People Powered, a hub for participatory democracy, is recruiting its second cohort for the Climate Democracy Action accelerator, a global program to support government and civil society leaders as they launch participatory programs to shape climate policy in their communities.
The program is open to applicants from all over the world, with space for 15 participants. Applications will close July 24.
The Climate Democracy Action accelerator is a six-month, practice-oriented training and support program. Each participant will develop a project to implement a climate-focused participatory program that addresses the needs and voices of local communities. Cohort members will have access to step-by-step resources like People Powered’s Participation Playbook, an interactive, online tool for designing participatory programs. They’ll also be paired with a dedicated mentor, work with peers in live sessions and online courses, and receive a $10,000 grant to implement their work.
This will be the second cohort for the accelerator, following an initial group of 32 leaders from 22 countries who graduated in October 2022. Leaders in that cohort came from organizations like the Community Initiative Action Group Kenya, which is leading a participatory budgeting project focused on climate change adaptation in western Kenya; and the Green Governance Trust, which is building a legislative theater program for youth in Chipinge, Zimbabwe.
In total, the first cohort included fifteen participatory policymaking plans, nine citizens’ assemblies, five participatory budgeting programs and three legislative theater projects.
“To tackle the climate crisis, governments have a mandate to enable and encourage citizens, civil society, activists and more to participate in shaping and implementing climate policies,” says People Powered Communications Director Pam Bailey. “By expanding public participation and bringing marginalized voices into decision-making, governments can create climate-focused policies that are equitable and responsive to community needs.”
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