THE ART OF (POLICY) MAKING

28.3.2017TOMMASO GOISIS - CITY OF MILAN UP_CITYING - POLITECNICO DI MILANO

TODAY’S AGENDA

1. Introduction

2. ‘Skatepark Gratosoglio’: the relationship between institutional & non-institutional actors in a project (within a policy)

3. ‘The Suburbs Plan’: let’s try to structure a real public policy

4. Take-away points

5. Questions (appreciated also during the first 4 parts)

1. INTRODUCTION

WHO I AM

▸ BA in Psychology (Università di Pavia) in Jul 2011

▸ MA in Government and International Organisations (Bocconi University) in July 2013, with a thesis on European Structural Funds expenditure implementation gap

▸ Consultant in EY from Sep to Dec 2013

▸ Staff of the Deputy Mayor for Sport, Green Areas, Leisure and Life Quality in the Municipality of Milan from Jan 2014 to Jun 2016

▸ Policy Maker and Staff of the Deputy Major for Housing Policies and Public Works in the Municipality of Milan from Aug 2016

▸ Favourite movie: Forrest Gump; favourite writer: Tiziano Terzani

▸ Travelling, sports, volunteering etc.

1. INTRODUCTION

THE MUNICIPALITY OF MILAN

▸ 15k employees (30k with subsidiaries companies)

▸ When a Mayor is elected (every 5 years, with 48 city councillors) He appoints 12 Deputy Mayors and ~20 ‘staff members’. Each Deputy Mayor appoints 1 or 2 staff members.

▸ No spoil system for the 23 top bureaucrats, except for the GM

▸ Impressive ‘path depending’ attitude.

▸ Less than 50 people have to change the daily work of 15k, if We want (new) policies to be implemented.

1. INTRODUCTION

THE CYCLE OF POLICY MAKING

1. Agenda setting. Identifying problems that require government attention, deciding which issues deserve the most attention and defining the nature of the problem.

2. Policy formulation. Setting objectives, identifying the cost and estimating the effect of solutions, choosing from a list of solutions and selecting policy instruments.

3. Legitimation. Ensuring that the chosen policy instruments have support. It can involve one or a combination of: legislative approval, executive approval, seeking consent through consultation with interest groups, and referenda.

4. Implementation. Establishing or employing an organisation to take responsibility for implementation, ensuring that the organisation has the resources (such as staffing, money and legal authority) to do so, and making sure that policy decisions are carried out as planned.

5. Evaluation. Assessing the extent to which the policy was successful or the policy decision was the correct one; if it was implemented correctly and, if so, had the desired effect.

6. Policy maintenance, succession or termination. Considering if the policy should be continued, modified or discontinued.

SOURCE https://paulcairney.wordpress.com/2013/11/11/policy-concepts-in-1000-words-the-policy-cycle-and-its-stages/

1. INTRODUCTION

THE ART OF POLICY MAKING

▸ (my) Vision: Policy making as a way to produce effective and sustainable increase in the life’s qualities of residents&city users + tending to my inutility in the process.

▸ (my) Mission: make things happen | our office is the city: go&see first | best is enemy to the good | look for the snowball effect | to some extent, conflict is necessary.

▸ When policy making, the biggest mistake we could do is putting ourselves in a condition where no mistakes can be done.

EXAMPLES OF POLICY MAKING

EXAMPLES OF POLICY MAKING

EXAMPLES OF POLICY MAKING

EXAMPLES OF POLICY MAKING 1

EXAMPLES OF POLICY MAKING 2

EXAMPLES OF POLICY MAKING 3

3. SKATEPARK GRATOSOGLIO

SKATEPARK GRATOSOGLIO

▸ Project included in the ‘Milano Palestra a Cielo Aperto’ policy (Milan as an open air gym)

▸ A 150k€ skatepark (with prefabricated modules) was planned to be built 1km far from historic ‘skatepark Gratosoglio’

▸ Then a Facebook post from a non-institutional actor made this happen (start from the bottom):https://skateparkgratosoglio.wordpress.com/

3. SKATEPARK GRATOSOGLIO

STAKEHOLDERS ANALYSIS

EXERCISE

3. THE SUBURBS PLAN

THE SUBURBS PLAN - PREMISES

▸ Strong political commitment: Giuseppe Sala during the electoral campaign “suburbs will be our obsession”

▸ Clear window of opportunity: Government, President Boldrini, the media, Pope Francis etc.

