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AbstractIn these turbulent times of increased frequency and magnitude of emergencies caused by climate change, pandemics, and other public safety hazards, there has been a growing interest in the question of how to enhance the robustness of emergency management systems. Recent research points to integrated networks of public and non‐profit actors as a superior strategy for developing robust governance responses to turbulent problems. This article suggests that institutionally conditioned trust between professionals and volunteers is key to robust emergency management. Based on institutional trust theory and the findings of an empirical case study of local emergency management in Denmark and Norway, it shows how six institutional sources of trust condition the scalable use of organized emergency management volunteers. The study contributes with a theoretical argument and empirical insights on how institutional trust strengthens the robust governance and management of emergencies.

Over recent decades, the institutions of political leadership have been criticised for being caught up in outdated designs that are not adapting to societal changes. In many western countries, this diagnosis has spurred design reforms aimed at strengthening political leadership at the local level. Based on a study of reforms in Norwegian and Danish municipalities, this article first develops a typology of reforms aimed at strengthening local political leadership. Leadership reforms are categorised into four types aimed at strengthening Executive, Collective, Collaborative, or Distributive political leadership. The typology is used to map the prevalence of the different types of reforms in the two countries. The results show that design reforms as such are more widespread in Danish than in Norwegian municipalities. In particular, reforms aimed at strengthening Distributive political leadership are used more extensively in Denmark than in Norway. The article discusses the contextual differences that may explain this variation.