Abstract This paper traces and assesses the trajectories of democratic innovations (DIs) in Germany across levels of governance and over time since 1990, providing novel and original data. We focus on three types of DIs that have been applied in Germany: direct democratic instruments, participatory budgeting, and deliberative mini-publics (DMPs). DIs proliferated differently across the different levels of governance (local, state, and federal), with shifting peaks in popularity and differing evolutions in process design and regulations. Going beyond description, this paper discusses the trajectories of DIs by applying a theoretical framework based, firstly, on Elstub and Escobar’s concept of DIs as providing opportunities for citizens (in participation, deliberation, and influence) and, secondly, on Warren’s system-oriented approach on democratic functions (these being empowered inclusion, collective will-formation, and collective decision-making). This framework provides a useful tool for analysing how the trajectories of DIs in Germany have affected citizens’ opportunities. Combined, these trajectories show a movement towards opportunities for inclusive participation, deliberation, and will-formation of a few citizens in DMPs, rather than opportunities for empowered participation or influence on political agendas and decisions.

Participatory Budgeting (PB) has demonstrated a remarkable capacity for global diffusion. However, its ability to endure over time and become fully institutionalized remains more limited. This study addresses one of the most frequently cited explanations for PB’s instability: changes in the ruling party. Contrary to prevailing assumptions, we argue that it is not party turnover per se that leads to the discontinuation of PB, but rather the ideological orientation of such changes. To investigate this hypothesis, we draw on an original dataset covering 295 Spanish municipalities, including both cases of PB continuity and discontinuity. Our findings indicate that changes in the ruling party alone do not account for the interruption of PBs. Instead, the key determinant is the ideological direction of government change or continuity: PB is more likely to persist when left-wing parties remain in power or when transitions occur toward left-wing administrations.

We study a generalization of the standard approval-based model of participatory budgeting (PB), in which voters are providing approval ballots over a set of predefined projects and -- in addition to a global budget limit, there are several groupings of the projects, each group with its own budget limit. We study the computational complexity of identifying project bundles that maximize voter satisfaction while respecting all budget limits. We show that the problem is generally intractable and describe efficient exact algorithms for several special cases, including instances with only few groups and instances where the group structure is close to be hierarchical, as well as efficient approximation algorithms. Our results could allow, e.g., municipalities to hold richer PB processes that are thematically and geographically inclusive.

ABSTRACT The dominance of private cars in urban areas has led to increased parking demand, often at little or no cost to drivers despite the high value of urban land. Efforts to reform parking policies, particularly through the introduction of higher fees and removal of on-street parking, frequently encounter public and political resistance. This paper introduces and explores the concept of Mobility Benefit Districts (MBDs), an adaptation of Shoup’s Parking Benefit Districts. MBD aims to increase public acceptability of parking charges by earmarking revenues for sustainable mobility and involving residents through participatory budgeting. Through a systematic literature review and analysis of eight European case studies, we explored examples that implemented at least one of two core elements of MBD: (1) the earmarking of parking revenues for alternative mobility and public space improvements, and (2) participatory processes in the allocation of these funds. We assessed policy measures and real-world examples regarding their impact on transport, acceptability and liveability. Our analysis revealed a general lack of literature addressing parking fee hypothecation. We also identified minimal community engagement during the implementation of measures, barring political and public acceptability. For the design and implementation of MBD, we emphasise the importance of enabling legal frameworks at a neighbourhood-level, continuous participatory processes, and strategic framing of MBD benefits to build public support.

Urban areas are increasingly coming to the forefront in addressing systemic inequalities caused by complex social, economic, and environmental challenges. The study examines justice-oriented urban development as a transformative framework that prioritizes equity, participation, and sustainability. By ensuring equitable access to quality education, healthcare, public services, affordable housing, and transportation, cities can reduce disparities and promote social mobility. Procedural justice and accountability in governance further strengthen urban systems by fostering trust and supporting inclusive decision-making processes. Global examples such as participatory budgeting, inclusive zoning, and community-driven revitalization projects demonstrate how justice-centered approaches can bridge socio-economic divides and create vibrant urban spaces. Despite these opportunities, the implementation of justice-oriented policies faces significant obstacles, including limited resources, political resistance, and institutional constraints. Overcoming these barriers requires a paradigm shift that positions equity and inclusion as core principles in urban planning and governance. The study argues that justice is not merely an ideal, but also a practical tool for addressing urban inequalities and shaping a more equitable, resilient, and sustainable future. As urban populations grow, cities must adopt innovative and collaborative approaches to transform systemic inequities and empower communities.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the media visibility of investments implemented in Wrocław, with a particular focus on the democratization of urban processes through the Wrocław Participatory Budget (WPB) and to study the public perception of these projects within the local information landscape. The paper presents an integrated analytical methodology combining geospatial data from the Spatial Information System of Wrocław (SIP) with textual data from the full corpus of local news articles from Wrocław. A hybrid data processing pipeline was used, including filtering of articles about Wrocław, geoparsing of location names, matching articles to investments using classic Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency (TF-IDF) models and embedding in language models such as HerBERT, and sentiment analysis using the XLM-T model. The results reveal strong imbalances in the visibility of WPB projects, that almost 90% of investments were not mentioned even once in the media. Temporal sentiment analysis indicated differences between categories of WPB projects. The results confirm the existence of “media deserts” and “islands of attention,” which leads to information exclusion for specific local communities and marginalized groups. This translates into asymmetry in residents’ knowledge of the real scope of the WPB program. The paper emphasizes the importance of Geographic Information System (GIS) fusion methods with natural language processing models (NLP) for urban research, and identifies directions for further analysis, including accompanying problems and limitations in the present day.

