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Catalyzing worker co-ops & the solidarity economy

Participatory Budgeting Conference Proposal Deadline Extended

NEW DEADLINE FOR PROPOSALS: January 15, 2016

In cities across North America, budget crises are leading to painful cuts in public services and infrastructure – especially for communities with the greatest needs. Community members are usually left on the sidelines during public budgeting, with little power to shape the spending decisions that affect their lives.


Participatory Budgeting (PB) offers an alternative – a more democratic and accountable way to manage public money. PB is a democratic process in which community members directly decide how to spend part of a public budget. First used in Brazil in 1989, there are now over 3,000 participatory budgeting programs around the world. Most are for city budgets, but counties, states, towns, housing authorities, schools, universities, and other institutions have also used PB to give people real power over real money.

Interest in PB in North America has skyrocketed in recent years. PB has grown from just a few experiments to over 50 PB processes in cities, schools, and universities – with dozens of other cities currently organizing for PB. So far, over 100,000 people in the United States and Canada have used PB to allocate $98 million.

The 4th International Conference on Participatory Budgeting in North America, organized by the Participatory Budgeting Project (PBP), will take place in Boston, Massachusetts, USA during the voting phase of their award-winning, city-wide, youth PB process.

The conference is a space for participants and organizers of PB processes to share and reflect on their experiences so far, alongside interested activists, practitioners, scholars, elected officials, and civic designers.

Read the full call for proposals at the Participatory Budgeting Conference website

 

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