Participatory Budgeting: Public Control over Public Money

The struggle for the city is largely a struggle over public money. On
one hand, public budgets finance much of the development responsible
for gentrification, while community groups are forced to fight for
budgetary scraps, be they for social services, housing, schools,
health facilities, or public transportation. This is an exhausting and
often demoralizing struggle. It encourages competition rather than
collaboration, and reliance on politicians rather than democratic
community control.

At the same time, grassroots movements outside of the U.S. are
increasingly turning this rigged budget game on its head, through
participatory budgeting. This is a process in which people who are
impacted by a budget directly and democratically decide how it is
spent, usually through an annual cycle of neighborhood assemblies and
meetings. Since the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre pioneered
participatory budgeting in 1989, it has spread to hundreds of cities
around the world.

This session will discuss how, in a time of economic crisis,
community-based organizations and urban movements can use
participatory budgeting to democratize public spending. We will
combine short presentations with facilitated discussion and popular
education exercises. The presenters will speak about grassroots
struggles over budget funds, existing forums for budget participation,
international experiences of participatory budgeting, and strategies
for increasing democratic participation in budgeting. The session is
intended for organizers, activists, and academics concerned with
public services, urban infrastructure, or fundraising.