ABSTRACT
This chapter describes existing US government and governance systems in some detail and then explores ways in which greater cooperation among the many actors that are affected by shrinkage and decline can be facilitated. The debate over the appropriate mechanisms for achieving regional coordination is of critical importance to shrinking cities research and policy communities. The chapter explains the origins to describe the fundamental institutional collective action problem that local governments and other stakeholder groups in and around shrinking cities will need to address if they are to achieve some degree of regional cooperation. In framing the barriers to institutional collective action and defining the various organizational entities that participate in metropolitan government and governance, inter-governmental cooperation is a necessary condition for effectively addressing the challenges of shrinking cities. Several general regional governance mechanisms facilitate inter-municipal cooperation in shrinking city metropolitan regions. The chapter describes some of these mechanisms with the help of real-world examples from shrinking cities.
