Local Democracy in Action

So you say you want a (local) revolution? Well, how are you going to get there, without power? While it is true that many of the obstacles we face in moving to greener, more peaceful future involve a lack of information, organization, and initiative, it’s also true that for every local independent business alliance promoting sustainability, there is a Chamber of Commerce organization claiming that global warming doesn’t exist.

Progressive Dane is an independent local political party that has served Madison and Dane County for 16 years. We will present some local examples of how we have worked with residents and groups to promote more progressive policies at the city and county level. Come hear about the projects of United for Funding, Operation Welcome Home, Student Progressive Dane, Immigrant Workers Union, Affordable Housing Action Alliance, and Friends of Union Corners.

Building a regional anti-nuke movement a workshop for all peace, justice, anti-war and environmental restoration and preservation groups. Bring your descriptions of action(s), initiative(s) and project(s) that contribute to nuclear disarmament in all its aspects. This workshop will collect and publish our work as summarized in short forms distributed throughout the conference. We’ll map out how our grassroots groups are implementing complete nuclear disarmament as an essential part of solving regional and global economic and environmental problems.

This workshop asks several questions. First, what are the limits of what cities and other local governments can actually do to protect, in the words of the Declaration, “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness,” or in the words of the Preamble, “promote the general welfare”? Can local governments set up publicly owned and operated renewable energy utilities? Can they protect their citizens against pollution from dirty coal and factory farms? And second, what should be done to remove those limits? Find out here.

As the United States experience an era of renewed green consciousness, many communities are making major efforts to improve energy, transportation, food, water, and land use practices, as well as to shift our national priorities toward peace and disarmament. These local efforts have come primarily either by the venue of private sector civil society initiatives, or of local government policy reform, or of municipal advocacy for change at higher levels of government. Of these, civil society initiatives has until recently played the most significant role. Yet local governments, recognizing their unique potential to effect rapid change, are increasingly stepping up to the plate, both in their policies (e.g. Community Wind; sustainability commissions) and in their advocacy (e.g. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement; Mayors for Peace).

Despite positive leadership by many local elected officials across the country, the speed of local governmental action lags far behind the need posed by challenges such as climate change, militarism, food insecurity, and water pollution. In many cases, mayors and other local officials find themselves isolated and ineffective in their efforts to green their communities. In other cases, elected officials are willing to go only so far in implementing reforms. Both of these situations are symptoms of an approach to greening cities that relies primarily on elected officials for action, and leaves citizens and civil society on the sidelines.

There is an alternative. Take for example, Participatory Budgeting (PB), a method which "consists of a process of democratic deliberation and decision-making, in which ordinary city residents decide how to allocate part of a public budget through a series of local assemblies and meetings." (ParticipatoryBudgeting.org). Since the development of Participatory Budgeting in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in 1989, the method has been initiated in over 1000 communities and institutions worldwide.

What kind of process would be required to create the community consensus, political will, and legal authority for the rapid implementation of a comprehensive, community-wide, green transition program? Come to this workshop, and help us find out.

Environmental racism? Is that part of the "sustainable" city of the future? If your answer is "No!," then come to this workshop and find out what two Wisconsin organizations are doing to organize for community and environmental justice.

Iowa PSR has been successful organizing at the local level to defeat proposed coal fired plants. Workshop will focus on local organizing, and involving health professionals, and the renewable energy advocates in organizing to stop proposed and close existing coal-fired plants.

This is the final major panel of Future Cities 2009. This panel raises up the many exciting ways in which expanding local democracy can lead to the implementation of the solutions discussed earlier in the conference.