Video address to the conference by Alex Neil MSP, Scottish Government Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Communities and Pensioners’ Rights. View report on the 2015 PB Network Unconference
Geographic
Participatory Budgeting in the UK and internationally
Call for Participatory Budgeting to expand to the whole of New York
We have reported a few times on the grow of Participatory Budgeting in New York, from relatively modest beginnings in four districts, spending around $4m dollars, to over half the city with an annual budget closer to $32m. In a new article from the Gotham Gazette the author and contributors ask why it doesn’t now… Read More
How do we know our participatory budgeting is working? Measure it!
A shared language to evaluate PB processes. That was the goal. How best to compare and contrast, and also validate the effectiveness of participatory budgeting(PB) has been addressed in the USA through a new research programme. There are many measures of success in PB but with the release of 15 key metrics for PB evaluation… Read More
Durham CC video on using PB for mainstream budget consultation
In 2013 Durham County Council were facing some tough financial decisions. So they developed a simple interactive board game to involve citizens in these difficult debates. Using a successful round of participatory budgeting distribution days, that helped Durham win recognition as a model of best practice in community engagement, they asked some of the 11,000… Read More
Decaffeinated Participation: Where has the social justice in Participatory Budgeting gone?
Archon Fung of Harvard University is one of the leading academics in the field of participatory democracy, and in a newly published article doesn’t pull his punches, calling many participatory programmes running worldwide PB-Lite… a form of decaffeinated politics, that are missing some essential ingredients. Fung believes "Social justice receded from the agenda of participatory… Read More
Wrexham and Flintshire groups benefit from proceeds of crime money
Groups across North Wales are able to grab back cash from criminals through a Participatory Budgeting initiative run by the North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner. As reported in the Leader Newspaper community groups in Wrexham and Flintshire to bid for a share of a £42,000 pot of money seized from criminals. The scheme has… Read More
Backroom knowledge and support is critical says USA experiences of PB
In a new article about the City of Cambridge (USA) PB programme, that saw $600,000 distributed last year the focus was on the role that city officials and community budget delegates play in refining ideas before they get on the ballot. This follows some controversy that half the money distributed last year went on one… Read More
Milan is first Italian city to use PB… and it starts at 9m euro for youth
The mayor of Milan, Giuliano Pisapia, is seeking the advice of teenagers to decide how to allocate 9 million euros (10 million dollars‘) worth of the city‘s budget, as part of a new grassroots democracy scheme. Milan is the first Italian city to engage in participatory budgeting, a process spearheaded in Brazil in the late… Read More
Participatory democracy video explores the power of active citizens worldwide
Open Society Foundations supports Goal 16 of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, which could enable citizens to create more a inclusive society through participatory democracy. In this short video they explore why participatory democracy matters, and how participatory budgeting fits into the story. Exploring PB initiatives around the USA, from Boston Youth lead the change… Read More
New Participatory Budgeting website for Scotland launched
A new website for participatory budgeting in Scotland launches this month. PB Scotland is for sharing and learning about the great work being done by participatory budgeting (PB) initiatives around Scotland. Funded by the Scottish Government, the website will provide updates on events, policy and resources relevant to PB in Scotland, and profile good examples… Read More
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