Doing participatory budgeting (PB) sparks a variety of powerful, lasting impacts across a community.
Increased civic engagement.
- Folks learn democracy by doing it.
- PB is a gateway to more civic engagement that creates paths to lifelong civic engagement.
- Participants see the tangible results of investing in their community, often inspiring them to become more involved.
- PB increases engagement in elections, making people 7% more likely to vote.
Stronger relationships between residents, government, and community organizations.
- PB leads to more collaboration between people and government.
- Participants meet and work directly with elected officials, agency and institution staff, other parts of city government.
Broader political participation, especially from historically marginalized communities.
- PB is open and accessible to people who have faced historical barriers to participation and voting. This includes young people, formerly incarcerated people, recent immigrants, and others.
- PBP’s model of PB includes adequate resources to reach deeply into communities to ensure that everyone is able to participate.
New community leaders.
- There are many opportunities for leadership in PB, from joining the Steering Committee to being a facilitator or Budget Delegate.
- Participants gain valuable skills including public speaking, negotiation, facilitation, (etc).
- Youth participants especially gain confidence, communication skills, and leadership.
More equitable and effective spending.
- Public funding is more responsive to expressed public needs.
- Decision-making is directly by residents, rather than by a small number of officials or “squeaky wheels”.
- Residents offer innovative spending ideas.
- Often ideas proposed for PB (that don’t get funded) are cues for officials that there is a need there, and often some of these projects get funded outside of PB.
PB BY THE NUMBERS
$M
in public funding allocated through PB.
K
PB participants across the US & Canada.
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