2022: Building new pathways out of the democracy and climate crises

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https://www.peoplepowered.org/news-content/2022-building-new-pathways-ou...

1) We helped 40 cities accelerate climate democracy.

We launched our first accelerator program, Climate Democracy Action, to kickstart the work of local governments to prevent and mitigate the climate crisis. With our partners the World Resources Institute and FIMA, we welcomed 40 local leaders into a comprehensive training and support program, to help them launch initiatives that engage residents in deciding climate policies and spending.


World map with yellow dots showing location of climate democracy action participants


Locations and number of participants in the first Climate Democracy Action cohort


2) We developed comprehensive guidance and platform ratings for digital democracy.

Our guide and ratings of digital participation platforms help organizations and governments choose the best platform for their context and implement it most effectively. With support from mySociety, we developed in-depth case studies to illustrate innovative new ways to engage people in more meaningful ways online.


Two young Chinese women holding smartphones


China’s Participation Center, a People Powered member, developed a WeChat “mini app” to engage more than 3 million people in participatory budgeting in Chengdu city.


Table showing ratings for complex participation platforms


One of the digital participation platform scorecards.


3) We launched a global initiative to make participatory and deliberative democracy more inclusive. 

Building Inclusive Democracy brings together 13 organizations from Africa, Eastern Europe and Latin America to identify best practices for meaningful inclusion of youth, women and displaced people in participatory programs. We’re turning this bottom-up expertise into global training and resources.


Quote from a representative from an NGO in Hungary: "The participatory wave we are experiencing will be incomplete and misleading if it does not give a voice to marginalized groups.


4) We facilitated Global South leadership and problem-solving. 

We helped our Colombian member Extituto de Política Abierta launch Demo.Reset, a new program led by and for groups in Latin America, Africa, Southeast Asia, India and Eastern Europe, to co-create deliberative democracy tools and solutions. We also launched our first two regional hubs, in Francophone Africa and in Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans, a project that our members voted to fund in our annual participatory planning process.


Photo of the members of one of the Demo.Reset work teams


One of the cross-continental design teams of Demo.Reset.


5) We made essential knowledge and data more accessible. 

We released a research brief that synthesizes global research on the short- and long-term impacts of participatory budgeting. We worked with over 60 participation experts around the world to integrate research and best practices into a groundbreaking Participation Playbook, an interactive online tool for designing participatory programs. And we’re piloting the beta version of the playbook in the Climate Democracy Action program, to prepare it for public release in 2023.



A photo of a group of young people sitting on chairs in a line, at a participatory budgeting meeting in Argentina. Below it:  finding 6 from the research brief.  "PB can enhance non-electoral, individual-level political participation.


One of the featured findings in our research brief on PB impacts


What’s next in 2023? Watch for a preview next week! 

Our work is made possible by our members and staff around the world, with the support of our funders and individual donors. Will you join them?

 

Position: Co -Founder of ENGAGE,a new social venture for the promotion of volunteerism and service and Ideator of Sharing4Good

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