Governance and Local Development Institute
@gldinstitute.bsky.social
The Governance and Local Development Institute (GLD) is a research institute based at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, and at Cornell University, US. GLD aims to explain variations in governance and local development to promote global human welfare.
📬GLD November Newsletter Highlights
📝 Working Paper No.84: Maximalist Goals Increase State Repression
📄 Policy Brief 29: Incorporating Citizens' Voices into Climate Change Adaptation Plans
🎙️Fellow Interviews: Sarah Thompson & Selene Campion
... and more: bit.ly/GLDNOV25
📝 Working Paper No.84: Maximalist Goals Increase State Repression
📄 Policy Brief 29: Incorporating Citizens' Voices into Climate Change Adaptation Plans
🎙️Fellow Interviews: Sarah Thompson & Selene Campion
... and more: bit.ly/GLDNOV25
November 17, 2025 at 1:41 AM
📬GLD November Newsletter Highlights
📝 Working Paper No.84: Maximalist Goals Increase State Repression
📄 Policy Brief 29: Incorporating Citizens' Voices into Climate Change Adaptation Plans
🎙️Fellow Interviews: Sarah Thompson & Selene Campion
... and more: bit.ly/GLDNOV25
📝 Working Paper No.84: Maximalist Goals Increase State Repression
📄 Policy Brief 29: Incorporating Citizens' Voices into Climate Change Adaptation Plans
🎙️Fellow Interviews: Sarah Thompson & Selene Campion
... and more: bit.ly/GLDNOV25
Meet Noura Wahby, Associate Professor in the Department of Land Economy at the University of Cambridge. Her work focuses on building an interdisciplinary approach to structural inequality, urban governance and grassroots mobilization
➡️Click here to learn more: bit.ly/GLDFINW
➡️Click here to learn more: bit.ly/GLDFINW
October 31, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Meet Noura Wahby, Associate Professor in the Department of Land Economy at the University of Cambridge. Her work focuses on building an interdisciplinary approach to structural inequality, urban governance and grassroots mobilization
➡️Click here to learn more: bit.ly/GLDFINW
➡️Click here to learn more: bit.ly/GLDFINW
🚨New Policy Brief No. 28 written by @svshen.bsky.social is a fresh answer to a classic governance challenge—the principal-agent problem: How can principals deploy regularized campaigns to reduce discretion, curb capture, and reshape agent incentives—with lasting effects?
Learn More: bit.ly/GLDPB28
Learn More: bit.ly/GLDPB28
October 15, 2025 at 3:13 AM
🚨New Policy Brief No. 28 written by @svshen.bsky.social is a fresh answer to a classic governance challenge—the principal-agent problem: How can principals deploy regularized campaigns to reduce discretion, curb capture, and reshape agent incentives—with lasting effects?
Learn More: bit.ly/GLDPB28
Learn More: bit.ly/GLDPB28
CALL FOR PROPOSALS | Open Worldwide 🌍
9th Annual GLD Conference
📍 Aspenäs Herrgård, Gothenburg, Sweden
📅 June 10-12, 2026
🎯 Theme: "Participation and Decision-Making: Studies on Citizen Engagement and Mobilization in Local Governance"
Apply Here: bit.ly/4gxyjdO
9th Annual GLD Conference
📍 Aspenäs Herrgård, Gothenburg, Sweden
📅 June 10-12, 2026
🎯 Theme: "Participation and Decision-Making: Studies on Citizen Engagement and Mobilization in Local Governance"
Apply Here: bit.ly/4gxyjdO
September 24, 2025 at 10:31 PM
CALL FOR PROPOSALS | Open Worldwide 🌍
9th Annual GLD Conference
📍 Aspenäs Herrgård, Gothenburg, Sweden
📅 June 10-12, 2026
🎯 Theme: "Participation and Decision-Making: Studies on Citizen Engagement and Mobilization in Local Governance"
Apply Here: bit.ly/4gxyjdO
9th Annual GLD Conference
📍 Aspenäs Herrgård, Gothenburg, Sweden
📅 June 10-12, 2026
🎯 Theme: "Participation and Decision-Making: Studies on Citizen Engagement and Mobilization in Local Governance"
Apply Here: bit.ly/4gxyjdO
New Episode Alert🚨
In this special edition of Governance Uncovered Nyché Andrew and Manasi Rao sit down with Professor Susan Rose-Ackerman. Come join us in exploring her impactful career and her pioneering research on corruption and democratic accountability.