Citizen participation has been fundamental in the design and management of public spaces in Valencia over the last decade, promoting spatial justice. Models such as co-creation through participatory budgeting, self-management and social mobilisation have proven their effectiveness. This article focuses on the study of Valencia’s DecidimVLC digital platform, analysing its influence on participatory budgeting over ten years, since its launch in 2015. The research delves into a participatory project with high media coverage focused on the children’s area of Plaza del Cedro, a neighbourhood park with high community involvement. The results are structured in two sections. On the one hand, a general analysis of the DecidimVLC platform is carried out, examining the types of projects it has promoted. On the other, it provides a specific assessment of the results through the case study of the children’s green area, evaluating the impact of direct interaction with the administration on spatial justice and social cohesion. The study confirms that digital tools such as DecidimVLC are a key vehicle for citizen ‘empowerment’, promoting a more equitable and participatory vision of the city.

In the context of Ukraine’s acquisition of the status of a candidate for membership in the European Union, the transformation of regional policy on the basis of cohesion acquires special importance. The relevance of the topic is due to the need to overcome deep interregional disparities, exacerbated by the consequences of armed aggression, and the need to implement European standards of governance in national practice. The purpose of the article is to provide theoretical justification and develop practical recommendations for adapting European models of cohesion policy to Ukrainian realities, with an emphasis on strategic planning and the role of civil society in the processes of territorial renewal. In the process of preparing the article, a set of scientific methods was used: a systemic approach allowed us to consider cohesion policy as a holistic structure of interconnected institutions and social groups; comparative analysis was used to compare the experience of Poland and the Baltic countries in managing structural funds; the induction method contributed to the generalization of local practices of participation to the level of national strategies; predictive modeling was used to determine the prospects for sustainable development of regions. The specifics of adapting the European principle of subsidiarity to martial law conditions have been studied, which requires a balance between decentralization of resources and preservation of vertical control by the state. It has been established that Poland’s experience in combining infrastructure and social projects is the most relevant for the Ukrainian reconstruction model. It has been proven that the digitalization of administrative services is a key tool for overcoming the territorial isolation of remote communities. It has been found that the effectiveness of reforms directly depends on the level of citizen involvement, where e-democracy tools and participatory budgets transform residents into responsible stakeholders of development, increasing the legitimacy of government decisions. The results of the study can be used by state authorities and local governments when developing regional development strategies and post-war reconstruction programs. The formulated recommendations for strengthening social capital through public consultation mechanisms will contribute to increasing the transparency of the use of international assistance and strengthening national unity in the context of integration into the common space of the European Union.

We study the fair and truthful allocation of m divisible public items among n agents, each with distinct preferences for the items. To aggregate agents’ preferences fairly, we focus on finding a core solution. For divisible items, a core solution always exists and can be calculated by maximizing the Nash welfare objective. However, such a solution is easily manipulated; agents might have incentives to misreport their preferences. To mitigate this, the current state-of-the-art finds an approximate core solution with high probability while ensuring approximate truthfulness. However, this approach has two main limitations. First, due to several approximations, the approximation error in the core could grow with n, resulting in a non-asymptotic core solution. This limitation is particularly significant as public-good allocation mechanisms are frequently applied in scenarios involving a large number of agents, such as the allocation of public tax funds for municipal projects. Second, implementing the current approach for practical applications proves to be a highly nontrivial task. To address these limitations, we introduce PPGA, a (differentially) Private Public-Good Allocation algorithm, and show that it attains asymptotic truthfulness and finds an asymptotic core solution with high probability. Additionally, to demonstrate the practical applicability of our algorithm, we implement PPGA and empirically study its properties using municipal participatory budgeting data.

