Episode 5 | In times of a crisis of political trust – Luca Piwodda on engaging with the public, local government communication and the Garze
Podcast
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05.08.2026
Episode 5 – In times of a crisis of political trust – Luca Piwodda on being close to the people, local government communication and the Garze
In the first guest episode, Maximilian Dombert and Dominik Lück welcome Luca Piwodda, honorary mayor of the town of Gartz (Oder). When he was elected in 2024, he was Brandenburg’s youngest elected mayor and has since championed the so-called ‘Garzer Weg’: a local political approach based on radical transparency, citizen participation and policy-driven politics rather than party politics.
The discussion centres on the state of local government communication – both internally and externally. Piwodda explains why he often sees public consultation processes at federal and state level as a mere formality, how the ‘Garzer Weg’ works in practice, and why he is convinced that the crisis of democracy can only…
The nucleus of democracy - municipal law with Dombert & Lück
Municipal law in an understandable, practical way and without paragraph-by-paragraph: In this podcast, the lawyers and specialist lawyers for administrative law speak Dr. Dominik Lück and Dr. Maximilian Dombert on the legal issues that cities, municipalities and municipal companies deal with on a daily basis.
As partners in the law firm Dombert Rechtsanwälte, they have been advising local authorities at the interface of law, politics and administration for many years. In their talks, they take you into their everyday professional lives, discuss current developments in municipal law and explain complex topics in such a way that they remain understandable even without a legal background.
This is because many of the major social issues are decided locally: Building and infrastructure projects, healthcare, the environment, schools, housing and municipal companies. It is precisely here - in the cities and municipalities - that the nucleus of democracy lies.
The podcast is aimed at local authorities, municipal companies, politicians and anyone who wants to understand how the law works at municipal level.
A podcast about local law, administration and politics - understandable, practical and with a look behind the scenes of municipal decision-making processes.