenon that needs constant critical scrutiny, reflection and embedding in modern societies. Critical Reflections on Interactive Governance assesses the fundamental changes we can see in civic engagement in interactive governance to new forms of civic self-organization. Eminent scholars across a host of varying disciplines critically discuss a wealth of surrounding issues such as; the role of politicians in interactive governance; whether government strategies - stressing increasing responsibilities for citizens - exclude and mainstream certain people; the type of leadership required for interactive governance to work and what new forms of co-production between governmental institutions, civic organisations and citizens arise. The book concludes with the prospect of potential hybrid institutional and organizational arrangements, like the co-operative model to democracy or the social enterprise, in developing and implementing public services and products. Astute and engaging, Critical Reflections on Interactive Governance will appeal to students in the areas of political science, sociology, public administration and organization management. Scholars and practitioners in the field of interactive governance, participation and civic self-organization will also be particularly interested in this book. Contributors include: H.P. Bang, K.P.R. Bartels, V. Bekkers, T. Bovaird, T. Brandsen, E. Czaika, B. Denters, M. Duijn, M. Duniam, J. Edelenbos, G.J. Ellen, R. Eversole, S. Groeneveld, E.H. Klijn, J. Kooiman, E. Loeffler, S. Moyson, B. Ottow, Y. Papadopoulos, K.L. Patterson, B.G. Peters, J. Pierre, M. Ranahan, A. Roiseland, D. Rumore, M. Russo, T. Schenk, R.M. Silverman, J.D. Sobels, T. Sondergard Madsen, E. Sorensen, J. Torfing, P. Triantafillou, S.I. Vabo, A. van Buuren, S. Van de Walle, I. van Meerkerk, W. Voorberg, H. Wagenaar, L. Yin

Proposing an entirely new governance model to unleash innovation throughout local government At a time when trust is dropping precipitously and American government at the national level has fallen into a state of long-term, partisan-based gridlock, local government can still be effective-indeed more effective and even more responsive to the needs of its citizens. Based on decades of direct experience and years studying successful models around the world, the authors of this intriguing book propose a new operating system (O/S) for cities. Former mayor and Harvard professor Stephen Goldsmith and New York University professor Neil Kleiman suggest building on the giant leaps that have been made in technology, social engagement, and big data. Calling their approach "distributed governance," Goldsmith and Kleiman offer a model that allows public officials to mobilize new resources, surface ideas from unconventional sources, and arm employees with the information they need to become pre-emptive problem solvers. This book highlights lessons from the many innovations taking place in today's cities to show how a new O/S can create systemic transformation. For students of government, A New City O/S: The Power of Distributed Governance presents a groundbreaking strategy for rethinking the governance of cities, marking an important evolution of the current bureaucratic authority-based model dating from the 1920s. More important, the book is designed for practitioners, starting with public-sector executives, managers, and frontline workers. By weaving real-life examples into a coherent model, the authors have created a step-by-step guide for all those who would put the needs of citizens front and center. Nothing will do more to restore trust in government than solutions that work. A New City O/S: The Power of Distributed Governance puts those solutions within reach of those public officials responsible for their delivery.

This up-to-date book takes a fresh look at regulation and risk and argues that the allure of regulation lies in its capacity to reduce risk while preserving the benefits of trade, travel and commerce. Regulation appears as a politically attractive, targeted and effective way to ensure that disasters of the past are not repeated. Diverse challenges are tackled through regulatory means - including the industrial, financial and terrorist-related hazards analyzed in this book. Fiona Haines' empirical work shows, however, that regulation attempts to reduce risks beyond their stated remit of preventing future disaster. Her analysis reveals a complex nexus between risk and regulation where fulfilment of regulatory potential depends on managing three fundamentally different types of risk: actuarial, socio-cultural and political. This complex risk management task affects both reform and compliance efforts, generating tension and paradoxical outcomes. Nonetheless, Haines argues, enhancing political legitimacy and public reassurance are central, not peripheral, to successful regulation. This insightful book will appeal to academics, researchers and postgraduate researchers working in regulation across law, politics, sociology, criminology and public management. Masters of public management, MBA students, public administrators and regulators, as well as political commentators, will also find this book invaluable.

After a long time of neglect, migration has entered the arena of international politics with a force. The 2018 Global Compact for safe, orderly and regular migration (GCM) is the latest and most comprehensive framework for global migration governance. Despite these dynamics, migration is still predominantly framed as a state-centric policy issue that needs to be managed in a top-down manner. This book proposes a difference approach: A truly multi-stakeholder, multi-level and rights-based governance with meaningful participation of migrant civil society. Drawing on 15 years of participant observation on all levels of migration governance, the book maps out the relevant actors, "invited" and "invented" spaces for participation as well as alternative discourses and framing strategies by migrant civil society. It thus provides a comprehensive and timely overview on global migration governance from below, starting with the first UN High Level Dialogue in 2006, evolving around the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD) and leading up to the consultations for the International Migration Review Forum in 2022.