Listen Here: bit.ly/4lpVxDl
In this special edition of Governance Uncovered Nyché Andrew and Manasi Rao sit down with Professor Susan Rose-Ackerman. Come join us in exploring her impactful career and her pioneering research on corruption and democratic accountability.
Listen Here: bit.ly/4lpVxDl
August 15, 2025 at 2:02 AM
New Episode Alert🚨
In this special edition of Governance Uncovered Nyché Andrew and Manasi Rao sit down with Professor Susan Rose-Ackerman. Come join us in exploring her impactful career and her pioneering research on corruption and democratic accountability.
Listen Here: bit.ly/4lpVxDl
In this special edition of Governance Uncovered Nyché Andrew and Manasi Rao sit down with Professor Susan Rose-Ackerman. Come join us in exploring her impactful career and her pioneering research on corruption and democratic accountability.
Listen Here: bit.ly/4lpVxDl
🎙️NEW FELLOW INTERVIEW🎙️
Meet Dongshu Liu, Assistant Professor at the City University of Hong Kong. His research focuses on Chinese politics and political behavior in authoritarian regimes. Liu also studies political survival, and public opinion in China.
Click here for more: bit.ly/FIDLGL
Meet Dongshu Liu, Assistant Professor at the City University of Hong Kong. His research focuses on Chinese politics and political behavior in authoritarian regimes. Liu also studies political survival, and public opinion in China.
Click here for more: bit.ly/FIDLGL
July 24, 2025 at 2:25 AM
🎙️NEW FELLOW INTERVIEW🎙️
Meet Dongshu Liu, Assistant Professor at the City University of Hong Kong. His research focuses on Chinese politics and political behavior in authoritarian regimes. Liu also studies political survival, and public opinion in China.
Click here for more: bit.ly/FIDLGL
Meet Dongshu Liu, Assistant Professor at the City University of Hong Kong. His research focuses on Chinese politics and political behavior in authoritarian regimes. Liu also studies political survival, and public opinion in China.
Click here for more: bit.ly/FIDLGL
GLD Summer Newsletter
📅 GLD Virtual Annual Conference: Register now!
📝 Working Paper No. 81: The Costs of Exit: Female Labour Migration and Gender Equality in Source Countries
📗Ellen Lust’s Everyday Choices is now available in Spanish!
📰 GLD Fellow Interviews
... and more: bit.ly/ksf76
📅 GLD Virtual Annual Conference: Register now!
📝 Working Paper No. 81: The Costs of Exit: Female Labour Migration and Gender Equality in Source Countries
📗Ellen Lust’s Everyday Choices is now available in Spanish!
📰 GLD Fellow Interviews
... and more: bit.ly/ksf76
July 22, 2025 at 1:10 AM
GLD Summer Newsletter
📅 GLD Virtual Annual Conference: Register now!
📝 Working Paper No. 81: The Costs of Exit: Female Labour Migration and Gender Equality in Source Countries
📗Ellen Lust’s Everyday Choices is now available in Spanish!
📰 GLD Fellow Interviews
... and more: bit.ly/ksf76
📅 GLD Virtual Annual Conference: Register now!
📝 Working Paper No. 81: The Costs of Exit: Female Labour Migration and Gender Equality in Source Countries
📗Ellen Lust’s Everyday Choices is now available in Spanish!
