Based on more than 30 case studies in eight different countries, this book explores the governance dynamics of local social innovations in the field of poverty reduction. The diverse team of contributors illustrate how different governance dynamics and welfare mixes enable or hinder poverty reduction strategies and analyse how they involve a variety of actors, instruments and resources at different spatial scales.

Stijn Oosterlynck is Associate Professor in Urban Sociology at the University of Antwerp, Sociology Department. He teaches courses on urban studies, poverty and social inequality. His research is concerned with local social innovation and welfare state restructuring, the political sociology of urban development, urban renewal and community building and new forms of solidarity in diversity.
Andreas Novy is Associate Professor at the Vienna University of Economics and Business (Austria). He is currently head of the institute of Multi-Level Governance and Development and president of the International Karl Polanyi Society (IKPS). His research focuses on urban development, social innovation and transdisciplinarity.
Yuri Kazepov is Professor of International Urban Sociology and Compared Welfare Systems at the University of Vienna (Austria) from March 2015. His fields of interest are urban governance, citizenship and urban quality of life, social policies in comparative perspective.

Governing Local Social Innovations against Poverty across Europe ~ Stijn Oosterlynck, Yuri Kazepov and Andreas Novy
The Historical Trajectory of Social Innovation in the European Union ~ Gert Verschraegen, Stijn Oosterlynck, Sebastiano Sabato and Andreas Novy
On Elephants, Butterflies and Lions: Social Protection, Innovation and Investment ~ Yuri Kazepov, Tatiana Saruis, Fabio Colombo
Modalities of Governing the Welfare Mix ~ Stijn Oosterlynck and Pieter Cools
The Multi-scalar Puzzle of Social Innovation ~ Yuri Kazepov, Fabio Colombo, Tatiana Saruis
Contradictory Dynamics of Empowerment in Social Innovation Initiatives ~ Stijn Oosterlynck, Andreas Novy, Bernhard Leubolt and Carla Weinzierl
Negotiating Diversity and Equality ~ Andreas Novy and Carla Weinzierl
Knowledge for Social Innovation ~ Andreas Novy, Pieter Cools, Gert Verschraegen and Carla Weinzierl
Consolidating Social Innovation ~ Yuri Kazepov, Tatiana Saruis and Fabio Colombo
Conclusion: Local Social Innovation and Welfare Reform ~ Stijn Oosterlynck, Andreas Novy and Yuri Kazepov