As a result of two sessions on participatory budgeting at the US Social Forum, a new United States PB Network is forming. To be involved in the discussions, please join the network’s listserv at http://groups.google.com/group/participatory-budgeting-us or by emailing  participatory-budgeting-us-subscribe@googlegroups.com See below for a reportback on the workshops at the US Social Forum. Stay tuned for…

The OECD / World Bank paper "Beyond Public Scrutiny: a stocktaking of social accountability initiatives in OECD countries" profiles 40 government accountability programs, including interesting examples of participatory budgeting in Belgium, Germany, Portugal, Spain, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the UK.http://www.zebralog.net/open/BeyondPublicScrutinycoverandtext.pdf About the Author Recent About dev_kqmdt7 PBP’s Flickr Gallery – October 13, 2015 Research…

There is a nice new website on PB in Germany: http://www.buergerhaushalt.de About the Author Recent About dev_kqmdt7 PBP’s Flickr Gallery – October 13, 2015 Research Series: PB in the life of Brian. – September 22, 2015 PB Research Series: A Moment with Stephanie McNulty – August 25, 2015

There will be an international conference on participatory budgeting in Málaga, Spain, March 28-31. See details at http://redfal.org/en/node/98 About the Author Recent About dev_kqmdt7 PBP’s Flickr Gallery – October 13, 2015 Research Series: PB in the life of Brian. – September 22, 2015 PB Research Series: A Moment with Stephanie McNulty – August 25, 2015

We have a guest post from Marc Becker, who has attended the latest WSF. These and other writings are available at www.yachana.org The World Social Forum comes to Africa Marc Becker marc@yachana.org January 28, 2007 The last week of January, 50,000 activists from around the world gathered under the theme “People’s Struggles, People’s Alternatives” in…

On October 25th, the NPR radio Show Open Source featured a special show on “Experiments in Democracy,” with participation from Launi Guinier, Shoni Field (of the BC Citizen’s Asembly), Daniel Kemmis (former mayor of Mizzoula, Montana), and Gianpaolo Baiocchi. According to the Show’s producers, Back in September we introduced the idea of doing a show…

Terence Woods has recently defended his masters’ thesis on participatory democracy in Belo Horizonte and Porto Alegre. It is a very accessible and clear piece that many readers will find useful. The thesis is available here. About the Author Recent About dev_kqmdt7 PBP’s Flickr Gallery – October 13, 2015 Research Series: PB in the life…

Some news about PB in Berlin, from http://www.zebralog.de/en/000191.html Track your budget proposal – Berlin-Lichtenberg 2008 Berlin, the capital of Germany with 3.4 million inhabitants, has to cope with debts of 61 billion Euro. Therefore it’s interesting to note, how the citizens of Berlin-Lichtenberg have their say in budget decisions. Okay, it’s not about billions, but…

The Institute of Development Studies just published a new paper on PB. See the abstract copied below, or the full article at: http://www.ongcidade.org/site/arquivos/artigos/buku%20sumber%20IDS%20Aaron%20Scheneider%20Wp26645819f48b1433.pdf IDS WORKING PAPER 266 Get What You Want, Give What You Can: Embedded Public Finance in Porto Alegre Aaron Schneider and Marcelo Baquero Abstract The problem of public finance in Latin America…

A recent piece, published in Re-public describes the PB process in Cordoba, Spain. The Cordoba process is well-documented and is known throughout Europe as an example of a successful process. About the Author Recent About dev_kqmdt7 PBP’s Flickr Gallery – October 13, 2015 Research Series: PB in the life of Brian. – September 22, 2015…

A small story has been circulating in the internet about the controversy in the small town of Pombos, in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. The actual controversy involves project for a public bathroom for travestis (cross-dressers) is going to be discussed at the next PB Council meeting in the town. The issue, according to a…