<i>‘I consider this edited volume to be more than a welcome contribution and a notorious collection for all scholars, keen to understand the theoretical grounding, practices, patterns and types of leadership, as well as the manifestation of that leadership in local and regional socio-economic development and policy.’</i>
- Eduardo Oliveira, Eurasian Geography and Economics,
<i>‘The </i>Handbook on City and Regional Leadership<i> is the first comprehensive overview of place leadership in urban and regional research, edited by pioneers of the concept, Markku Sotarauta and Andrew Beer. Publication of the Handbook is very timely with the significant growth of research on the importance of agency in regional development in recent years. The Handbook covers a broad range of topics ranging from theoretical issues and empirical studies to methodological questions. It contains a rich and stimulating compilation of chapters and is a must-read for researchers as well as policy makers interested in promoting place leadership.’</i>
Deepening the scholarly debate on leadership in cities and regions, the Handbook combines theoretical discussion and empirical evidence within methodological development to present a state-of-the-art view of a rapidly emerging field of study, highlighting paths for future research. Chapters explore power, politics, policy-making, social corporate responsibility and international city diplomacy through the lens of leadership, covering leadership in different countries from a broad range of theoretical perspectives.
This Handbook is a valuable resource for academics and students of regional studies, human and economic geography, and policy studies. The conceptual discussion and case studies from different parts of the world will provide valuable examples for scholars, policy-makers and practitioners seeking a better understanding of what it takes to mobilise and co-ordinate complex multi-actor constellations for improvement of their respective places.