Networking for Local Agenda 21 implementation: Learning from experiences with Udaltalde and Udalsarea in the Basque autonomous community

Abstract Local Agenda 21 (LA21) is widely regarded as a key tool for implementing sustainability policies since local authorities are closer to ordinary people and some local managers and politicians have the ability to adapt organisations to new managerial atmospheres and social demands. However, local governments tend to lack the right economic, human and knowledge resources. Consequently, in the search for local sustainable development, networking and collaborative approaches to LA21 can help local authorities save resources and share knowledge and best practices. Although both research and politicians have tended to focus on LA21, we believe Regional Agenda 21 (RA21) needs to be emphasised as a complementary tool. This paper examines successful innovative practices in the Basque Autonomous Community (BAC) over a 4-year period, with a view to shedding light on the theoretical literature and to aiding regional and local authorities. Although research on policy networks has produced useful results, we are still some way from a plausible, consensus-based theory of policy networks. Based on experience in the BAC, the present article offers an integrated approach to understanding the antecedents and consequences of a regional knowledge-driven network for LA21 promotion. Although LA21 implementation has been studied before, evidence about networking at regional level is scarce. Other regions in developing countries could use this approach to achieve successful policy networks.