▸ Once the elections are won, it’s time to formulate the policy. But how?

3. THE SUBURBS PLAN

THE “SUBURBS OF TODAY” DEFINITION

We define an area a ‘suburb’ not by its geographical remoteness from the city center, but for a number of features, which may be present with different frequency and intensity:

▸ Mono-functionality

▸ Physical degradation of public and/or private spaces;

▸ Lack of connections, in particular with regards to public transport;

▸ Perception of insecurity;

▸ Relevant social issues related to poverty, unemployment, lack of social integration, demographic imbalances, lack of community ties, school dropout;

▸ Poor offer of services to promote work&life balance

3. THE SUBURBS PLAN

THE “SUBURBS OF TOMORROW” DEFINITION

The interventions of the Suburbs Plan, have therefore the objective to transform the ‘suburbs of today’ into spaces and places that will be:

• More beautiful • Happier • More lively • More connected and accessible for all • More open to diversity • More supportive

3. THE SUBURBS PLAN

HOW DO WE GET THERE? THE POLICY PRINCIPLES

▸ SELECTIVITY: IF EVERYTHING IS SUBURBS, NOTHING IS SUBURBS

▸ HARDWARE&SOFTWARE COMBINED

▸ PARTICIPATION AND SOCIAL&ECONOMIC STAKEHOLDERS ACTIVATION

▸ TRANSPARENCY, MONITORING AND EVALUATING

▸ INSTITUTIONAL COLLABORATION

3. THE SUBURBS PLAN

AND NOW WHAT? 4 POLICY ACTIONS

1. STRATEGIC AREAS

2. “SOCIAL” CONSTRUCTION WORKS

3. THE COMMITMENT OF ALL 12 DEPUTY MAYORS

4. THE DECAY’S HOT SPOT

3. THE SUBURBS PLAN

1. STRATEGIC AREAS

• OPPORTUNITY / PROBLEM

• HARDWARE&SOFTWARE

€400MLN

3. THE SUBURBS PLAN

2. “SOCIAL” CONSTRUCTION WORKS

• SMALL/MEDIUM HARDWARE INTERVENTIONS

• MAINTAINING THE ELECTORAL CAMPAIGN PROMISES

€60MLN

3. THE SUBURBS PLAN

3. THE COMMITMENT OF ALL 12 DEPUTY MAYORS

• THEMATIC APPROACH

• HARDWARE OR SOFTWARE

€(WIP)MLN

3. THE SUBURBS PLAN

4. THE DECAY’S HOT SPOT

• PRIVATE OR PUBLIC

• MOSTLY HARDWARE

• COLLABORATION WITH LAW&ORDER

€(WIP)MLN

3. THE SUBURBS PLANEXERCISE

3. THE SUBURBS PLANEXERCISE

TAKE AWAY POINTS

▸ Be a policy and photocopy maker if you want to be an effective policy maker;

▸ Never underestimate the human factor when analysing the change drivers;

▸ You can change your content while running, but try never to betray your method and especially your policy’s principles;

▸ Have fun and do not fall in love too much with ‘your’ policy.

4. TAKE AWAY POINTS

LOOKING FOR CHANGE?

FEEDBACK, QUESTIONS AND DISCUSSION

▸ (that’s your turn)

4. QUESTIONS

THANK YOU (AND CONTACTS)

TOMMASO.GOISIS@COMUNE.MILANO.IT TOMMASO.GOISIS@GMAIL.COM MOB. +39 3491650902