Gabriël van den Brink

The work of exemplary practitioners in neighborhood governance

In order to understand how exemplary work is done in the complex urban environment of disadvantaged neighborhoods, we studied a group of 43 individuals – civil servants, professionals and active citizens – who make a difference. Various so-called ‘exemplary practitioners’ were found in the literature and in the neighborhoods of five cities. The working methods of exemplary practitioners show a mix and a dose of entrepreneurialism, strategic networking and empathic engagement that differ from standard bureaucracy but fit very well with what is needed in disadvantaged neighborhoods. Two striking examples illustrate these working methods.In order to understand how exemplary work is done in the complex urban environment of disadvantaged neighborhoods, we studied a group of 43 individuals – civil servants, professionals and active citizens – who make a difference. Various so-called ‘exemplary practitioners’ were found in the literature and in the neighborhoods of five cities. The working methods of exemplary practitioners show a mix and a dose of entrepreneurialism, strategic networking and empathic engagement that differ from standard bureaucracy but fit very well with what is needed in disadvantaged neighborhoods. Two striking examples illustrate these working methods.

Exemplary practitioners : A review of actors who make a difference in governing

Some actors in the public sphere are excellent at what they do. Even if they could hardly do their work alone, they make a difference. This article presents a search for what are called exemplary practitioners. It describes and compares a group of six practitioners found in the literature: the reflective practitioner, the deliberative practitioner, the street-level bureaucrat, the front-line worker, the everyday maker, and the everyday fixer. It points at differences between the types and changes that occur over time. Also, the article concludes that the more recent types of identified practitioners add crucial skills to the repertoire that practitioners need to make a difference in the public sphere. In the epilogue, the researchers reflect on the research they did on the basis of the ideas in the article.

Riot management and community relations: policing public disturbances in a Dutch neighbourhood

This paper presents a case study of the riots in the Dutch neighbourhood of Ondiep (Utrecht) that took place after a police officer shot a local resident with fatal consequences on 11 March 2007. It is based on a study carried out by the Police Academy of The Netherlands and the Tilburg School of Politics and Public Administration (University of Tilburg) and its resulting publication: ‘Riots in Ondiep: the onset and engagement of large-scale public disturbances in a disadvantaged neighbourhood of Utrecht’. The research group aimed to establish a reconstruction of the events and circumstances of those riots as experienced by the different parties to the events. This paper gives a brief overview of the events as they occurred with a particular focus on the actions of the Utrecht police department and their safety partners. It is argued that a combination of repressive measures and an emphasis on police–community relations prevented the riots from spreading to the general population of Ondiep, by looking at some of the short and long-term actions, tactics and strategies of the Utrecht police.

Police and citizens in conflict: Exploring post-confrontation interaction from a relational perspective

This paper introduces a relational perspective to the analysis of the interaction process from confrontation to cooperation between police and civilians. By exploring a single case study on riots between Dutch youths of Moluccan descent and the police during New Years Eve 2007, followed by a peaceful celebration a year later in 2008, the process of reconciliation between the two groups is reconstructed and analysed. By means of a comparison of the relationship nature before and after the confrontation and an in-depth analysis of post-conflict interaction, it is shown how institutional, group and individual interactions affected the change from confrontation to cooperation.