PhD Course 2027
Network and Collaborative Governance: Theories, Methods and Practices
Organised by Netherlands Institute of Governance and IRSPM
Sunday 25 April - Tuesday 27 April 2027
Lecturers:
- Professor Erik Hans Klijn (Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands)
- Professor Joris Voets (Ghent University, Belgium)
Guest lectures by:
- Rianne Warsen (Erasmus University Rotterdam)
- Robin Lemaire (Louisiana State University)
Location: Norwegian University of Science and Technology Trondheim
Aim of the course
Transformations of state and society over the last 3 decades have increased the importance of various forms of collaborative and network governance in forming and implementing public policy. Collaborative and network forms of governance take place in networks (including collaborative arrangements like partnerships and arrangements to foster co-produced public services), and engage public, private and civil society actors at transnational, national, regional and local scales in shaping the future of our societies. These networks or collaborative arrangements however may fail due to many causes. Managing network and collaborative arrangements is considered essential as a means to mitigate the risk of failure and enable networks to achieve desired outcomes in terms of more effective and democratic governance, more innovation policy making and delivery of public services.
Research into collaborative and network governance is now firmly established all over the world and the research keeps growing. It offers important opportunities for theoretical and methodological reflection on these theories but also opportunities for the generation of new knowledge with both academic and policy relevance, which is the aim of this course. The course will:
- provide an overview of the state of collaborative and network theories
- discusses empirical findings and what they tell us about theoretical assumptions
- Provide a platform for discussing collaborative and network theories and students’ individual contributions.
- Discuss ways to research networks and methodological choices
These three days course is offered by the Netherlands School of Governance (NIG) in cooperation with the International Research Society of Public Management (IRSPM). Main lecturers are Professor Erik-Hans Klijn (former IRSPM-president and co-chair of the Special Interest Group ‘Complexity & Network Governance’) professor Joris Voets (co-chair of the Special Interest Group ‘Complexity & Network Governance’), supported by guest lectures.
Credits
The course accounts for 4 ECTS, which includes the writing of a paper (which will be discussed during the course), preparing the literature and presence at all three days. When finished the course students will get an official certificate issued out by The Netherlands Institute of Governance (NIG), which is an official accredited research school.
Registration
If you want to participate in the course, please apply by filling in the application form on the NIG website:
https://www.nigovernance.nl/apply-for-phd-courses/
Costs
- Free for NIG PhD members
- 500 euros for PhD candidates based at NIG member universities
- 500 euros for IRSPM participants
- 750 euros for other participants
About NIG
The Netherlands Institute of Governance (NIG) is the Dutch Research School for Public Administration and Political Science. NIG is an interuniversity research school in which faculties from nine Dutch universities participate. NIG is accredited by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). NIG coordinates and stimulates research in the area of Public Administration and Political Science and offers a training program for PhD students. For more information on NIG’s activities, see https://www.nigovernance.nl/