This article analyzes the transformation of Banyuwangi Regency in sustainable development: from a policy innovation perspective. The method used is descriptive qualitative with a literature study approach, where data is taken from various secondary sources, such as official reports, scientific journals, and local statistical data. The results indicate that Banyuwangi District has successfully reduced poverty levels and improved the quality of life for its residents through eco-tourism programs, the digitalization of public services (Smart Kampung), the empowerment of SMEs, and the provision of free education and healthcare services. Additionally, participatory budgeting programs have strengthened local government accountability. The discussion in this study focuses on how innovations in policies that focus on economic, social, and political aspects can create significant impacts that can be applied in other regions. These findings show that Banyuwangi is an example of a successful region in achieving sustainable development by utilizing policy innovations based on public value Keywords: Digital Transformation; Sustainable Development; Policy Innovation

In an era defined by democratic backsliding, political polarization and rising authoritarianism, Karl Popper’s concept of the open society emerges not only as a philosophical anchor but also as a practical blueprint for institutional renewal. This article explores the enduring relevance of Popper’s ideals—critical rationalism, pluralism and transparency—in confronting today’s political challenges, from populism and performative politics to youth disenfranchisement and digital misinformation. Through an engagement with contemporary scholarship, including the works of Gerson, Ingrams, Ani and Okoye, Esfeld and Scott-Phillips, the article traces how modern democratic crises mirror the totalitarian threats that initially prompted Popper’s vision. Far from being a relic of mid-20th-century liberal thought, the open society offers a vital framework for democratic resilience in the face of institutional distrust and eroding civic engagement. The article argues that meaningful institutional reforms—such as participatory budgeting, citizens’ assemblies and algorithmic transparency—must be rooted in Popperian critical discourse. It further emphasizes the transformative role of youth agency, civic education and digital literacy in shaping an informed and engaged polity. Ultimately, this study underscores the urgency of renewing democratic deliberation by internalizing the open society not just as a political aspiration but as a lived institutional practice that adapts to complex, pluralistic societies.

Drawing on the institutional work perspective, we examine participatory budgeting (PB) implementation at Bayswater City Council, Western Australia, focusing on how institutional practices recalibrated the process following an initial failure. We show that the initial failure stemmed from insufficient discursive, material, and relational work, leading to low community engagement and trust deficits. Subsequent recalibration included reframing PB narratives, introducing accessible tools, fostering stakeholder relationships, and enabling alignment of community viewpoints with the council’s strategic goals. This study contributes insights into how intentional institutional practices transform participatory governance systems, offering valuable lessons for implementing inclusive and effective PB processes.

This study aims to analyze the implementation of responsibility accounting as a tool for evaluating management performance in BPJS claim services at Mitra Sehat Regional Public Hospital. The research uses a qualitative descriptive method with data collected through interviews, observations, and documentation. The results show that the hospital has implemented key elements of responsibility accounting effectively, including a clear organizational structure, responsibility centers, participatory budgeting, cost classification, and periodic responsibility reporting. This system supports management in controlling and assessing unit performance, particularly in BPJS claim management. In 2024, of 5,763 submitted claims, 82% were approved, 14.2% pending, and 4.1% rejected, with approved claims accounting for 75.2% of total submitted costs. These findings indicate that responsibility accounting is fairly effective, though improvements in unit cost reporting and administrative accuracy are still needed.

Employee ownership, as workplace democracy in practice, depends on credible rules aligning worker voice with distributive outcomes. This study tests how internal accounting transparency and democratic participation shape the credibility and performance of gain sharing in employee-owned firms across Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Drawing on workplace democracy, information processing, and stewardship theories, we argue that routine disclosure of financial metrics builds trust in surplus allocation rules, while participatory governance turns trust into cooperative effort and performance. Using cross-national data and linear mixed models with country random effects, we find that (i) transparency and participation associate with higher credibility and uptake of gain sharing; and (ii) their interaction is positive, indicating complementarity between information openness and democratic voice. Results are stable across alternative operationalizations and institutional controls. Codifying transparent disclosure and participatory budgeting can stabilize expectations, reduce conflict, and sustain performance.

ABSTRACT Early detection of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias is needed in rural areas, which experience increased cognitive risks. Rural multiculturally diverse residents, providers, educators and students participated in ORCHID, a quasi-experimental, dementia-focused study. Only 36% of patients in the provider intervention group were diagnosed/treated in-house, while 19% in the control group were referred out despite increases in pre-post provider confidence of 9.4 ± 3.1 and 13.0 ± 2.2 in both groups. The ORCHID clinical trial revealed limitations, which were informed by considering Yeh’s model of participatory budgeting and Gan et al.’s Dementia Care and Prevention in Community framework.

