Our Selection Criteria

How creative and innovative is the existing project / proposed project idea for the public administration?

• Does the project show how problems and unused opportunities can be rethought?
• Does the project show how flexibility and adaptability can be used to develop better solutions?
• Does the project demonstrate a collaborative, experimental, transdisciplinary and cross-sectoral approach to work in which citizens play a central role?
• Does the project demonstrate a culture of openness, transparency, humility and continuous learning?

For more details, read through our “Definitions of Creative Bureaucracy” (below) and find specific examples from our past programme for each of our 10 topic areas here.

How directly does the existing project / proposed project idea contribute to the transformation of public governance and how bureaucrats are valued?

• Does the project aim to achieve significant, sustainable change within public administrations or in the services delivered by public administrations?
• Are the challenge / untapped opportunity and proposed solution relevant for other creative bureaucrats? (across geographies, departments, disciplines)
• How well does the project demonstrate a commitment to Diversity, Equity & Inclusion?
• Is there evidence of impact, or clear potential for impact? (see “How do we understand impact?” below)

Can the inspiration and insights from the project / proposed project idea be transferred to other contexts?

• Is the project approach clear? Including its findings or intended learnings 
• Is there consideration for how the learnings could be used by others through e.g. documents, guides, videos or networking opportunities?
• Is the storytelling engaging? Would the submission inspire others to act?

Creativity is about unleashing the ability of the mind to think differently and conceive new ideas. It’s about ingenuity, imagination, responsiveness, adaptability and flexibility. 

Innovation is about the implementation of creative ideas. It’s about turning creativity into action and doing things differently.

Creative bureaucracy is about bureaucrats using their imagination and resourcefulness to solve problems with flexibility and adaptability. Creative bureaucrats are responsive and empathetic towards citizens’ needs and wishes, while never neglecting the legalities and political mandates that are the foundations of modern bureaucracies. Creative bureaucracies are able to work collaboratively and bottom-up around joint missions to experiment in real life settings as a way to identify new and better ways to deliver and solve problems, building bridges between different actors across disciplines and sectors. Creative bureaucracies work openly, transparently and humbly – acknowledging the limits of their knowledge and living a culture of continuous learning.

We use the term “bureaucrat“ to refer to any individual working for a government organisation at a federal, regional or local level, or within an intergovernmental organisation. They can be elected or appointed, working as policymakers or at an operational level. We consider “allies“ to be individuals and organisations across sectors who are working with or for bureaucracies to advance the creative bureaucracy agenda.

In recognition of the limitations of conventional methods of evaluating impact for truly transformative systems change work, we welcome any relevant evidence of project impact. 

This includes qualitative accounts (feedback, testimonies, commentaries), or relevant research that highlights the need for work in a certain action space. Of course, if available this also includes quantitative data or other documented forms of evidence such as changes to public policy/legislation/regulations/guidelines, statistics on improved efficiency, measures of improved public services, etc.

Our current systems have been built to reinforce certain power dynamics, social norms and mindsets. Without addressing those imbalances, we have no hope of securing healthy democracies and a thriving planetary future.

Our current systems have been built to reinforce certain power dynamics, social norms and mindsets. Without addressing those imbalances, we have no hope of securing healthy democracies and a thriving planetary future.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) is a term used to describe commitments – manifest through policies, programs, campaigns and other actions – to address these power imbalances.

For guidance on best practices, we recommend this DEI Resource Bank by Finnish non-profit Inklusiiv.