So-called participatory budgeting, in which residents vote on spending projects in their wards, started in the United States in Chicago, but its growth has stalled.
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click to enlarge Anna Jo Beck The last year has seen a call to defund the Chicago police and reallocate funds to mental health and community services. And while that call has not been answered, it has placed the city s budget under a magnifying glass. Residents want to have a say in where the money goes and participatory budgeting is a process that gives them that power.
So, what really participatory budgeting? According to Participatory Budgeting Chicago (PB Chicago), a coalition of aldermen, city agencies, community organizations, and residents based out of the University of Illinois Chicago s Great Cities Institute, Participatory budgeting is democracy in action. While budgeting may be in the name, the actual process isn t so much about the budget as it is about engaging with and