About RADAR
RADAR aims to improve the democratic governance of public services and administrations. By focusing on democratic principles, new perspectives, and education, RADAR seeks to build trust and legitimacy in public administration. The project is lead by Prof. Thurid Hustedt, Prof. Gerhard Hammerschmid and Prof. Kai Wegrich.
The RADAR project combines
- rigorous research and analysis from top public administration research departments with
- the teaching and training infrastructures of (national) Schools of Government that will function as knowledge brokers
to bring science to policy through high-level conferences and to train public officials to foster innovation and reform while deepening democratic governance.
Who’s involved?
The RADAR consortium includes seven leading research institutes, two national schools of government, a Ministry focused on public innovation, and an international NGO. Together, these partners bring extensive expertise in research, teaching, and public service, covering all 27 EU countries and the Western Balkans.
Goals of the RADAR project
RADAR will explore how public administration reforms impact democratic legitimacy. To achieve this, the project will:
- Conduct a detailed review of existing research.
- Analyse data from the European Quality of Government Index.
- Study innovative solutions using a newly created database.
- Examine the language and narratives surrounding reforms.
The project will investigate which conditions help reforms succeed in strengthening democracy. Using experiments, focus groups, and case studies, RADAR will study three promising approaches:
- Public participation and co-creation.
- Representation in government institutions.
- Testing new governance models.
RADAR will translate its findings into practical tools and methods to help public administrations achieve results while respecting democratic values.
The project will integrate its methods into the training of current and future civil servants and policymakers, ensuring that democratic principles guide reforms for years to come.
Researchers from the Hertie School
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Svenja Bauer is a Research Associate in the project Initiative for an Effective State (Initiative für einen handlungsfähigen Staat) and the EU-Horizon project RADAR (Renewing Administration through Democratic Anchorage Reforms). She holds a dual-master’s degree in political science from Sciences Po Paris and Freie Universität Berlin as well as an undergraduate degree from the University of Kent.
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Frederico Ganz is a Research Associate in the EU-Horizon project RADAR (Renewing Administration through Democratic Anchorage Reforms) at the Hertie School. He holds an undergraduate degree in International Relations from PUC-Minas, Brazil, and a Master's in National and International Administration and Policy from the University of Potsdam, Germany. Frederico has previously worked as a researcher at the University of Potsdam’s Chair for Political Science, Public Administration and Organisation and at the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy at the University of Hamburg. His PhD research examines AI adoption in Global South public administrations through a decolonial lens, investigating how these technologies reproduce or challenge colonial knowledge structures and power hierarchies in contemporary governance.
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Gerhard Hammerschmid is Professor of Public and Financial Management at the Hertie School and was Founding Director of the Hertie School's Centre for Digital Governance from 2019-2023. His research focuses on public management reform, comparative public administration, public sector performance management and how digitalisation is affecting government. He also serves as Academic Head at the Institut für den öffentlichen Sektor e.V. and is a coordinator and partner of various EU-funded research projects (COCOPS, LIPSE, EUPACK, TROPICO).
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Thurid Hustedt is Dean of Graduate Programmes and Professor of Public Administration and Management at the Hertie School. Her research focuses on public sector change dynamics, political-administrative relations and comparative public administration. Hustedt is the Managing Editor of the peer-reviewed journal dms – der moderne Staat (with Sylvia Veit).
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Kai Wegrich is Professor of Public Administration and Public Policy at the Hertie School. He is a political scientist with research interests in executive politics, regulation, public sector reform and innovations in policy-making. Wegrich has held positions at Humboldt University in Berlin, Potsdam University, the RAND Corporation and the London School of Economics.
Duration
The RADAR project (Renewing Administration through Democratic Anchorage Reforms) is a EU-funded project that runs from 2025 to 2028.
Partner organisations
- Direction Interministerielle de la Transformation Publique (France)
- European Association for Public Administration Education (Europe)
- European University Institute (Italy)
- Hertie School (Germany)
- Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium)
- National School of Political Science and Public Administration (Romania)
- Radboud University (Netherlands)
- Regional School of Public Administration (Western Balkans)
- Tallinn University of Technology (Estonia)
- University of Gothenburg (Sweden)
