Addressing the ‘Wicked’ Problems Beyond the Silos: Examining the Relationship Between Joined up Integration and Community Localism

Lasater Z¹*

1. University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

The paper will explore the assumed relationship between so called ‘joined-up’ government responses to local social, economic and environmental issues and a community bottom up approach within a democratic system by examining the Community Building Initiative in Victoria, Australia which explicitly linked integrated governance and community building. Research into resulting governmental shifts in language, practice and systems will be examined in this paper. These findings are derived from a quantitative survey of government employees involved in the Initiative and follow-up qualitative interviews, with supplemental international fieldwork in the United Kingdom and the United States. Key areas, which the paper will explore, include notions of causality, policy discourse analysis, bureaucratic barriers and culture, and community expectations. The paper will conclude with suggested policy responses to community engagement within the context of joined up government.

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