Network governance as a strategy for social sustainable development?

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to contribute to increased awareness and understanding of how actors collaborate to solve complex societal problems. The study also intends to contribute to increased knowledge of the relevance of theory network governance in describing collaborative processes. A third purpose was to study if Forward Malmö has the potential to contribute to the work on social sustainability in an effective manner. The empirical material was collected through four semi-structured interviews with representatives from actors who are taking part in the cross-sectorial collaboration platform called Forward Malmö. The interviews were complemented with document analyses of five documents, all of which are considered central for Forward Malmö. The result was analyzed within the framework of the theory of network governance. The study has concluded that Forward Malmö can be described within the framework of network governance theory. Hence, network governance theory is relevant for the description of the cross-sectorial collaboration project Forward Malmö. The project has contributed to the work with social sustainability in Malmö by an increased understanding of how Malmö can be developed into a sustainable society and by identifying the biggest social problems in Malmö. The result also shows that Forward Malmö currently, based on network governance theory, not has the potential to act effectively.