LAB Metadecidim

In 2016 the participation process for the Municipal Action Plan (PAM, du to the initials in Catalan) was carried out in Barcelona. It was the process that gave the starting signal to Decidim.Barcelona and to the Decidim project and it generated high levels of participation with more than 9000 citizen proposals, 400 face meetings and more than 150,000 supports. 70% of the citizen proposals that were included in the final PAM were accepted. Currently, through Decidim.Barcelona, it is possible to make an exhaustive follow-up of the execution of the PAM, which is around 90%.

The Barcelona City Council is already working on the proposal for a participatory process for the next mandate 2019-2023. In this new edition, we want to add a new layer to the participation process, which would be participatory budgets linked to the strategic planning of the city.

In this 16th edition of the LAB Metadecidim we want to open a debate based on the initial proposal of the design of the participatory process of the PAM-PIM (2019-2023) and on the role of the Decidim in the development of the participatory process with the aim of extending and improving the process of 2016 and enriching it with the experience of the participatory budget processes.

Referències:

[1] Castellà, Carola. Pressupostos participatius al món local: el repte d'incorporar la ciutadania en la definició del pressupost públic (2019). Diputació de Barcelona https://www1.diba.cat/llibreria/pdf/61492.pdf

[2] Mesura de govern per una participació diversa i inclusiva (2017) Ajuntament de Barcelona. https://ajuntament.barcelona.cat/participaciociutadana/sites/default/files/documents/mgfparticipacio_3.pdf

[3] Decidim, la plataforma digital oberta i lliure per la participació i la innovació democràtica (2019) Ajuntament de Barcelona https://media-edg.barcelona.cat/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/02185426/Informe_Decidim_20191.pdf

[4] https://decidim.santcugat.cat/processes/pressupostparticipatiu

[5] https://decidim.sabadell.cat/processes/pressupostsbd

[6] Resum i visualitzacions procés PAM 2016 Barcelona. Decidim https://www.decidim.barcelona/processes/pam/f/27/dataviz/summary

[7] Informe disseny procés participatiu digital PAM 2016 Barcelona. UOC. https://tecnopolitica.net/sites/default/files/Informe%20participaci%C3%B3%20ciutadana%20PAM-PAD%202016-2019.pdf

Listen to the talks on Radio Decidim

Fàbrica de Creació Fabra i Coats
Carrer de Sant Adrià, 20, 08030 Barcelona
Planta 3, Sala 4.

Meeting report

Questions:

•         What improvements are necessary when we decide on the proposed PAM-PIM 2019 process?
•         How can a more diverse and inclusive process be done?
•         What are the challenges of including a participatory budgeting process in the MAP process?

Proposals made in the session:

1) Decidim improvements for the PAM-PIM 2019 process

The improvements made in the platform should be aimed at promoting inclusion and facilitating access to all people. This proposal also happens to promote education since Decidim.

Thus there must be a high connection between the Decicim and communication. In this sense it is very important how it is communicated, so that the platform is useful for participation.

The vote for participatory budgets can be too complex and it is found that the fact that people must register, sometimes makes them desist. The possibility of not having to register in some of the actions is valued, making validation for the action, but without the need of the entire registry.

It would be necessary to group the proposals in super proposals (plans and programs) to make it more viable.

It is difficult to generate debate at the Decidim. It would also be necessary to generate spaces for convening Virtual Debates, date and time. They can be written, webinar, jit.si. You should also be able to post videos: neighborhood video player about the debate, for example.

2) How to make a more diverse and inclusive process

More participatory: It is proposed the combination and hybridization between the participatory process and the digital platform. It is considered to be the guarantee that allows reaching all groups. It is also taken into account that it would be necessary to go out on the street with wheelbarrows so that people who would not participate could approach. An example would be to approach groups of migrants as they are often not included in the participation processes.

More diverse: One of the keys to promoting a more diverse process is to make use of existing resources, such as proximity services and equipment, community projects and projects aimed at specific groups. For example, the project links to older people who already use digital tablets, or in the Eix Besòs B-mincome project, through which many people in a situation of exclusion make a process of empowerment. On the other hand, it would be important to train and train the Decidim to technical people, associations, equipment managers and facilitators so that they can explain it and make it known.

More collective and citizen: It would be important to make a methodological manual that spells out the obligation that the process be horizontal among the different roles present in the administration: technicians, politicians, energizers ... In addition, we must look for spaces that facilitate this horizontality In this sense, it would be good to stop making use of plenary rooms and look for citizen spaces, such as music venues, bars, etc.

More communicative and transparent: It would be necessary to make a children's version of the Decidim, or an adapted version so that adults can not interact with children (for a topic of protection to children). In this way, you could reach the primary and ESO collectives.

On the other hand, the Decidim should be included in the workshops in such a way that it serves as a learning tool for the people who participate in person. For example, the proposals of the workshops could be included in real time. For this it would be necessary to have digital tablets for the participants of the face-to-face workshops.

More good vibes: It is necessary to have economic resources for the development of the process. Also to gamify and make it more fun. This idea would also go hand in hand with the proposal to seek greater horizontality among all the actors and avoid hierarchies and protocols

 3) PIM process: participatory budgets

The diversity of areas and territories of the projects should be ensured. It would be necessary to have a physical space that allows citizens to support the use of Decidim for participatory budgets. And of course, hybrid spaces of participation are needed. The Decidim can detect interest and promote face-to-face meetings of these interests.

For the technical validation of the projects, it is considered that it can be done based on the common diagnoses and criteria to address specific problems of minorities (take into account diversity in validation). For this, it is necessary the constant interlocution between administration and proponents to adjust priorities, develop proposals and make them viable. To encourage projects to respond to the common good and not to minority interests, it would be important to promote spaces and deliberative mechanisms to build a network. There are already experiences in Sant Cugat and Sabadell.

In order to co-produce projects it would be necessary to connect networks such as instagram, facebook, in such a way that debates will be generated and videos can be integrated into existing virtual spaces. The idea is to make use of the virtual spaces as well as to use the existing physical spaces prior to the process. Obviously, you have to listen to existing networks, but you should always encourage conscious and informed participation. Another idea to disseminate the Decidim and encourage participation would be to communicate through the networks what is being worked on or proposed in the Decidim, for example, the last week has proposed X, what do you think?

In relation to the monitoring of project development and accountability, it is considered that times are very fast and that it is often done quickly, but not carefully to meet deadlines. You have to be careful because sometimes processes come to overlap.

It is considered that through videos the process could be visualized. It could also be done through posters.