Cities as public agents: A typology of co-creational leadership for urban climate transformation

Abstract

This article develops a typology of co-creational leadership for urban climate transformation. The typology is constructed from a combination of governance theory and empirical observations of co-creational leadership in four global, climate-ambitious cities. By applying a framework that differentiates between authority (multilevel or polycentric) and purpose (policy design or implementation) as key dimensions and categories that structure and condition cities’ performance of co-creational leadership, the typology draws out four unique yet interdependent ideal types of leadership. The typology serves two aims. First, it allows a more nuanced understanding of the ways in which contextual features present distinct types of challenges and condition co-creational leadership by cities. Second, it provides a framework for investigating what is required by city officials as leaders of co-creation. The typology underlines how co-creation is an intrinsic element of hybrid city climate governance.