This book is about governing well for the future. It investigates the nature of, and the conditions for, prudent long-term democratic governance in a dynamic, complex, and uncertain world, the reasons why such governance is politically challenging, and how such challenges can best be tackled. In particular, it addresses the problem of 'short-termism' - or a 'presentist bias' - in policy-making; that is, the risk of governments placing undue weight on near-term considerations at the expense of a society's overall long-term welfare. As such, the book traverses both normative and empirical...

This volume focuses on the rise of educational regulation and educational governance in a post-2015 era. Across the globe, unfettered globalization is being curtailed and cooperation and collaboration at the regional level appears to be at an unprecedented high, yet there are still substantial disparities across national levels in education, social, political, and economic sectors. This volume investigates the nexus between national policy mandates, regional aspirations and international benchmarks and commitments. In doing so, it uses a critical educational policy studies approach to examine...

This volume provides a unique insight into the ways local governments have maintained financial resilience in the face of the significant challenges posed by the era of austerity. Taking an international perspective, it provides an enlightening and practical analysis of the different capacities and responses that local governments deploy to cope with financial shocks. Moving beyond traditional approaches dealing with financial stress, the financial resilience perspective reveals a wider range of organisational responses and enables consideration of the dynamic role played by internal and...

The corruption of public officials in the United States and its corrosive impact on public policy, political stability and democratic institutions, earns it a spot among the most critical public crises of the last decade. There have been scandals involving elected officials across the political spectrum from local elected officials up to the White House, involving conflicts of interest, campaign fundraising and political elections. At the heart of many scandals is the discretionary power of public officials to make decisions based on personal interest, often leading to corruption....

Present day knowledge about public sector reforms in Asia is quite scattered and seldom focuses on the challenges of leadership. This book seeks to address this issue by presenting country cases that reflect the great diversity of the region.

This edited collection examines the intersections of social control, political authority and public policy, providing an insight into the key elements needed to understand the role of governance in establishing and maintaining social control through law and public policy making.

This timely and insightful book provides the key elements needed to understand the nature and prevalence of corruption in public governance, as well as the devastating public policy consequences.

New Zealand (NZ) is widely regarded as being at the frontier of public policy reforms and public governance innovations. Bringing together acclaimed scholars and practitioners from NZ, including those who have led reforms, this edited collection examines the evolution of public policy in NZ. Through focusing on four areas of NZ's strength in public policy governance and management - managing and governing the economy, governing the natural environment, the effectiveness and management of the public service, and the advancement of minority populations - the authors highlight specific...

The first comprehensive examination of how systems of government have emerged in the small and diverse developing island states of the Pacific Islands region, this study outlines the way in which government systems in the region have evolved from their pre-independence origins to their current political, constitutional, and public sector arrangements. Drawing on scholarship from the fields of law, history, anthropology, public policy, and public management, the author examines the ways in which culture, history, and the environment continue to influence contemporary policy challenges and...

This edited collection examines corruption in the public sector, assessing case studies from across the globe in order to provide an international perspective on this worldwide issue. Case studies include an examination of how corruption has been minimized in Singapore and Hong Kong; an assessment of corruption in India under Modi, who was elected on a promise to reduce corruption; a study of corruption in Bangladesh, and an evaluation of attempts to curb corruption in South Africa. This collection also includes a comparative study of corruption in Brazil and Chile, and a global perspective...