Welcome

Golden Governance is a joint project of the Davenport Institute for Public Engagement and Civic Leadership at the Pepperdine University School of Public Policy and the National Conference on Citizenship (NCoC). In difficult economic times, cities, towns and counties across California are rethinking how they tackle some of their toughest challenges. The result is a new collaborative approach to governance, which includes greater public participation in decision-making and service delivery.

This blog offers a place where local leaders and community members from around California can share their Stories of Success as they work together in new ways to provide services and solve problems.

New to Golden Governance? Check out our report "Golden Governance: Building Effective Public Engagement in California."

Do you have a Story of Success or a Hard Learned Lesson of your own? You can share them here by submitting your story to Senior Editor Ashley Trim via or by sharing them on our facebook page.

Long Beach: Median Landscaping

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Davenport Institute

the project improved safety and did have some impact on street beautification, the federal funding did not include money for landscaping. More »

Posted in Local, Public Works | Leave a comment

Antioch: City Clean Up

Posted on May 4, 2012 by Davenport Institute

For the past three years Antioch residents have worked to clean up their city: Many participants in Keep Antioch Beautiful Day don’t merely pick up cans and paper. They often find hazardous waste and harmful blight. Organizers work with Allied … More »

Posted in Local | Leave a comment

Jack London State Historic Park

Posted on April 23, 2012 by Davenport Institute

A recent article from KCET describes the partnership that will keep Jack London park open at least 36 hours per week for at least 5 years beginning May 1 More »

Posted in Local, Parks, State | Leave a comment

Whittier: Park Funding

Posted on April 16, 2012 by Davenport Institute

Residents of Whittier, CA are banding together to keep a local State Park open through a rather unorthodox means of funding. More »

Posted in Local, Parks | Leave a comment

Palo Alto: Work for Disabled Adults

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Davenport Institute

Rather than going with a traditional restaurant, the City entered a rental agreement with a non-profit organization that strives to employ disabled local adults: More »

Posted in Local | Leave a comment