The aim of this study was to examine what role citizen dialogs have in the society and its planning of urban development. Also, what relation citizen dialogs have to social sustainability. Furthermore, find out how two municipalities, Boden and Umeå, with different circumstances work with citizen dialogs. This has been done through the studying of documents from the municipalities. The document studies presented several concepts and methods to work with citizen dialogs and stated that they are of importance for the municipalities. One document, “Så star det till!” is a compilation of an extensive work with citizen dialogs in Umeå municipality. Boden municipality presented on their social media several examples of citizen dialogs. That presentation in itself is a way of communicating and in a sense a dialog with the citizens. To find this a few keywords were used when studying the documents. Three semi-structured interviews were performed with people working at the municipalities. The results from the interviews were processed through a coding scheme and finally analyzed with the help of Fungs (2006) Democracy cube.   The interviews showed that the municipalities work alike in many ways and highly value citizen dialogs. The municipalities try out different methods of citizen dialogs and perform them in the preliminary stages of the planning processes. They also aim for the comments, wishes, and needs the citizens voices to have an actual impact on the result of the plans they have taken part in, which contributes to social sustainability. The role of citizen dialogs in the planning process are to some extent dictated in a law but not particularly in detail. Some argue that citizen dialogs give the citizen false power (citizens power which is essential in increasing social sustainability), that they in fact do not have a say in the planning processes. In some cases where the dialogs fail, they instead lead to a decrease in trust for the municipalities and their planners. Another argument is that the citizens should trust the representative democracy.   The whole study also shows that citizen dialogs are complex and difficult to adapt and to then include everyone since there is a lot of variation in the personalities and circumstances among the citizens. But in conclusion the citizen dialogs have a future where they seem to get a bigger roll with new methods and impact the social sustainability, majority in a sense of giving the citizens more power to influence their home and surroundings.

This study is an analysis of the organization and management of regional public transport in Sweden. The goal is to chart and analyze how different regions organize and manage public transport in order to understand if, and to what degree, the management can be considered democratic. The research questions are answered through a document study of statutory documents where the regions describe their organizations, as well as through interviews with regional politicians involved with public transport. The collected data is analyzed against a theoretical background of democratic governance and public administration, leading to the conclusion that the management of public transport is characterized by a high degree of leeway. The management of public transport seems to be working in the sense that the practical implementation is sufficient. However, the management does not seem to work in a democratic sense, since the organization is too complex to understand without excessive effort. The effort required to do so risks a democratic deficit where citizens do not use their democratic power.

The purpose of this study was to appraise the meaning and challenges of the principal’s school governance role in the Gert Sibande Region of the Mpumalanga Province. This was premised on the inherent challenges of the principal’s role as prescribed in the South African Schools Act, which locates the principal in the school governing body (SGB) as a member who promotes the best interests of the school; as well as an ex officio member who represents and promotes the interests of the employer – the Department of Education. It was found, through the literature review, that the challenges of the principal’s school governance role were largely symptoms of different emphases on the various functions of the SGB as listed in the South African Schools Act. As such, the concept of school governance was contextualised into an understanding of the essence of the school governance mandate as concerned with three main roles of the SGB, namely, providing the school with a strategic direction, the SGB being critical friend to the school and holding the school to account. Through qualitative interviews of purposely selected school principals, educator-governors and parent-governors, it was found that the principal’s role was influenced by, among others, challenges pertaining to the principals’ ex officio role, parent governors’ low education level, parent governors perceptions about being in the SGB, the perceptions about the principals’ role in the SGB by other members and miscellaneous challenges pertaining to perceptions and structural factors about the school governance role. This was found to be a result of the listed nature of the Schools Act’s governance roles and responsibilities and pointed to the need for giving context to them through an approach that focuses on the meaning and implications of the school governance mandate. For that reason, this study proposes a Three-step Approach to school governance. The Three step-Approach to school governance takes the school governance mandate as a point of departure and models the school governance process from the intention to establish SGBs through elections of a new and incoming SGB while the outgoing SGB is in the final stages of its term of office; to training of SGB members over stages that focus on the relevant content and components of school governors; and culminates into the start of the process of functioning of the incoming SGB. The emphasis of this approach is on fostering a clear understanding of the school governance mandate; how it contextualises the listed functions in the Schools Act; and the need for the SGB to start functioning with members already trained and in full understanding of their roles as they relate to the school governance mandate of promoting the best interests of the schools through the provision of quality education for all learners at the school. / PhD (Education Management)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015.

