In this paper, we address the issue of metropolitan governance by examining its current state and the factors responsible for that state in Poland and the U.S. We find that, despite numerous differences between the two nations, the state of metropolitan governance is quite similar in both. That is, neither country exhibits examples of well-developed metropolitan governance. What is even more interesting is that the factors responsible for this situation are quite similar in both countries. Our principal finding is that political factors (mainly having to do with citizens' preferences and the resulting lack of support for metropolitan institutions) have prevented the development of metropolitan governance in both. Moreover, because of the strength of these political factors, the current state of metropolitan governance in Poland and the U.S. is not likely to change in the foreseeable future, even under the presumed pressure of economic competitiveness.
Under the conditions of globalisation, economic success has been related in politics and theoretical debate to the strength of regions. The concept of the region has therefore also been strengthened in Germany. Within the architecture of a historically grown political landscape, the implementation of the new forms of so-called metropolitan governance, however, has had limited effects. While the limits of “new regionalism” in Germany – by the federal organisation of political geography – are evident, the very idea of regional governance is also to be challenged. Therefore, the article discusses whether the introduction of “Metropolitan regions” can be regarded in the light of the international research on global city-regions.
JavaScript is turned off in your web browser. Turn it on to take full advantage of this site, then refresh the page.