📰 GLD Fellow Interviews
... and more: bit.ly/ksf76
New Episode of Governance Uncovered is Live!
In this episode, we are joined by Ryan Knox, Souraya Hammoud, and Gunnar Andersson
Their insights highlight the ongoing efforts to build local governance from the ground up.
Listen Here: bit.ly/GLDGU68
In this episode, we are joined by Ryan Knox, Souraya Hammoud, and Gunnar Andersson
Their insights highlight the ongoing efforts to build local governance from the ground up.
Listen Here: bit.ly/GLDGU68
June 20, 2025 at 5:32 AM
New Episode of Governance Uncovered is Live!
In this episode, we are joined by Ryan Knox, Souraya Hammoud, and Gunnar Andersson
Their insights highlight the ongoing efforts to build local governance from the ground up.
Listen Here: bit.ly/GLDGU68
In this episode, we are joined by Ryan Knox, Souraya Hammoud, and Gunnar Andersson
Their insights highlight the ongoing efforts to build local governance from the ground up.
Listen Here: bit.ly/GLDGU68
GLD June Newsletter Highlights
📊Join our Dataset Initiative
📑 NEW Working Paper No.80 explores new patterns of urban political reform in Southeast Asia
🎙️New Governance Uncovered podcast on lessons on decentralization and Inequality in the MENA region
... and more: bit.ly/GLDJUN25
📊Join our Dataset Initiative
📑 NEW Working Paper No.80 explores new patterns of urban political reform in Southeast Asia
🎙️New Governance Uncovered podcast on lessons on decentralization and Inequality in the MENA region
... and more: bit.ly/GLDJUN25
June 19, 2025 at 12:38 AM
GLD June Newsletter Highlights
📊Join our Dataset Initiative
📑 NEW Working Paper No.80 explores new patterns of urban political reform in Southeast Asia
🎙️New Governance Uncovered podcast on lessons on decentralization and Inequality in the MENA region
... and more: bit.ly/GLDJUN25
📊Join our Dataset Initiative
📑 NEW Working Paper No.80 explores new patterns of urban political reform in Southeast Asia
🎙️New Governance Uncovered podcast on lessons on decentralization and Inequality in the MENA region
... and more: bit.ly/GLDJUN25
🖊️ Meet GLD Fellow Ashrakat Elshehawy, a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford’s King Center on Global Development, whose work combines political economy with computational social science across Western and Arabic languages.
Read more: bit.ly/3Hke19W
Read more: bit.ly/3Hke19W
June 9, 2025 at 10:29 PM
🖊️ Meet GLD Fellow Ashrakat Elshehawy, a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford’s King Center on Global Development, whose work combines political economy with computational social science across Western and Arabic languages.
Read more: bit.ly/3Hke19W
Read more: bit.ly/3Hke19W
New Governance Uncovered episode🔊
In this episode we discuss "Mirages of Reform: The Politics of Elite Protectionism in the Arab World" with author Steve Monroe. Uncovering the gap between reform rhetoric and reality in Arab economies from Jordan to Morocco. Listen now! bit.ly/3SKOZTU
In this episode we discuss "Mirages of Reform: The Politics of Elite Protectionism in the Arab World" with author Steve Monroe. Uncovering the gap between reform rhetoric and reality in Arab economies from Jordan to Morocco. Listen now! bit.ly/3SKOZTU
May 31, 2025 at 8:15 PM
New Governance Uncovered episode🔊
In this episode we discuss "Mirages of Reform: The Politics of Elite Protectionism in the Arab World" with author Steve Monroe. Uncovering the gap between reform rhetoric and reality in Arab economies from Jordan to Morocco. Listen now! bit.ly/3SKOZTU
In this episode we discuss "Mirages of Reform: The Politics of Elite Protectionism in the Arab World" with author Steve Monroe. Uncovering the gap between reform rhetoric and reality in Arab economies from Jordan to Morocco. Listen now! bit.ly/3SKOZTU
Working Paper 79 “Territorial Regimes Meet Crisis Management” analyzes Colombia's COVID-19 traffic-light system, revealing that effective territorial crisis governance requires more than smart frameworks. It demands robust informational capacity.
