The EIP-SCC Marketplace ‘Citizen Focus’ Action Cluster is pleased to invite you to the second webinar of our 2017-2018 series, taking place online on the 14th of March 2018 from 14:00 to 15:30. 

The webinar is organised in the framework of the Inclusive Smart Cities Manifesto, an open call for endorsement launched on the 23rd of November 2016 and addressing European cities willing to implement concrete actions to allow an active and full participation of citizens during each step of the Smart City Planning.

The first successful and fruitful session was held on the 6th of December 2017 and was dedicated to the role of platforms in enabling Participatory Budgeting activities; the second webinar will present and discuss the role of local Administrations in enabling PB initiatives and processes. A third and final webinar will conclude our series. The final webinar is planned for mid Spring 2018 and will offer participants an overview on strengths and areas for improvement of PB. 

Participatory Budgeting is a form of participatory and inclusive democracy where members of a community learn, debate and deliberate about the allocation of public resources. It has proven to be a powerful tool enabling citizens to contribute to the administration of their city granting them an active role in decision making. 

Since the launch in Brazil during the ‘90s, European examples of PB increased from 55 to over 1.300 with over 8 million citizens actively involved in PB.

As a result of the growing digitization phenomenon, managing a Participatory Budgeting process has become a complex task that is often delegated to third parties as it requires specific technical and scientific resources. 

During the webinar, participants will be guided through insightful discussions related to the role of institutions, to management and contractual models and to the associated costs of the process.

Should you be interested in knowing more about the role of local Administrations in Participatory Budgeting processes, please register here.

Participation is free of charge and registrations will remain open until the 12th of March 2018.