Participatory democracy in Porto Algre, Brazil

Since 1996, Porto Alegre, Brazil, has had the highest standards of living of all Brazilian metropolitan areas. The author links this to the way in which the city has been managed by its municipal government over the last 12 years. The last four mayoral terms in Porto Alegre's Municipal Government have been coined Popular Administration. The key characteristics of this are: adoption of techniques for participatory democracy; a high level of citizen involvement in allocating the municipal budget; the integration of public environmental management policies; and the regeneration of public spaces. The most widely publicised technique of participatory democracy is participatory budgeting. This article discusses the structure and process of particpatory budgeting that is in place in Porto Alegre and goes on to discuss the stages of the process and consequent results the city has experienced.