A Multi-Level Perspective on Trust and Public Governance

29 Aug - 2 Sep 2022 | Antwerp, Belgium

At the end of the Summer of 2022, we organised the very first edition of the GOVTRUST Summer School on the topic of ‘A Multi-Level Perspective on Trust and Public Governance’. From 22 August until 2 September 2022, participants gained a multidisciplinary understanding of trust in and between societal actors in multi-level public governance. Drawing on high-level scientific expertise from at least five disciplines (political science, communication science, law, behavioural economics and public administration), the Summer School investigated a wide range of critical questions about the dynamics, causes and effects of trust and public governance from a multi-level perspective. Through a combination of (guest) lectures, discussions and workshops, participants were stimulated to think across disciplinary boundaries, interact with each other and engage with speakers from academic and professional backgrounds. 

With 24 participants from various parts of the world, we can look back on a successful first edition of the GOVTRUST Summer School.

We kicked off the GOVTRUST Summer School with a keynote by Monica Brezzi from the OECD Directorate for Public Governance. In her keynote address, she talked about the OECD's work on trust in public institutions, including the updated OECD framework on drivers of trust in public institutions and the results from the recent OECD Trust Survey.

The GOVTRUST Summer School also brought us to the FASFC (Federal Food Safety Agency) in Brussels. Based on recent results from the EU TiGRE project, participants reflected on the importance of trust in the regulatory system of the food safety sector. We thank the FASFC hosts and stakeholders for their time and gracious hospitality.

For more details about the programme, please see the GOVTRUST Summer School website.

The next edition of the GOVTRUST Summer School will be held in 2024. Stay tuned!