Governance transference and shifting capacities and expectations in multi-stakeholder initiatives

The governing attributes of authority, legitimacy, and accountability are essential to any type of governance to be able to function effectively. For public forms of governing, the attributes are part of the structures and institutions of democratic states, for example, through the tripartition of power, voting, and legal structures. For private forms of governance, such as multi-stakeholder initiatives (MSIs), these attributes need to be built or attained. This paper sets out to examine how MSIs increase their governing capacity through public–private interactions. Empirically, the paper investigates two national MSIs in mining: the Finnish Sustainable Mining Network and the Chilean Dialogo Territorial. I find that as part of the interactions within the governance sphere of mining, the roles, governance capacity, and expectations toward public and private actors are rearranged. I propose the term “governance transference” to denote the shift of authority, legitimacy, and accountability from one governing body to another. This phenomenon occurs through three mechanisms: lending legitimacy, emulating decision-making, and enmeshing expectations. The findings extend the previous literature on the outcomes of public–private governance interactions and governance spheres.