Knowledge governance: Complementing hierarchies, networks and markets?

Coordination between actions of individuals can be realised by a specific form of governance: hierarchical governance, network governance or market governance. In current policy processes with regard to climate change, spatial planning and water management, a fourth type of governance emerges which we call knowledge governance. This form of governance is aimed at developing new insights, competencies and ideas via public investments in knowledge development and dissemination, which contribute to the emergence of new pathways for collective action. In this chapter we answer the question how knowledge governance can contribute to the untangling of collective problems which cannot be solved by hierarchical, network or market governance. We illustrate our argument with an in-depth case study of a Dutch regional planning process. We conclude that knowledge governance is a distinct mode of governance which can contribute to the capacity of actors to coordinate their actions by the development of public ideas, competencies and arguments.

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