Read more 🔗: bit.ly/4jz6i5X
Read more 🔗: bit.ly/4jz6i5X
May 27, 2025 at 3:30 AM
Working Paper 79 “Territorial Regimes Meet Crisis Management” analyzes Colombia's COVID-19 traffic-light system, revealing that effective territorial crisis governance requires more than smart frameworks. It demands robust informational capacity.
Read more 🔗: bit.ly/4jz6i5X
Read more 🔗: bit.ly/4jz6i5X
GLD May Newsletter Highlights
📝 NEW Working Paper No.79 explores Colombia's COVID-19 strategy and territorial governance approaches
🎙️ Latest New Governance Uncovered podcast on protectionism in the MENA
🖋️ Apply by June 8 for our Fall WiP Workshop Series!
... and more: bit.ly/GLDMAY25
📝 NEW Working Paper No.79 explores Colombia's COVID-19 strategy and territorial governance approaches
🎙️ Latest New Governance Uncovered podcast on protectionism in the MENA
🖋️ Apply by June 8 for our Fall WiP Workshop Series!
... and more: bit.ly/GLDMAY25
May 23, 2025 at 5:20 PM
GLD May Newsletter Highlights
📝 NEW Working Paper No.79 explores Colombia's COVID-19 strategy and territorial governance approaches
🎙️ Latest New Governance Uncovered podcast on protectionism in the MENA
🖋️ Apply by June 8 for our Fall WiP Workshop Series!
... and more: bit.ly/GLDMAY25
📝 NEW Working Paper No.79 explores Colombia's COVID-19 strategy and territorial governance approaches
🎙️ Latest New Governance Uncovered podcast on protectionism in the MENA
🖋️ Apply by June 8 for our Fall WiP Workshop Series!
... and more: bit.ly/GLDMAY25
📣 Seeking feedback on your governance or local development research? Join GLD's Fall 2025 Work-in-Progress Workshop Series! These hour-long sessions spotlight YOUR research, helping you build valuable connections while strengthening your work.
Apply by June 8, 2025, 11:59 PM CEST: bit.ly/3HkdZik
Apply by June 8, 2025, 11:59 PM CEST: bit.ly/3HkdZik
May 22, 2025 at 8:48 PM
📣 Seeking feedback on your governance or local development research? Join GLD's Fall 2025 Work-in-Progress Workshop Series! These hour-long sessions spotlight YOUR research, helping you build valuable connections while strengthening your work.
Apply by June 8, 2025, 11:59 PM CEST: bit.ly/3HkdZik
Apply by June 8, 2025, 11:59 PM CEST: bit.ly/3HkdZik
Are you looking for data on governance and service delivery in Tunisia? Check out our Local Governance Performance Index 2015 - Tunisia!
Access data: bit.ly/3YyKUWa
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3G9kXq1
Access data: bit.ly/3YyKUWa
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3G9kXq1
May 12, 2025 at 1:43 AM
Are you looking for data on governance and service delivery in Tunisia? Check out our Local Governance Performance Index 2015 - Tunisia!
