Volunteer as a Participatory Budgeting Delegate!

Participatory Budgeting is made possible by volunteer community members that contribute to the process! The Budget Office is seeking Cambridge residents to join the PB11 process as Participatory Budgeting Delegates. Volunteering as a PB Delegate is a great way to become a community leader, work alongside Cambridge residents and City staff, and help make the city a better place.

PB Delegates will work in teams to research, evaluate, and prioritize the project ideas submitted by community members during idea collection. PB Delegates work for three months to develop and choose the final project proposals for the PB vote in March. The proposal development process involves site visits, community assessments, and consultations with City staff to evaluate a project's need, impact, feasibility, and cost.

During the PB10 process, 70+ PB Delegates worked in the following four committees to narrow down over 1,000 submitted PB ideas into 20 final project proposals for the ballot: Community Resources, Environment, Parks & Recreation, and Transportation Streets & Sidewalks.

Being a PB Delegate requires a time commitment from October through mid-December 2024, and one final meeting in late January 2025. Full attendance is very important for a productive process. Please review the schedule below to decide whether this role is right for you.

• PB Delegate Orientation: Tuesday, October 1, 2024, from 6-8 PM at the Main Library Lecture Hall. This in-person orientation will have delegates learn more about the process, select your committee, and meet your teammates and facilitator.
• Weekly Committee Meetings: PB Delegate Committees will meet once a week on Wednesday evenings, 6-8 PM, from October through mid-December to review, research, and prioritize ideas. Each meeting will take ~2 hours to meet objectives. Meetings will likely be virtual with potential opportunities for in-person gatherings.
• Speed Consultations with City staff: The Budget Office will organize two sessions for PB Delegates to meet with City staff in November. Think of it as Department speed dating – PB Delegates will move around talking with and asking questions of various department representatives regarding relevant PB proposals.
• Delegates submit Proposal Shortlist to Budget Office: Early December. Delegates do not need to meet while City staff are evaluating shortlisted proposals. City staff will provide final feedback and cost estimates to Delegates in early January.
• Delegates submit final ballot text to Budget Office: Thursday, January 30, 2024.
• PB Vote week: March 2025; tell your friends, community, and families to vote!
• PB Vote Results Party: Date and time TBD. Find out which projects won $1,000,000 in funding!

Sign-ups for PB11 volunteers is now closed. For information on future PB volunteer opportunities. Sign up for the PB Newsletter here to stay up to date on volunteer opportunities and cycle updates. 

Please reach out to Melissa Liu at pb@cambridgema.gov with questions on the PB Delegate role.