Budget Game. Activation of the citizens of Lublin in the field of participatory budgeting project.
Dates:
2014-2016
Website:
Contact person:
Countries:
Poland, Finland
Description – essential information
The main objective of the project was to promote the active participation of Lublin and Świdnik residents in city’s budgeting processes. To meet this aim, we developed a simulation game inspired by Budget Games created by Luke Hohmann and Innovation Games®. The original game, which was used to support residents and authorities of San Jose (USA) in the debates on the city budget, went through a cycle of calibration and refinement to fit the new context.
It was then used in Lublin and Świdnik as an innovative public consultation method. All in all, 8 game sessions were held in which over 430 players took part. Every time, the participants were working on the real projects submitted by the general public for a participatory budgeting program. The game-based method was further promoted thanks to the summary publication and the final conference, which inspired other cities to use this tool to facilitate participatory processes.
The project was realized in the Citizens for Democracy Programme, financed by the EEA Grants.
Results
- 8 game-based public consultations
- 434 participants from Lublin and Świdnik (ranging from teenagers to adults)
- 2 train-the-trainer workshops
- an art competition for kids
- a final conference
- a summary publication “Budget Games. The innovative tool for improving citizen engagement.”