Access data: bit.ly/3YyKUWa
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3G9kXq1
Access data: bit.ly/3YyKUWa
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3G9kXq1
Need data on parliamentary representation in Malawi? Check out our GLD Malawi Member of Parliament Survey Dataset - 2021-2022
Access data: bit.ly/4lztF12
Supplemental Materials: Policy Brief bit.ly/4jd7sEx
Access data: bit.ly/4lztF12
Supplemental Materials: Policy Brief bit.ly/4jd7sEx
May 12, 2025 at 1:41 AM
Need data on parliamentary representation in Malawi? Check out our GLD Malawi Member of Parliament Survey Dataset - 2021-2022
Access data: bit.ly/4lztF12
Supplemental Materials: Policy Brief bit.ly/4jd7sEx
Access data: bit.ly/4lztF12
Supplemental Materials: Policy Brief bit.ly/4jd7sEx
Need comprehensive governance data from Malawi? Explore our Local Governance Performance Index 2016 - Malawi
Access data: bit.ly/4cJ52uY
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3EiVxFX
Access data: bit.ly/4cJ52uY
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3EiVxFX
May 12, 2025 at 1:38 AM
Need comprehensive governance data from Malawi? Explore our Local Governance Performance Index 2016 - Malawi
Access data: bit.ly/4cJ52uY
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3EiVxFX
Access data: bit.ly/4cJ52uY
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3EiVxFX
Looking for Covid-19 impact data in Zambia? Check out our GLD-SAIPAR Covid-19 Survey in Zambia - 2020-2021
Access data: bit.ly/3Y7GhlT
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3EiWj5P, bit.ly/4ifbcnp
Access data: bit.ly/3Y7GhlT
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3EiWj5P, bit.ly/4ifbcnp
May 1, 2025 at 7:55 PM
Looking for Covid-19 impact data in Zambia? Check out our GLD-SAIPAR Covid-19 Survey in Zambia - 2020-2021
Access data: bit.ly/3Y7GhlT
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3EiWj5P, bit.ly/4ifbcnp
Access data: bit.ly/3Y7GhlT
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3EiWj5P, bit.ly/4ifbcnp
Interested in pandemic response data during political transitions? Discover insights from our GLD-IPOR Malawi Covid Panel Survey - 2020-2021
Access data: bit.ly/3EzMSPm
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3GnIvaB, bit.ly/4ifbcnp
Access data: bit.ly/3EzMSPm
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3GnIvaB, bit.ly/4ifbcnp
May 1, 2025 at 7:53 PM
Interested in pandemic response data during political transitions? Discover insights from our GLD-IPOR Malawi Covid Panel Survey - 2020-2021
Access data: bit.ly/3EzMSPm
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3GnIvaB, bit.ly/4ifbcnp
Access data: bit.ly/3EzMSPm
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/3GnIvaB, bit.ly/4ifbcnp
Are you researching voter behavior during political transitions? Learn more about our Zambian Election Panel Survey - 2021
Access data: bit.ly/4ijLrTf
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/42tx5cP
Access data: bit.ly/4ijLrTf
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/42tx5cP
April 30, 2025 at 4:24 AM
Are you researching voter behavior during political transitions? Learn more about our Zambian Election Panel Survey - 2021
Access data: bit.ly/4ijLrTf
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/42tx5cP
Access data: bit.ly/4ijLrTf
Supplemental Materials: bit.ly/42tx5cP
📰NEW FELLOW INTERVIEW
Meet Anustubh Agnihotri from Ashoka University. Agnihotri offers unique insights as his research explores public bureaucracies, service delivery, and tech adoption in resource-limited settings.
Read More ➡️: bit.ly/4ilEYqJ
Meet Anustubh Agnihotri from Ashoka University. Agnihotri offers unique insights as his research explores public bureaucracies, service delivery, and tech adoption in resource-limited settings.
Read More ➡️: bit.ly/4ilEYqJ
April 25, 2025 at 3:53 AM
📰NEW FELLOW INTERVIEW
Meet Anustubh Agnihotri from Ashoka University. Agnihotri offers unique insights as his research explores public bureaucracies, service delivery, and tech adoption in resource-limited settings.
Read More ➡️: bit.ly/4ilEYqJ
Meet Anustubh Agnihotri from Ashoka University. Agnihotri offers unique insights as his research explores public bureaucracies, service delivery, and tech adoption in resource-limited settings.
