Using a call for proposals as a tool of government: the experience of the Città di Città Strategic Project of the Province of Milan

Recent years have seen an increasing awareness of how policies to improve quality of life need to build on local initiative and engagement. In developing the strategic plan Città di Città, the government of the Milan Province sought to achieve this end by the use of an open call for proposals and active network-building. This call was designed to stimulate innovative design and planning ideas and to identify collective and individual actors willing to work to improve the liveability of the Milan urban region, or already involved in ongoing projects and policies seeking to do this. The Città di Città call for proposals clearly shows how using tools of government that put a strong accent on cooperation with a variety of actors outside the administrative structure requires the skilful and committed involvement of the administration itself. The administration needs to take on a clear responsibility for being in charge in order to fully exploit the available resources, address project tensions and utilize the skills employed and demonstrated by the other actors.