Centre for Local Government Studies - CKS

CKS serves as a meeting place for research, learning, and collaboration. Our connection to the municipal sphere through our partner municipalities is the cornerstone of our activities. Through meetings and knowledge exchange between researchers, politicians, and municipal officials, we strengthen and enrich both municipal operations and our own research.

CKS is also a hub for municipal research at Linköping University. We contribute to strengthening municipal research at LiU in several ways – through open seminars, doctoral collaborations, and by funding research projects at the university.

CKS is governed by a board consisting of members from both Linköping University and our partner municipalities. The board, which has a strategic and advisory role, comprises nine members and eight deputies. The chair of the board is Niklas Borg from Linköping Municipality.

CKS creates meeting places for our partner municipalities and for other municipalities, as well as for regions, national government, and other actors connected to the municipal sphere. We regularly organise training sessions, seminars, and conferences. In addition, we participate in various networks, including those involving municipal council chairs and chief executives from our partner municipalities.

By making our own and others’ research widely accessible, we aim to increase public understanding of the challenges facing municipalities. Our ambition is for this research to be used by politicians and civil servants to strengthen their strategic competence.

We achieve this through learning, interaction, and research communication. For example, we invite our partner municipalities to seminars, educations, and other events. Our researchers are also invited to speak at municipal councils, executive boards, management teams, and similar forums to present their research. We also share our research findings via social media, our newsletter, and other relevant channels.