The purpose of this study was to appraise the meaning and challenges of the principal’s school governance role in the Gert Sibande Region of the Mpumalanga Province. This was premised on the inherent challenges of the principal’s role as prescribed in the South African Schools Act, which locates the principal in the school governing body (SGB) as a member who promotes the best interests of the school; as well as an ex officio member who represents and promotes the interests of the employer – the Department of Education. It was found, through the literature review, that the challenges of the principal’s school governance role were largely symptoms of different emphases on the various functions of the SGB as listed in the South African Schools Act. As such, the concept of school governance was contextualised into an understanding of the essence of the school governance mandate as concerned with three main roles of the SGB, namely, providing the school with a strategic direction, the SGB being critical friend to the school and holding the school to account. Through qualitative interviews of purposely selected school principals, educator-governors and parent-governors, it was found that the principal’s role was influenced by, among others, challenges pertaining to the principals’ ex officio role, parent governors’ low education level, parent governors perceptions about being in the SGB, the perceptions about the principals’ role in the SGB by other members and miscellaneous challenges pertaining to perceptions and structural factors about the school governance role. This was found to be a result of the listed nature of the Schools Act’s governance roles and responsibilities and pointed to the need for giving context to them through an approach that focuses on the meaning and implications of the school governance mandate. For that reason, this study proposes a Three-step Approach to school governance. The Three step-Approach to school governance takes the school governance mandate as a point of departure and models the school governance process from the intention to establish SGBs through elections of a new and incoming SGB while the outgoing SGB is in the final stages of its term of office; to training of SGB members over stages that focus on the relevant content and components of school governors; and culminates into the start of the process of functioning of the incoming SGB. The emphasis of this approach is on fostering a clear understanding of the school governance mandate; how it contextualises the listed functions in the Schools Act; and the need for the SGB to start functioning with members already trained and in full understanding of their roles as they relate to the school governance mandate of promoting the best interests of the schools through the provision of quality education for all learners at the school. / PhD (Education Management)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-26T20:24:20Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Lucia Thome Reinert.pdf: 1723841 bytes, checksum: 5c81729b8b9676440a74f3e5aa1522ea (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-03-07 / The Public Defense is the institution constitutionally provided to exercise legal assistance, full and free for the unfortunate and vulnerable population of the Democratic State of Law. It is known that the Republic Constitution of 1988, founded on the principles of Dignity of the Human Being and Citizenship, reinforce the importance of popular participation in building a Democratic State of Law. Consequently, is imperative to ensure to all the necessary Citizenship needed to implement the access to justice. It results in the importance of the Public Defense as a constitutional entity projected to serve as an instrument of citizenship, as well as to assure everyone the effective participation in the justice system. As a consequence, with the aim of ensuring the creation of an inclusive justice system, plural and egalitarian, the Public Defense, and especially the Public Defense of the State of São Paulo, provides tools to facilitate the access of vulnerable people to the justice system, once its recognizes the social participation as the basis of a Democratic State of Law. It is necessary to study the legal field that governs the feasibility of operation of the Public Defense, either at the national level, and internationally, as well as study and analyze research carried out in the country which recognizes the important role of the Public Defense for the realization of the social participation and implementation of citizenship. Besides, it s quite important to analyze the III Diagnostic of Public Defenses in Brazil, as well as decisions of the Supreme Court that recognizes the role of the Public Defense as an essential link to provide access of the socially excluded to Law and Justice by contributing to the establishment of a democratic governance within the justice system / A Defensoria Pública é a instituição constitucionalmente prevista para exercer a assistência jurídica, integral e gratuita da população carente e vulnerável do Estado Democrático de Direito. Sabe-se que a Constituição da República de 1988, fundada na dignidade da Pessoa Humana e na Cidadania reforçam a importância da participação popular na construção do Estado Democrático de Direito. Deste modo, imperioso que sejam assegurados a todos a cidadania necessária para implementação do acesso à justiça. Por isso, a importância da Defensoria Pública como ente constitucional previsto para servir de instrumento de cidadania, bem como para assegurar a todos a efetiva participação no Sistema de Justiça. Assim, com o escopo de assegurar a criação de um sistema de justiça inclusivo, plural e igualitário, a Defensoria Pública, especialmente, a Defensoria Pública do Estado de São Paulo, prevê instrumentos facilitadores do acesso da população vulnerável ao sistema de justiça, eis que reconhece a participação social como eixo estruturante do Estado Democrático de Direito. Faz-se necessário o estudo do campo normativo que rege a viabilidade da atuação da Defensoria Pública, seja na esfera nacional, quanto internacional, bem como estudos e pesquisas realizadas no País que reconhecem a importância do papel da Defensoria Pública para a concretização da participação social e na implementação da cidadania. Além disso, importante analisar o III Diagnóstico de Defensorias Públicas no País, bem como decisões do Supremo Tribunal Federal que reconhecem o papel da Defensoria Pública como elo essencial a propiciar o acesso dos excluídos da sociedade ao Direito e à Justiça, ao contribuir para a criação de uma governança democrática no âmbito do Sistema de Justiça

