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CONFERENCE REGISTRATION: WHAT'S INCLUDED?
We strive to keep our conference accessible by charging well below the actual cost of attendance.
Registration includes access to two days and an evening of stellar sessions, one breakfast, two lunches, and light refreshments, as well as transportation between Oakland and Vallejo on the final day. Thursday evening and Friday sessions will be held at California Endowment Conference Center and the First Unitarian Church of Oakland. Saturday sessions will be held in downtown Vallejo, about 25 miles from Oakland (again, we'll provide transportation up to Vallejo for all participants).
ABOUT THE CONFERENCE
In cities across North America, budget crises are leading to painful cuts in public services and infrastructure - especially for communities with the greatest needs. Community members are usually left on the sidelines during public budgeting, with little power to shape the spending decisions that affect their lives.
Participatory Budgeting (PB) offers an alternative - a more democratic and accountable way to manage public money. PB is a democratic process in which community members directly decide how to spend part of a public budget. First used in Brazil in 1989, there are now over 1,500 participatory budgets around the world. Most are for city budgets, but counties, states, towns, housing authorities, schools, universities, and other institutions have also used PB to give people real power over real money.
PB has only recently appeared on the radar in the US and Canada, with a few Canadian processes starting in 2001 and the first US experiment in 2009. But in just a few years, interest in North America has skyrocketed. PB has grown from just a few experiments to over 20 PB processes in cities, schools, and universities -- with nearly 20 more cities currently organizing for PB. In 2014, around 30,000 people in the United States and Canada have used PB to allocate nearly $27 million.
This 3rd International Conference on Participatory Budgeting in North America will take place in Oakland and Vallejo, California, USA. The conference will provide a space for participants and organizers of participatory budgeting processes to share and reflect on their experiences, alongside interested activists, practitioners, and scholars. The final conference day will take place in Vallejo, California to celebrate and observe the outcomes of North America's first citywide PB process, now in its second cycle.
PRE-CONFERENCE TRAININGS
Training 1: Introduction to Participatory Budgeting
September 25th, 9:30am-4pm
Location: California Endowment Conference Center, Oakland, CA
Learn the history of PB in the US and North America, and experience the inner workings of neighborhood assemblies, budget delegate meetings, and voting through demo exercises. Gain a better sense of strategies and next steps for moving PB forward in your city.
Who should attend: Anyone interested in planning and advocating for PB in their community. The workshop is especially recommended for elected officials, staff, planners, and organizers looking to gain a solid foundation in PB before deciding if and how to move a process forward locally.
Training 2: Advanced Tools for Participatory Budgeting
September 25th, 9:30am-4pm
Location: California Endowment Conference Center, Oakland, CA
Learn about the newest innovations and best practices in PB from across North America and the world. Practice applying new skills and techniques through demo exercises, and strategize about how to integrate them into your PB process.
Who should attend: Anyone who is already playing a lead role in implementing PB in their community. The workshop is especially recommended for staff, planners, and organizers looking to improve their PB processes and build stronger community engagement skills.
Note: Registration for trainings is not included in conference registration, but it does includes lunch and light refreshments.
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LocationThe California Endowment Conference Center - Oakland
1111 Broadway
Oakland, CA 94607
United States
Categories
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: Yes! |
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