WG1
Local Government
The Local Government Working Group invites submissions for the 2025 conference focusing on the recent transformations in local governments across the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region. The recent period, characterized by overlapping and interconnected crises—often referred to as a polycrisis—has severely affected the capacity of local governments to effectively implement their planned policies.
Important information
From participants of this working group full paper is required before the conference.
25/11/2024
Extended deadline for submissions of Paper Proposals.
10/05/2025
Deadline of full paper submission*
*in case you apply for awards deadline is 10/04/2025
Register for 33rd NISPAcee Annual Conference 2025
Call for papers
The spillover effects and synergies between various crises (e.g., political instability, migration challenges, fiscal pressures) have compelled many local authorities to modify, suspend, or fundamentally revise their policy goals.
In this context, the CEE region has witnessed significant phenomena, including democratic backsliding, a decline in public trust, trends toward centralization, financial instability, and a growing influence of populist and anti-establishment movements. The polycrisis has also exposed the limitations of local governments in terms of their institutional capacity, testing the adaptability and flexibility of policy-making frameworks and revealing a widespread unpreparedness to manage crises at multiple levels of governance.
Our 2025 conference sessions will emphasize the analysis of the effects and implications of the polycrisis at the local level. We encourage submissions that offer empirical or theoretical insights into how local governance has been influenced by shifts toward authoritarianism, challenges to the rule of law, and increasing political instability. Such investigations are crucial to fostering the capacity-building needed to strengthen governance across all levels.
In addition to the polycrisis theme, we welcome papers addressing the following topics:
- Intergovernmental relations across local, regional, national, and European levels.
- Local representation and challenges of accountability.
- Innovative forms of citizen participation and the inclusion of vulnerable groups in local decision-making processes.
- The impact of migration on local governance structures.
- The operational context and environment in which local governments function.
- Issues of scale, capacity, and inter-municipal cooperation.
- Emerging challenges in public policy at the local and regional levels.• Innovations and challenges in service delivery at the municipal level.
We strongly encourage both theoretical and empirical submissions. The sessions in 2025 will be highly interactive, offering participants an opportunity to discuss their findings and recommendations, build professional networks, and exchange insights within a multicultural and interdisciplinary community.We look forward to your participation and to the invaluable contributions you will bring to this vital dialogue.
Coordinators
Daniel Klimovský
Comenius University in Bratislava, Faculty of Arts, Department of Political Science, [email protected]
Daniel Klimovský is Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science, Faculty of Arts, Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovakia. At the same he cooperates with the Institute of Political Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic. He is alternate member of the Group of Independent Experts on the European Charter of Local Self-Government of the Council of Europe. In addition, he is member of the editorial board of several journals focused on public administration and/or public policy. His research and educational activities are focused on public administration, as well as political issues linked to sub-national levels. He has been involved in numerous international projects, and he is a policy advisor or analyst of several public authorities.
Katarzyna Radzik-Maruszak
Head of the Department and acting Director of the Institute at Maria Curie-Skłodowska University, Lublin, Poland
[email protected]
Katarzyna Radzik-Maruszak is political scientist and lawyer. She holds PhD in political science. Presently she is an Associate Professor and Acting Director of the Institute of Political Science and Administration, Faculty of Political Science and Journalism, Maria Curie-Skłodowska University, Lublin, Poland. Her research interests involve the comparative public administration, especially local governance, citizens’ participation, and sustainable urban development. She was visiting scholar at the Faculty of Management, Tampere University in Finland and the Institute of Political Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University in Prague, the Czech Republic. Currently Katarzyna leads the project Silent witnesses or active participants? Patterns of children and youth involvement in local governance in Poland and Finland funded by the National Science Centre, Poland and is a co-investigator in the project Sustainable Urban Development in the European Arctic: Towards Enhanced Transnational Cooperation in Remote Regions funded by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) and the National Science Centre, Poland.
Information for Paper holders
In order for paper to be published in e-proceedings it is required to comply with the e-proceedings structure.