The Puzzle State: How to govern wicked problems in Western democracies

The wicked problems of our time-climate change, migration, inequality, productivity, and mental health-remain stubbornly unresolved in Western democracies. It's time for a new way to puzzle.

This book takes the reader on a journey from London to Berlin, and from Rome to Washington DC and Copenhagen, to discover why modern politics keeps breaking down. We're tackling twenty-first century problems with twentiethcentury quick fixes and nineteenth-century institutions.

In search of answers, the author gate-crashes a Conservative party at an English estate, visits a stressed-out German minister at his Mallorcan holiday home, and listens in on power gossip in Washington DC's restaurant scene. The Puzzle State offers one of the most engaging and insightful analyses of Western democracies in recent years. Based on over 100 interviews with top political players, surveys conducted across five countries, and stories of high-profile policy failures, it uncovers a missing link in reform efforts: the absence of ongoing feedback loops between decision-makers and frontline practitioners in schools, hospitals, and companies.

But there is a way forward. The author introduces the concept of the Puzzle State, which uses collective intelligence and AI to (re)connect politicians with the people implementing reforms on the ground. The Puzzle State tackles highprofile wicked problems and enables policies to adapt as they meet messy realities. No one holds all the pieces in the Puzzle State. The feedback loop must cut across all sectors-from civil society to corporations-just like solving a complex puzzle requires commitment, cooperation, and creativity.

Sigge Winther Nielsen is the founder of the think tank Institute for Wicked Problems (INVI). He has a PhD in political science from the University of Copenhagen and has lived in the USA for several years as a Fulbright visiting scholar at Columbia University, New York and UC Berkeley. Sigge has published several books and scientific articles. He has previously been a TV host, political pundit and civil servant in the Danish Ministry of Finance. Today he is CEO of INVI and a keynote speaker.