Participatory budgeting (PB) is a democratic process in which residents decide directly how to spend part of a public budget. A government or agency sets aside a defined amount of money, the community proposes and develops spending ideas, and residents vote on which projects are funded. In German-speaking contexts it is known as Bürgerhaushalt.
How participatory budgeting works
A typical PB cycle has four stages: residents brainstorm needs, volunteers and staff turn ideas into feasible proposals with cost estimates, the community votes, and the winning projects are funded and implemented. The process repeats annually, building a track record residents can see in their own neighborhoods.
PB is used at city, district, school, and housing-authority scale. Because it gives residents real spending power rather than advisory input, it sits near the "empower" end of the public participation spectrum.
Why agencies use it
Participatory budgeting increases transparency, draws in residents who rarely engage with traditional planning, and directs spending toward needs that officials might overlook. Running it well requires collecting and de-duplicating ideas, supporting proposal development, and managing a credible vote — increasingly handled on digital engagement platforms.