O objetivo central deste artigo é identificar quais entraves culturais e burocráticos impactaram o processo de implantação da política de transparência no estado do Rio Grande do Sul no período de 2011 a 2014, considerando a trajetória nacional de desenvolvimento da transparência. A dimensão instrumental da transparência ao regime democrático permite a ampliação dos mecanismos de acesso às informações públicas, com a finalidade de consecução dos mecanismos de accountability. A transparência é uma estratégia de diminuição do segredo e do obscuro no quotidiano estatal. Essa circunstância pretende possibilitar que os governos sejam mais responsáveis frente aos cidadãos. Assim, a cultura da transparência entra em disputa com a cultura do segredo, uma vez que, para o seu desenvolvimento, há necessidade de interferir nas relações de poder consolidadas dentro da estrutura estatal. A análise dos entraves à execução da política de transparência decorre da experiência empírica como gestora da política de transparência no RS. Por fim, as mudanças geram resistências, interferindo no resultado final da implementação da política de transparência. Esses resultados não decorrem, exclusivamente, da vontade política do governante ou da força de resistência da burocracia, mas, precisamente, da relação de força entre eles. / This study aims to identify which cultural and bureaucratic obstacles affected the process of implementing the transparency policy in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, in the period of 2011-2014, taking into account the national trajectory of the development of transparency. The instrumental dimension of transparency to the democratic regime allows the expansion of the mechanisms that grant access to public information in order to achieve accountability mechanisms. Transparency is a strategy to dwindle the secrecy and obscurity of the state’s daily life; it aims at making governments more accountable to their citizens. Thus, the culture of transparency is in dispute with the culture of secrecy, since there is a need to interfere in the consolidated power relations within the state structure for transparency to flourish. The analysis of the obstacles to the implementation of the transparency policy stems from my empirical experience as manager of the transparency policy in Rio Grande do Sul. Finally, the changes generate resistance, interfering in the outcome of the implementation of the transparency policy. These results do not derive exclusively from the political will of the ruler or from the resistance force of the bureaucracy, but precisely from the relation of force between them.

This study explores the narratives of day-to-day practices of the Venezuelan System of Children and Youth Orchestras, one of the oldest social development strategies in Venezuela, and one of the most successful social inclusion and cultural participation programs in the world. Its main objective is to identify some of the policy-based and organizational factors contributing to the success, autonomy, and longevity of this initiative since its creation in 1975. In order to assess the relative importance of these factors, the study reviews the sociopolitical circumstances surrounding the evolution of the program and examines the perceptions of its main actors and clients about key internal processes and organizational dynamics. More generally, this case is offered as a way of better understanding the insularity of bureaucratic efficiency in Latin America. / text

O objetivo central deste artigo é identificar quais entraves culturais e burocráticos impactaram o processo de implantação da política de transparência no estado do Rio Grande do Sul no período de 2011 a 2014, considerando a trajetória nacional de desenvolvimento da transparência. A dimensão instrumental da transparência ao regime democrático permite a ampliação dos mecanismos de acesso às informações públicas, com a finalidade de consecução dos mecanismos de accountability. A transparência é uma estratégia de diminuição do segredo e do obscuro no quotidiano estatal. Essa circunstância pretende possibilitar que os governos sejam mais responsáveis frente aos cidadãos. Assim, a cultura da transparência entra em disputa com a cultura do segredo, uma vez que, para o seu desenvolvimento, há necessidade de interferir nas relações de poder consolidadas dentro da estrutura estatal. A análise dos entraves à execução da política de transparência decorre da experiência empírica como gestora da política de transparência no RS. Por fim, as mudanças geram resistências, interferindo no resultado final da implementação da política de transparência. Esses resultados não decorrem, exclusivamente, da vontade política do governante ou da força de resistência da burocracia, mas, precisamente, da relação de força entre eles. / This study aims to identify which cultural and bureaucratic obstacles affected the process of implementing the transparency policy in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, in the period of 2011-2014, taking into account the national trajectory of the development of transparency. The instrumental dimension of transparency to the democratic regime allows the expansion of the mechanisms that grant access to public information in order to achieve accountability mechanisms. Transparency is a strategy to dwindle the secrecy and obscurity of the state’s daily life; it aims at making governments more accountable to their citizens. Thus, the culture of transparency is in dispute with the culture of secrecy, since there is a need to interfere in the consolidated power relations within the state structure for transparency to flourish. The analysis of the obstacles to the implementation of the transparency policy stems from my empirical experience as manager of the transparency policy in Rio Grande do Sul. Finally, the changes generate resistance, interfering in the outcome of the implementation of the transparency policy. These results do not derive exclusively from the political will of the ruler or from the resistance force of the bureaucracy, but precisely from the relation of force between them.

