Posts by Melissa Appleton
Rochester asked residents to decide how to reduce poverty. Here are the results.
Rosa was bubbling over with excitement. She’d just accepted $50,000 to launch a new childcare program unlike any other in Rochester, NY. After months of working with community members, local partners, and lots of data, Rosa’s community cast participatory budgeting (PB) votes on how to spend $200,000 of New York State government anti-poverty dollars in…
Read MoreArt Makes Democracy Better
How the arts gets us to turn on, tune in, and help out Between committees on transport and whole debates on tax rates, the details of governance can be mind-numbing. That can cause would-be participants in democracy to be disinterested. That’s why democracy also has to be a culture. We have to have our hearts…
Read MoreWe’re supporting #YesYesYesNYC… will you?
Did you know that participatory budgeting will be on the ballot November 6? New York City voters have an opportunity to raise the bar for PB by voting for ballot proposal 2. If approved, it will launch the largest PB process in North America – likely bigger than all other programs in the US and Canada combined! Will…
Read MoreCan you sign up as a PBNYC poll worker?
People across NYC are gearing up to vote on how to spend millions of dollars through Participatory Budgeting in New York City (PBNYC). PBNYC works because people like you volunteer to make a difference in their community. Can you volunteer as a poll worker, to help your neighbors vote in PB and build real democracy?…
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