This week, a launch event was held for the House of Governance and Public Policy (GaPP) at the Stockholm School of Economics. At the time of the launch, the House of GaPP includes four research centers: the Center for Educational Leadership and Excellence, the Center for Statecraft and Strategic Communication (CSSC), the Center for Municipality Governance and the new, interdisciplinary research center the Karl-Adam Bonnier Center for Governance.

SSE President Lars Strannegård comments: “We need to bridge the gap between the private and public sectors and ensure decision-makers have access to the right knowledge and research when they make choices about which direction society will go." Karl Wennberg, Center Director of the House of GaPP, adds that it "gathers research, education and cooperation on governance, evaluation and leadership in the private and public sectors under one roof."

CSSC are excited to form part of this new initiative. Since 2020, we have offered a course in Applied History, which has given SSE students an opportunity to learn about the past from historians in our international network. CSSC director Rikard Westerberg comments: “We hope to contribute to the House of GaPP with a historical perspective on statecraft and public leadership. A deep understanding of history will help the leaders of tomorrow to navigate an increasingly complex world.”

At the launch event, Westerberg chaired a panel that applied historical perspectives to Swedish governance and public policy. Participants (pictured above from left to right) were Jan Eliasson, former deputy general of the United Nations; Etienne de Gonneville, French Ambassador to Sweden; and Susanne Ackum, Dean of Linnaeus University. During the discussion, the need for policymakers to cultivate a historical sensibility was emphasized by the participants.