Institutions play a crucial role in organizing, systematizing, and simplifying public life, enabling the planning of activities and structuring the behavior of individuals. In Poland, various institutionalized and formalized instruments of civic engagement are commonly used at the local level, particularly in municipalities (Kołomycew, 2023). However, since 2013, there has been a surge in democratic innovations, such as participatory budgeting and, since 2016, citizens’ assemblies (CAs), which serve as deliberative instruments of a quasi-decisive nature (Gerwin, 2018; Podgórska-Rykała, 2020; Pospieszna & Pietrzyk-Reeves, 2024; Ufel, 2022). This article explores the process of institutionalizing CAs in Poland by analyzing the evolution and content of their Rules of Procedure (RoPs). We focus on Poland due to its unique position as one of the first Central and Eastern European countries to join the deliberative wave (Carson & Gerwin, 2018; OECD, 2020). Using a triangulated theoretical approach that draws from neo-institutionalism, structuration theory, and critical institutionalism, this article investigates how formalization, practice, and political creativity interact in shaping this democratic innovation. The study is based on a comparative analysis of 10 local climate assemblies organized between 2016 and 2023. Its findings suggest that while RoPs serve as formalizing scripts, they also reflect evolving practices and localized reinterpretations that expand the civic potential of CAs.

The longstanding debate around the trade-offs of formalizing institutions of citizen participation (ICPs) within legal frameworks is currently facing a revival with the spread of citizens’ assemblies. Among arguments in favour of “more” institutionalization, the expectation that it will protect ICPs from eventual political changes stands out. Among arguments against institutionalization, the fear of crystallizing certain “recipes” translates concerns that overly routinized institutions can be more easily manipulated. But what exactly does institutionalization entail? We offer three contributions to this conversation. First, we define institutionalization, identifying four constitutive dimensions: formalization, political embedding, professionalization, and social engagement. It is rare for any ICP to achieve high degrees of all four dimensions. Second, we propose four connected arguments: (a) the debate is not whether to institutionalize or not but about contextual configurations, (b) formalization alone does not guarantee the persistence or success of ICPs, (c) the extent and form of institutionalization will and should vary across ICPs and over time, and (d) if any single dimension of institutionalization stands out as crucial, it is political embedding. Third, we explore these ideas by analyzing three Latin American ICPs: popular initiatives (direct decision-making), participatory budgeting (deliberative decision-making), and sortition-based citizens’ assemblies (consultative deliberation).

Gender continues to influence participation in rural governance and economic development. This study examines how gender roles influence participation and leadership in local development organizations (LDOs) and local economic organizations (LEOs) in Ampekale Village, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Using a qualitative case study design that combined in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and participant observation, this research draws on insights from 24 key informants (12 men and 10 women), including village officials, organizational leaders, women's groups, NGO facilitators, and community members. The data were thematically coded and analyzed to capture the dynamics of gendered participation. The results show that men dominate leadership and infrastructure planning within LDOs, whereas women's involvement is often symbolic and restricted to welfare and social concerns. In LEOs, women are increasingly active in small-scale enterprises such as crab and snack production. Although these roles are aligned with domestic responsibilities, they enhance household bargaining power and expand women's visibility in governance. Men continue to lead physically demanding production and procurement, but women contribute substantially to value addition, marketing, and household welfare. The findings indicate that entrenched cultural norms, unequal access to resources, and limited leadership opportunities constrain women's influence. To foster equitable rural development, gender-sensitive reforms, such as quotas, participatory budgeting, training, and leadership mentoring are essential.

Direct participation of people in budgeting is examined under the title of participatory budgeting (PB), and research results con-firm its effect on improving performance and achieving organizational goals. This study aims to investigate the effect of PB on the Hamadan Municipality Organization and also on the social responsibility of managers through professional ethics. The statistical population of this study comprises 160 managers of Hamadan Municipality. The sample size is determined using the Morgan Table and the Cochrane formula (n=113). Data are collected through stratified random sampling using a comprehensive, researcher-de-signed questionnaire that integrates Belkaoui PB (1990), Maignan and Ferrell CSR (2002), and Cadozier PE (2002) questionnai-res. Research analysis is conducted using SPSS and PLS software. Results indicate a positive and significant nexus between PB and the social responsibility of managers, both directly and indirectly, through the mediating role of professional ethics

ABSTRACT Participatory budgeting (PB) has been widely studied as a strategy to enhance civic engagement and strengthen local governance, yet citizens often remain reluctant to engage in PB activities. Drawing on Brenner et al. (2007), we manipulate two dimensions of loss aversion - valence and possession - to to examine their influence on citizens’ willingness to participate. Results show that both forms of loss aversion affect participation willingness, although in-person meetings are harder to motivate than remote participation. Moreover, willingness to participate in person is higher when citizens are randomly selected by the government rather than elected by residents.