O objetivo central deste artigo é identificar quais entraves culturais e burocráticos impactaram o processo de implantação da política de transparência no estado do Rio Grande do Sul no período de 2011 a 2014, considerando a trajetória nacional de desenvolvimento da transparência. A dimensão instrumental da transparência ao regime democrático permite a ampliação dos mecanismos de acesso às informações públicas, com a finalidade de consecução dos mecanismos de accountability. A transparência é uma estratégia de diminuição do segredo e do obscuro no quotidiano estatal. Essa circunstância pretende possibilitar que os governos sejam mais responsáveis frente aos cidadãos. Assim, a cultura da transparência entra em disputa com a cultura do segredo, uma vez que, para o seu desenvolvimento, há necessidade de interferir nas relações de poder consolidadas dentro da estrutura estatal. A análise dos entraves à execução da política de transparência decorre da experiência empírica como gestora da política de transparência no RS. Por fim, as mudanças geram resistências, interferindo no resultado final da implementação da política de transparência. Esses resultados não decorrem, exclusivamente, da vontade política do governante ou da força de resistência da burocracia, mas, precisamente, da relação de força entre eles. / This study aims to identify which cultural and bureaucratic obstacles affected the process of implementing the transparency policy in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, in the period of 2011-2014, taking into account the national trajectory of the development of transparency. The instrumental dimension of transparency to the democratic regime allows the expansion of the mechanisms that grant access to public information in order to achieve accountability mechanisms. Transparency is a strategy to dwindle the secrecy and obscurity of the state’s daily life; it aims at making governments more accountable to their citizens. Thus, the culture of transparency is in dispute with the culture of secrecy, since there is a need to interfere in the consolidated power relations within the state structure for transparency to flourish. The analysis of the obstacles to the implementation of the transparency policy stems from my empirical experience as manager of the transparency policy in Rio Grande do Sul. Finally, the changes generate resistance, interfering in the outcome of the implementation of the transparency policy. These results do not derive exclusively from the political will of the ruler or from the resistance force of the bureaucracy, but precisely from the relation of force between them.

For the first time in history, more people in the world live in urban areas than in rural areas. Almost half of this world urban population now live in metropolitan areas, which are becoming central spaces of world economic and social activity, and where major global challenges happen and should be tackled. Metropolitan areas are defined by urban spaces of integrated mobility flows and markets, but also by high institutional fragmentation and political decomposition. This fragmentation interferes in decision-making processes leading to difficulties for the design and implementation of adequate responses to metropolitan problems. In this context, the study of how metropolitan areas should be governed is gaining relevance in the field of urban studies, among other fields. The normative debates about metropolitan governance has been framed by three traditions. From the 60s to the late 80s these debates were restricted to the ‘old regionalism’ dialectics between the metropolitan reform and public choice scholars. More recently, new regionalism recognize in flexible and cooperative governance instruments the most effective way to deal with metropolitan problems. From this perspective metropolitan areas are governed by complex governance relations between diverse actors through multiple and concurrent instruments, in the form of policy networks, voluntary cooperation, strategic planning, and so on. The Öresund Region is a metropolis that spans from eastern Denmark to southern Sweden, and includes cities such as Copenhagen and Malmö. While it has been largely referenced and praised as an example of cross-border metropolitan area, there is little evidence on how it is governed or which are the main governance instruments or who are the actors involved in the policy-making process. Taking an original approach to the study of metropolitan governance, this paper represents a first attempt to identify and understand the main features of metropolitan governance in the Öresund Region as a system, in a polycentric and multilayered crossborder metropolis. The results suggest that metropolitan governance in the Öresund Region is very ambiguous, with several agents acting in different and non-coincident scales, strongly focused in hard policies and development policies in contrast to social and environmental policy areas. Also, there are persistent barriers to cross-border governance despite the favorable context. And finally, there is a relevant democratic governance deficit, in terms of social actors’ participation and involvement in the metropolitan decision-making process. These first results recommend to go forward with further research in this issue. Particularly to grasp about governance networks operatives, policy-making processes, and citizens’ political orientations to, ultimately, propose improvements for a more effective, comprehensive and democratic governance in the Öresund metropolitan region.