Date: 10th April 2025
Place: Birmingham Business School, University of Birmingham, Birmingham
We would like to invite abstracts for a seminar we are organising at the University of Birmingham in April 2025 on the theme of ‘Capability and capacity building in place leadership: identity, inclusion and change’. The deadline to submit abstracts is Friday 24th January 2025. Please find full details below. We hope to see you there!
As Europe and the wider world struggle to cope with the ‘polycrisis’ of climate, instability and conflict, the importance of progressive and developmental place-based leadership comes into sharper focus. This seminar sets out to draw together knowledge and understanding about place-based identities and to discuss how place leadership can build capacity and develop capability to support opportunities for political stability and inclusive and sustainable economic growth locally and regionally, particularly through partnership working.
The seminar provides an opportunity for participants to present and discuss evidence-based examples of leadership at local, regional and national levels that cross and transcend borders. Key questions for discussion include:
- What do place-based identities mean?
- How have they changed in relation to local, regional and national dynamics?
- Where are the connections and contradictions between place-based identity and place-leadership?
- How can people be engaged in collective action to create change at a range of geographical levels?
- How is it possible to build confidence, capability and capacity in place?
- How can national and sub-national leadership best combine to support policy innovation in place?
- What skills are key for place leaders to navigate the political and emotional challenges of place-based partnership working?
Draft timings
| 9:30-10:00 | Registration and coffee |
| 10:00-10:30 | Opening remarks Professor Rebecca Riley, Deputy Pro Vice Chancellor Regional Engagement and Co-Director City-REDI, University of Birmingham Speaker to be confirmed |
| 10:30-11:00 | Challenges and opportunities for local government Speaker to be confirmed |
| 11:00-12:30 | Session 1 |
| 12:30-13:30 | Lunch |
| 13:30-15:00 | Session 2 |
| 15:00-15:15 | Coffee |
| 15:15-16:30 | Session 3 |
| 16:30-17:00 | Next steps and concluding remarks |
Presentation of research is encouraged, but participants are also welcome to attend as discussants and observers. Please submit abstracts (of up to 300 words) to Professor Joanne Murphy (j.m.murphy@bham.ac.uk) by Friday 24th January 2025.
This seminar is funded through the Local Policy Innovation Partnership (LPIP) Hub. The Hub seeks to address nationwide issues through local partnership and place. By working with four local LPIPs, the Hub aims to understand and solve local challenges around the UK through innovative and effective service-driven approaches to place-based policy-making and public service delivery. Designed to lead to a step-change in the quality and impact of the evidence created by universities and their local place partners, the Hub is a £3.6 million investment from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), and Innovate UK. It is a national consortium, led by the University of Birmingham, convening stakeholders across the research and policy ecosystem. The project will run until the end of 2026.
The event is organised by Dr Abigail Taylor (City-REDI, University of Birmingham) and Professor Joanne Murphy (Department of Management, University of Birmingham).
This blog was written by Dr Abigail Taylor, Research Fellow, City-REDI, University of Birmingham.
Disclaimer:
The views expressed in this analysis post are those of the author and not necessarily those of City-REDI or the University of Birmingham.
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