The role of European Union (EU) metagovernance in supporting the voluntary and community sector in Northern Ireland

Lagana, Giada and Pearce, Sioned ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6906-1096 2025. The role of European Union (EU) metagovernance in supporting the voluntary and community sector in Northern Ireland. European Policy Analysis 10.1002/epa2.70009

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Abstract

This article argues that European Union (EU) peacebuilding scholarship can benefit from organizational research on the socio-spatial dynamics of policy implementation. It introduces a strategic-relational heuristic to address two key gaps: the marginalization of grassroots agency in spatial analyses and the separation of strategy from structure. Drawing on the Strategic-Relational Approach (SRA), the paper examines EU peacebuilding as a form of metagovernance. Using Northern Ireland as a case study, it shows how voluntary and community groups not only respond to but also shape metagovernance as an opportunity structure. Key dimensions—geographic reach, thematic focus, governance mechanisms, and spatial elements like territory, place, scale, and networks—are central to this process. Yet, persistent shortcomings reveal tensions where policy and politics intertwine. The article concludes that metagoverning peacebuilding is a dynamic, context-specific process shaped by diverse actor strategies and overlapping territorial influences, requiring an understanding of both strategic tools and opportunity structure.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	In Press
Schools:	Schools > Social Sciences (Includes Criminology and Education) Schools > Department of Politics and International Relations (POLIR)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) J Political Science > JA Political science (General)
Publisher:	Wiley
ISSN:	2380-6567
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	27 November 2025
Date of Acceptance:	23 April 2025
Last Modified:	28 Nov 2025 10:30
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/182706

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