Embedding Strategic Learning in Local Governments

Innovation in municipalities is often tangential and sporadic, happens in siloed projects, and fails to create systemic effects. Under the Portfolio Journey of the EU-funded Mayors for Economic Growth (M4EG), CHÔRA and the UNDP Istanbul Regional Hub have partnered to test something different: Embedding strategic innovation capability and practices at the heart of municipalities’ operational models across eight cities in Eastern Partnership countries.

We believe innovation works best when treated as a capability embedded in the organization it aims to support and enables the continuous generation of learning from implemented experiments and projects — figuring out what works and what doesn’t work to address complex social issues in an iterative, dynamic way so that municipalities can learn their way into change. In this session, we will share our insights about what worked and where we met with challenges. You will also hear directly from our partner municipality, Batumi City Hall.

This session is part of the “Transforming How We Work” block, which runs from 14:15-15:00 CET. The sessions in this block will appear in the following order:

·      The Office of Community Participation: Shifting Organisational Culture

·      Tax and Transparency: The Treasury Map Approach

·      Transforming Lives, Transforming Organisations: Unlocking Creativity and Collaboration in the Public Sector

·      Embedding Strategic Learning in Local Governments

·      An Integrated Approach to Tackling Homelessness