Read More ➡️: bit.ly/4ilEYqJ
Fieldwork roadblocks? Join our research data exchange network! Share your datasets or request data from peers worldwide. All academic levels are welcome.
Submit via our form: bit.ly/42FcLWi.
Browse our public data at Harvard Dataverse: bit.ly/4jfbFaJ
Questions? contact@gld.gu.se
Submit via our form: bit.ly/42FcLWi.
Browse our public data at Harvard Dataverse: bit.ly/4jfbFaJ
Questions? contact@gld.gu.se
April 18, 2025 at 8:33 AM
Fieldwork roadblocks? Join our research data exchange network! Share your datasets or request data from peers worldwide. All academic levels are welcome.
Submit via our form: bit.ly/42FcLWi.
Browse our public data at Harvard Dataverse: bit.ly/4jfbFaJ
Questions? contact@gld.gu.se
Submit via our form: bit.ly/42FcLWi.
Browse our public data at Harvard Dataverse: bit.ly/4jfbFaJ
Questions? contact@gld.gu.se
GLD's April Newsletter Is Out Now!
🔹 Upcoming Book launches for "Decentralization, Local Governance, and Inequality in MENA"
🔹 Apr 24 Workshop: Iraq’s Hydrosocial Conflicts w/ Ariel Ahram
🔹 New Dataset Initiative: Share or request research data through our network
…and more: bit.ly/3GbhNlJ
🔹 Upcoming Book launches for "Decentralization, Local Governance, and Inequality in MENA"
🔹 Apr 24 Workshop: Iraq’s Hydrosocial Conflicts w/ Ariel Ahram
🔹 New Dataset Initiative: Share or request research data through our network
…and more: bit.ly/3GbhNlJ
April 18, 2025 at 8:33 AM
GLD's April Newsletter Is Out Now!
🔹 Upcoming Book launches for "Decentralization, Local Governance, and Inequality in MENA"
🔹 Apr 24 Workshop: Iraq’s Hydrosocial Conflicts w/ Ariel Ahram
🔹 New Dataset Initiative: Share or request research data through our network
…and more: bit.ly/3GbhNlJ
🔹 Upcoming Book launches for "Decentralization, Local Governance, and Inequality in MENA"
🔹 Apr 24 Workshop: Iraq’s Hydrosocial Conflicts w/ Ariel Ahram
🔹 New Dataset Initiative: Share or request research data through our network
…and more: bit.ly/3GbhNlJ
In the latest GLD Working Paper Blair Welsh and Prabin B. Khadka investigate Somalia's public acceptance patterns toward former armed group members. Study reveals critical gender and age dynamics for successful reintegration and countering violent extremism.
Read the full paper 🔗 bit.ly/4jz6i5X
Read the full paper 🔗 bit.ly/4jz6i5X
April 18, 2025 at 8:32 AM
In the latest GLD Working Paper Blair Welsh and Prabin B. Khadka investigate Somalia's public acceptance patterns toward former armed group members. Study reveals critical gender and age dynamics for successful reintegration and countering violent extremism.
Read the full paper 🔗 bit.ly/4jz6i5X
Read the full paper 🔗 bit.ly/4jz6i5X
Don’t miss out! Join us on April 22nd for a discussion hosted by the GLD Institute, at University of Gothenburg, & Cornell University in partnership with SALAR International on their open-access volume, "Decentralization, Local Governance, and Inequality in the MENA region."
Register: bit.ly/3FDXRYw
Register: bit.ly/3FDXRYw
April 7, 2025 at 3:32 AM
Don’t miss out! Join us on April 22nd for a discussion hosted by the GLD Institute, at University of Gothenburg, & Cornell University in partnership with SALAR International on their open-access volume, "Decentralization, Local Governance, and Inequality in the MENA region."
Register: bit.ly/3FDXRYw
Register: bit.ly/3FDXRYw