In our latest guest blog Alan Budge discusses his feelings about the climate emergency, sees some rays of hope, and offers some ways forward. I am worried. The climate crisis is, to my mind, very real, and very scary. In the final analysis (hopefully not too prophetic a term) it matters more than anything else;… Read More
News
The hidden opportunity of the climate crisis: Participatory democracy and people powered change
PB World Atlas list over 11,000 Participatory Budgeting Experiences
The World Atlas of Participatory Budgeting represents the widest compilation of data to date on PB processes across the planet. It is a collaborative work of more than 70 authors, who voluntarily made themselves available to collect and analyse information that would enable better understanding of the spread of these initiatives in very diverse contexts…. Read More
PB Youth Accelerator: Erasmus+ Pan-European Research Project
PB Youth Accelerator is the working title of a new initiative looking to collate evidence of participatory budgeting involving young people in the community and in schools. This two year research partnership consists of 5 partners from 3 countries. It is lead by Polish foundation Soclab, with collaborators from Field of Dialogue in Poland and… Read More
Youth Leading Change in Newry Mourne and Down
In 2018 Newry Mourne and Down District Council in Northern Ireland had their first experience with Participatory Budgeting and it went really well. They ran two processes under the banner of Communities Leading Change. One for adults, and one focussed especially on young people. Funding was sourced by a partnership including Newry, Mourne and Down… Read More
Going Global: Report of the Participatory Budgeting Scotland Conference
On the 23rd October 2019 over 100 people gathered in Edinburgh for this years Scottish Participatory Budgeting Conference. This conference brought together people involved in PB in Scotland to share and learn about each other’s practice, to help improve our impact and prioritise future plans. A chance to explore insights into PB activities and approaches… Read More
Does Participatory Budgeting always require a vote? Blog by Jez Hall
There is a very real desire to make Participatory Budgeting more deliberative and thoughtful. One of the concerns about voting is that it doesn’t force people to think through the options. That PB needs more deliberation. Nevertheless Jez Hall of PB Partners/Shared Future CIC argues that the vote is crucial for legitimacy and trust within… Read More
Share your news and views on Participatory Budgeting
The Participatory Budgeting Network is one of the key sources for information on what is happening in the world of PB. We want it make it even more participatory. We are actively inviting guest contributions in the form of blogs, videos, resources or news items. We will put items onto the website and share them… Read More
Our Money Our Planet: New report on using PB to tackle the Climate Crisis
There is overwhelming evidence that we are in a climate emergency. It is of maximum importance that we move on from debating the evidence towards taking immediate action. Given the reluctance of politicians to take decisive action so far this appears to remain a very challenging task. Many people feel a sense of powerlessness, and… Read More
No, People Aren’t Too Dumb for Democracy: Blog by Roslyn Fuller
In the latest in our series of guest blogs Dr Roslyn Fuller, of the Solonian Democracy Institute considers whether we have misread the public’s ability to make decisions. She argues in defence of democracy and trusting ‘ordinary’ people. I have been researching democracy for over a dozen years. During that time one of the… Read More
Lisbon agrees 5m euro fund for Green PB
Lisbon City Council’s first-ever ‘green’ participatory budget, an initiative supported and managed by South Pole and EIT Climate-KIC’s City Finance Lab, has been allocated a €5 million budget to support climate change mitigation and adaptation projects selected by local citizens. The Mayor of Lisbon made the announcement in May 2019 during the ceremony for this… Read More
