Social Resilience as Political Practice
Exploring the relationships between community and governance in social resilience projects
Social Resilience as Political Practice examines how relationships between government and citizens take shape at a time when government is being thoroughly renovated: policy must be made and implemented closer to and in collaboration with citizens. In this line of research we conduct ethnographic research within various policy projects in which cooperation between government and citizens is central. Furthermore, we bring research and practice together within a Community of Practice in which various social partners, from ministries to municipalities, advisory bodies and social work organizations, participate.
Policy that is made and implemented close to the citizen and in collaboration with residents is the government's new mantra. In many policy areas, from health to housing and safety, government must now be organized in such a way that such proximity and cooperation become possible. This new government is no longer the dominant party, but a partner of citizens and social initiatives. In this line of research we investigate what kind of state-citizen relationships are created in the wake of the vision of a nearby government as a partner of citizens and social initiatives. We work closely with policy makers at national and municipal level and with various social institutions and initiatives that are themselves experimenting with new relationships between citizens and government. These partners contribute their own experiences, questions and dilemmas that are discussed together within the Community of Practice.
Three full-time researchers are involved in the research line: Postdoc researcher Janne Heederik, and PhD students Charlotte van der Veen and Yannick Drijfhout, all based at the Leiden University. They conduct long-term ethnographic research into (new) ideas regarding new state-citizen relations and the inevitably erratic practice in projects that focus on increasing social resilience and promoting a close government. The research line is led by Anouk de Koning. In addition, Shivant Jhagroe and Anick Vollebergh are involved as senior researchers.
