Visegrad Youth Participates

Strengthening democracy through school participatory budgeting

All around the world, current models of political participation and education do not provide sufficient opportunities for youth engagement and leave young people ill-prepared to active citizenship. As current political institutions in Central and Eastern Europe grapple with the decline of democracy and consequences of the COVID-19 pandemics, we see an ever greater need to engage young people in continuous dialogue about the future of local democracies in order to preserve national, regional, and global stability and well-being. 

In order to address these issues, some actors, including in Visegrad countries, are starting to experiment with School Participatory Budgeting (PB). Such PB engages students in deciding how to spend a part of their institution’s budget. These processes help develop leadership skills in youth, improve civic learning, and inspire the lifelong active citizenship that is vital to the health of democracy. For young people, this is often their first chance to propose and vote on real projects to improve their community.

Through the cooperation of organisations and the implementation of the project, partners will be able to engage a wide number of potential implementers of other School PB projects, and advocates of school PB. It will also aim to produce regional guidelines and advocacy materials based on local best practices and lessons learned from Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic that will be shared with other local actors to help them ensure higher levels of preparedness and engagement of young people in social and political life not only in their respective communities but also on the regional and European level. 

Downloadable material with lessons learnt, case studies, and suggestions for further reading

This material serves as a comprehensive guide for educators, policy makers and stakeholders interested in promoting participatory democracy in educational institutions and beyond. Through detailed case studies, you can explore successful implementations of participatory budgeting initiatives in schools and highlight best practices and innovative approaches from the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland. The insights gained from these case studies provide practical strategies and methodologies for implementing and sustaining participatory budgeting processes in different educational settings. In addition, the downloadable material offers suggestions for further reading to deepen understanding and broaden knowledge of participatory budgeting in schools. By sharing experiences, knowledge and resources, this material aims to facilitate informed decision-making and inspire collaborative efforts to promote student participation, democratic values, and active citizenship.