Hubert Heinelt is professor of public administration/public policy and urban studies at the Institute of Political Science at Darmstadt University of Technology. His current research focuses on European integration and urban studies.Xavier Bertrana Horta is the Head of the Centre for Local Innovation at the Diputació de Barcelona and is a member of the Research Group on Local Government at the University of Barcelona where he is also associate professor. His current research focuses on local governments and elections.
Randall Smith is an astrophysicist in the High Energy Astrophysics Division of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. He is internationally known for his work on spectral emission from astrophysical plasmas and the underlying issues of atomic physics.