New forms of local collective governance linked to the agricultural landscape: identifying the scope and possibilities for hybrid institutions

Later years’ significantly increased focus on rural development and public goods within the common agricultural policy, CAP, implies a need for new ways of implementing policy and new collaboration between various actors. A new web of cooperation, at local horizontal level as well as at vertical level between hierarchical layers of policy implementation is identified as crucial for a successful fulfilment of the societal ambitions. Local action groups and organisations have a significant potential in this new rural development setting. Such local groups can constitute the basis for a hybrid governance form of sustainable rural development and policy implementation. With own agendas such groups already illustrates the potential for hybrid governance, where non governmental organisations may take the role of a hub between farmers and other local actors, as well as policy implementing governmental agencies