The publication of this volume reflects the culmination of a great deal of effort by a large number of people. The work of the authors and the section editors is obvious, but much of the work although less apparent is no less important. As editors we would like to express our gratitude to a number of individuals who were important in helping us to complete the project and to produce a book which we believe will make a major contribution to both the academic study and the practice of public administration.

The first person we should thank is Lucy Robinson at Sage. We had not thought of undertaking the project ourselves, but when Lucy proposed the Handbook we were sufficiently audacious, or foolhardy, to accept that challenge. After we began the process Lucy and her colleagues, including but not limited to Vanessa Harwood and David Mainwaring, have been a delight to work with. They have been generous with useful professional advice, yet allowed us the freedom to develop the project in the way we thought best. They were also patient and supportive when some parts of the manuscript were not ready as soon as they might be. We look forward to a long publishing relationship with this team at Sage. We also want to thank the members of our Editorial Advisory Board:

• Professor Geert Bouackaert, Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium
• Professor Hans-Ulrich Derlien, University of Bamberg, Germany
• Professor H. George Frederickson, University of Indiana, USA
• Professor John Halligan, University of Canberra, Australia
• Professor Christopher Hood, All Souls College, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
• Professor Jose Luis Mendez, El Colegio de Mexico, Mexico
• Professor Akira Nakamura, Meiji University, Japan
• Professor Donald Savoie, University of Moncton, Canada

This group of distinguished scholars assisted us with the design of the project, with the selection of the section editors and authors, and with the assessment of the chapters when submitted. We are indebted to them for their time and efforts.

Sheryn Peters and Monika Pierre responded to our enthusiasm for this project with a mixture of amusement and concern. They represent what makes it all worthwhile, whether they take us birdwatching or put us in a boat and head up the coast.

We should also thank the staff at the Gold Wing lounge at the Frankfurt International Airport for providing refuge and time to reflect on public administration and related issues.

Finally, somewhat unusually, we want to thank each other. This has been a cooperative and collaborative effort, and each of us has been able to pick up the slack at times when the other has been overwhelmed by other tasks, or family commitments, or life in general. This has been an academic partnership that continues to work well, and further continues to be a great deal of fun. We hope the readers will gain as much enjoyment in absorbing this product as we have had in creating it.