May 17, 2023
Participatory budgeting gives New Yorkers the power to decide what community programs to fund, to improve infrastructure in their communities. Dr. Sarah Sayeed spoke with Pix11 about this historic process.
May 17, 2023
For the first time, New Yorkers anywhere in the city who want a say on how and where to spend a pool of taxpayer money can cast their votes in-person or online through June 25.
Read the full article from Brigid Bergin via Gothamist
May 5, 2023
Starting May 10, residents of the neighborhood aged 11 and up, regardless of immigration or incarceration status, will have seven weeks to vote (in-person or online) for one of five shortlisted projects, which were crowd-sourced by fellow community members.
Read the full article via Brooklyn Paper
In February of 2023, we launched an Open Call in partnership with the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, seeking five artists to help us build the creative identity for The People’s Money: Citywide Participatory Budgeting Get Out the Vote campaign.
Read more about the Artist Collective
December 16, 2022
The model can transform how mainstream funding is allocated, in a time when residents are “hungry to have more of a meaningful say on issues that affect their lives,” one advocate says.
Read the full article via Next City
December 14, 2022
"We are committed to ensuring that New Yorkers have the tools they need to better engage with government and access its benefits, but to also do it in a more streamlined, simple-to-use manner," New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement. "The newly created Office of Engagement will ensure that we continue to collaborate, coordinate, and prioritize engagement across all agencies and that New Yorkers have a say in our policies, priorities, and resources."
Learn more about the office of engagement
December 14, 2022
"The designation of a chief engagement officer and the strengthening of New York City's civic engagement and outreach infrastructure will ensure that communities that have had historically limited access will now have meaningful influence," said Marco A. Carrión, executive director of El Puente and former commissioner, New York City Community Affairs Unit. "The combined experience, talent, and commitment that Betsy MacLean, Dr. Sarah Sayeed and all the exceptional leaders appointed today to bring to their roles will spur a definite shift in how our communities' voices are centered."
Learn more about the Office of Engagement
November 12, 2022
"Participatory budgeting is one pathway for engagement that enables communities to move their voice into action on decisions that impact their lives," CEC Executive Director Dr. Sarah Sayeed said. "We believe that by working together with people affected by policies, we can identify and solve our collective challenges and build the interdependence required for a healthy and resilient democracy."
Learn more about The People's Money
November 8, 2022
A patchwork of agencies, stakeholders and community groups help provide language-specific educational materials and translation services around city elections, what experts say is essential to making sure residents aren't locked out of the democratic process.
Read more about the "Pollsite Language Assistance Program"
November 1st, 2022
New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced the launch, on Sept. 14, of The People's Money initiative, a citywide participatory budgeting process, whereby New Yorkers decide how to spend allotted funds to improve their local communities. Now, the Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA), NYC Civic Engagement Commission (CEC) are highlighting an upcoming series of boroughwide, idea generation sessions on "The People's Money."
Read more about "The People's Money"
September 15, 2022
Imagine coming together to discuss what your community requires — whether it's mental health counseling, community gardens, job fairs or photography classes — and then being able to access city funds to meet those needs.
Read about the It's the People's Money
September 14, 2022
In tune with a 2018 ballot referendum, the NYC Civic Engagement Commission is expanding participatory budgeting on a citywide scale, giving residents a say on services and programs to fund.
Read about the New Citywide Participatory Budgeting
June 4, 2022
Hosted by Project Hospitality and the New York City Civic Engagement Commission, the small churchyard was awash in the smells of foods and the colorful sights and sounds of several local musical performance troupes.
Read about the Celebrate Diversity Festival
May 11, 2022
More than a decade after launching participatory budgeting programs in several districts, the city is taking the idea to all five boroughs.
Read the story on Next City
April 6, 2022
"The People's Money," is the name given to the Civic Engagement Commission's participatory budgeting process, which was run for the first time this year and focused on neighborhoods most affected by the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read the story on Queens Daily Eagle
March 17,2022
"Participatory budgeting" directing funds to community projects comes to parts of the borough formerly on the sidelines — but some local reps are reclaiming control over funds formerly steered by the people.
Read the story on The City
March 17, 2022
For a more equitable, inclusive, multiracial, and multiethnic democracy, we must invest substantive, resourced, and long-term decision-making power in the public.
Read the story on Stanford Social Innovation Review
March 9, 2022
City agency partners worked to reach low-income New Yorkers, immigrants and people of color, using canvassers, multilingual community and ethnic print media, social media and radio ads, bus shelter and LinkNYC kiosks ads, and leveraging the TRIE Neighborhood Initiative made up of local community-based organizations in the targeted 33 neighborhoods.
Read the story on Harlem World
February 23, 2022
"The People's Money," the participatory budgeting process supports 33 neighborhoods hit hardest by COVID-19. These investments total $1.3 million and are earmarked for the support of a more fair recovery in the city. In all, 29,000 New Yorkers voted on how to spend the money.
Read the story on Ebony
December 22, 2020
CEC Chair Dr. Sarah Sayeed and the Coro PB Youth Fellows discuss how to stay civically engaged with CBS New York.