Introduction: Futures, now and then

The future of the policy sciences changed radically in late 2019. The pandemic has been a stress test for the discipline, forcing us to re-think conventional theoretical as well as practical approaches. It also provides windows of opportunity to re-examine the roles of government in society. The pandemic is a game changer for public leadership and management, as it reveals the demand for robust governance strategies to deal with turbulent problems and demonstrates the need for public sector reforms to support the robust governance of this turbulence. This chapter touches on these challenges and summarizes each chapter and draw out the key reflections on what the discipline is now facing in both understanding the emerging policy landscape and being able to support it and hold policy makers accountable.