Marte Winsvold

Mainstreaming climate change adaptation at the local level

National authorities in many countries aim at having climate change adaptation mainstreamed into existing policy domains in order to achieve coherence and synergies, and to avoid mal-adaptation. Because of local variations in climate change impacts, the lions share of climate adaptation work will have to take place at the local level. This means also that the mainstreaming process needs to occur locally. This article examines the mainstreaming of climate change adaptation into existing sectors in five Norwegian municipalities. Applying theories of mainstreaming and policy integration we find that policy development is slower, but perhaps more robust in the municipalities that have chosen a horizontal, cross-sectoral approach to mainstreaming than in the municipalities that have chosen a vertical sector approach to mainstreaming.

Audiences on the move? Use and assessment of local print and online newspapers:

Online media have contributed to transforming media industries as well as media audiences, globally, nationally and locally. This article studies the readers of local and regional newspapers with online and print editions and analyses how the audiences use and assess the two versions as information sources, identity mediators and arenas of the local public sphere. The findings suggest that although the younger generations are moving online, there are social and cultural differences between audience groups that make the transition from print a risky and uncertain strategy for local newspapers. It is generally the same sociodemographic groups that read both editions, except for one critical dimension: attachment to the locality where they lived was shared by those preferring the printed over the online newspaper.

The role of learning and knowledge in adapting to climate change: a case study of Norwegian municipalities

Coping with climate change includes the role of learning and knowledge. Taking a process perspective, this article analyses how municipal officers in the Oslo region of Norway are acquiring knowledge and building competence for adapting to climate change. The article illustrates the interaction between elements of experiential learning, transformative learning and social learning as bases for adapting to emerging climate changes; each being necessary and none alone being sufficient. Their importance differs according to how profound the changes in knowledge and competence are. Experiential learning and transformative learning are stronger under single-loop learning whereas social learning might emerge as more important under triple-loop learning. Because of the uncertainties of climate change, the central government might be wise not to issue detailed regulations for adaptation by municipalities.

Arguing into the Digital Void?: On the Position of Online Debates in the Local Public Spheres of Four Norwegian Municipalities

Abstract With the advent of the Internet, numerous online debate options have been created, giving citizens new arenas of political communication where space for expression is nearly unlimited. However, if online forums shall invigorate the public debate, the arguments published online must reach outside their initial setting. In this article, the position of newspaper-hosted online forums is studied and compared to the position of letters to the editor in the local public spheres of four Norwegian municipalities. The forums’ visibility to the public and the degree to which they are paid attention to by other media and by local politicians are used as indicators of their position. Only one-tenth of the citizens regularly read the online forums, and when referred to in other media or in politics, they have an agenda-reinforcing rather than an agenda-expanding role. The greatest challenges to the online forums’ position seem to be the audiences’ perceptions of the quality of the discussion, along with the vast amount of contributions which makes them reader unfriendly.

Municipal Websites in the Local Public Debate

Abstract The proliferation of digital communication spaces is expected to have the paradoxical effect of both enhancing pluralism as well as causing a fragmentation of the public political debate. The question addressed in this paper concerns the position of one such space of communication in the local public debate - municipal websites. Four Norwegian municipalities are studied, and the role of their websites is assessed by evaluating the visibility and the extent to which the contents of these websites affect the agenda of the local media. The study indicates that even though the municipal websites are not particularly visible to the citizens, they still influence the public political agenda by being a source of information to the press. As the communication taking place on the municipal websites spills over to the media and thereby reaches the majority of the citizens, the websites can not be said to lead to a fragmentation of the public debate. Whether or not the websites contribute to the pluralism of the public debate is however uncertain.

Deliberation, Competition, or Practice?

Abstract Several studies have found that political online debates do not to live up to deliberative standards of discussion. Even so, these debates may have democratic value. In the present article, the analytic focus is extended from deliberative democratic theory alone to a broader framework of analysis, which also includes a competitive and a participatory democratic ideal. An analytical framework for identifying democratic elements in online debates, based on these three ideals, is developed, and a sample of postings from two Norwegian newspaper-hosted online forums is explored using this new analytical framework. The analysis shows that the online debates are not particularly deliberative, but that they show ample traces of a participatory and a competitive democratic ideal, indicating that the democratic value of these online forums does not primarily lie in fostering deliberation, but rather in clarifying and contrasting different alternatives, and in providing a training ground for political debates.

Boosting involvement between elections—The case of Citizen’s Initiative

Over the years, authorities in many countries have devoted considerable attention to the issue of raising the turnout in local elections. In attempts to counter receding turnout figures, elections have been carried out on the same day as national elections (Sweden) or European elections (Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) or indeed on individual dates in different municipalities (Nittedal, Norway).

Young councillors—influential politicians or youth alibi?

Based on a survey of young councillors in 20 Norwegian municipalities, the paper studies the relation between the councillors’ sense of political efficacy, their role perception and their motivation to continue with politics. The results indicate that those feeling they are expected to represent youth or who are nominated because of their age feel less influential than others. Influence in own party group and being acknowledged by established politicians seem to be important for the motivation to continue with politics. Video abstract Read the transcript Watch the video on Vimeo

Web-Based tools for policy evaluation

Current research in e-democracy has so far focused on the early stages of political decision making. Information- and communication technology (ICT) has been shown to facilitate participation in agenda setting and alternative selection. But ICT also has the potential to facilitate evaluation of existing policies. This paper examines policy evaluation from local politicians view. What web-based tools are useful for policy evaluation, and what kind of information do these tools provide?