What is it about?
This article reviews the practice and outcomes of participatory budgeting, a radically democratic experiment in Porto Alegre Brazil. The article finds that this inclusive participatory process brings about tangible social and environmental results. It also identifies the main characteristics that explain this success so it can be successfully replicated, and expanded.
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Why is it important?
This paper shows that participatory democracy, beyond elections, is desirable not only as an end in itself but also as a means to achieve social and environmentally sustainable outcomes for all. It also demonstrates the tools and procedures for people to participate effectively and positively contribute to social and environmental change. This is useful not only for urban planners and policy makers seeking to achieve the SDGs but also for civil society organizations interested in democracy and sustainability.
Perspectives
I wrote this article to find local solutions for our global ecological and social problems. I found that participatory democracy can be one of those core solutions that can be expanded and replicated with great benefits. I thus hope that this article opens the door to reconceptualize what participatory democracy looks like and how it can be achieved. I also hope it gives new perspectives to expand and improve participatory mechanisms around the woirld.
Martin Calisto Friant
Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Deliberating for sustainability: lessons from the Porto Alegre experiment with participatory budgeting, International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development, February 2019, Taylor & Francis,
DOI: 10.1080/19463138.2019.1570219.
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