TY - JOUR
T1 - City-to-city learning within climate city networks
T2 - definition, significance, and challenges from a global perspective
AU - Haupt, Wolfgang
AU - Chelleri, Lorenzo
AU - van Herk, Sebastiaan
AU - Zevenbergen, Chris
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Cities are increasingly joining forces through transnational municipal networks. The presented research focuses on one of the key services of these organisations: providing a platform for city-to-city learning. Interviews with representatives of networks and cities showed that through network organisations local policymakers aim to connect with peers from cities that face similar challenges or that are considered frontrunners. However, the main perceived added value of the studied network organisations is around their function as facilitator of personal networking among local policymakers. While learning certainly takes place and is actively promoted by some networks, most peer-exchanges are about the sharing of knowledge and do not qualify as learning. Therefore, we suggest to distinguish thoroughly between mere ‘knowledge sharing’ and processes of in-depth learning. Moreover, we call for more research focussing on the role of frontrunner cities in providing ‘solutions’, particularly up to which point these are helpful and down-scalable.
AB - Cities are increasingly joining forces through transnational municipal networks. The presented research focuses on one of the key services of these organisations: providing a platform for city-to-city learning. Interviews with representatives of networks and cities showed that through network organisations local policymakers aim to connect with peers from cities that face similar challenges or that are considered frontrunners. However, the main perceived added value of the studied network organisations is around their function as facilitator of personal networking among local policymakers. While learning certainly takes place and is actively promoted by some networks, most peer-exchanges are about the sharing of knowledge and do not qualify as learning. Therefore, we suggest to distinguish thoroughly between mere ‘knowledge sharing’ and processes of in-depth learning. Moreover, we call for more research focussing on the role of frontrunner cities in providing ‘solutions’, particularly up to which point these are helpful and down-scalable.
KW - City-to-city learning
KW - climate governance
KW - climate resilience
KW - peer learning
KW - policy learning
KW - transnational city networks
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85075360740&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/19463138.2019.1691007
DO - 10.1080/19463138.2019.1691007
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85075360740
SN - 1946-3138
VL - 12 (2020)
SP - 143
EP - 159
JO - International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development
JF - International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development
IS - 2
ER -