Blog Post: Why Are We So Passionate About Participatory Budgeting?

Why Are We Passionate About Participatory Budgeting?

Introduction:

If you’ve visited our old website, you would have seen the message: "The participatory budgeting blockchain.”

In this blog post, we look at what is participatory budgeting and why it is so vital to the Causevest Network.

Post Summary:

  • Participatory budgeting empowers individuals to influence resource allocation from a bottom-up perspective.

  • One cause of inequality is simply a lack of choice and accountability

  • Inspired by case studies we can see the positive impact of participatory budgeting.

  • Causevest’s interest in participatory budgeting is to combat fraudulent, wasteful, and wealth-destructive top-down resource allocation.

  • Causevest allows the creation of new debt instruments backed by the public and voted on by the entire population

  • Causevest’s blockchain embeds participatory budgeting technology into everything it touches.

Understanding Participatory Budgeting:

Government policy decisions linked to resource allocation almost always seem to involve a hidden consultation. You are never asked, your opinion is ignored, and unwanted decisions without public backing are enforced.

Yet, when they go wrong, you are expected to foot the bill in the form of debt and the decision makers end up both mysteriously rich and unaccountable.

You will then hear the predictable echo of "we need to increase taxes because we have so much debt”

This needs to end.

Participatory budgeting is the solution to this problem.

Participatory budgeting is a form of liquid democracy allows individuals to reallocate resources in their area from a bottom-up perspective. It is a grassroots approach that empowers communities to influence the division of resources in their areas.

This differs from projects involving top-down decisions. For example, the “High Speed 2” project in the UK, is financed and allocated by the government. These projects are wasteful, sabotaged, and often ruinous for their local populations. With examples from across the world, government failure is a tale as old as time. This is of course my opinion and others might have a different opinion but none of our opinions make a difference.

Participatory budgeting prevents moral waste. In that, the individuals take part of the ownership in decision-making. It empowers communities to decide where the resources go.

We have built a blockchain that at its very core is built on top of an organic participatory budgeting system, giving you a say in all the decision-making and a ownership of the results good or bad.


Now i understand some people might not want that responsibility the Cause vest Network lets you delegate it to others but you have the power to act yourself.

Allocation inequality is the problem

In many nations, leaders often express their desire to combat wealth inequality. Their strategies usually involve redistributing wealth from one group to another, ostensibly to serve the greater good.

Regardless of the government in power, a small, elite group invariably retains control over how funds are distributed. This form of inequality, we believe, deserves our attention and action.

The Causevest blockchain offers a solution through a unique form of direct democracy, one that emphasizes equitable wealth distribution. By empowering individuals to have a direct say in financial decisions that effect them, Causevest Coin aims to dismantle the entrenched systems of allocation inequality and promote a more just and transparent economic framework.

Going Further On Chain: Tackling Fraudulent and Wasteful Allocation

Causevest’s commitment to participatory budgeting goes beyond empowering communities; it’s a battle against the many pitfalls of top-down resource allocation one of the major ones being corruption.

It amazes me how people can in this modern day become poor due to decisions made by governments that they have absolutely no say in beyond a general election every few years.

We have seen multiple elected governments influenced by corrupt third parties bring in policies that purposefully impoverish their domestic population this must STOP!

Causevest will addresses the destructive consequences of top-down allocation, by both giving people a say and holding them personally accountable for their decisions.

Causevest Bonds: DE-FI Public-Backed Debt Instruments

Traditional bonds are created and sold by banks and governments. These bonds lead to inflation and extracting wealth from the public.

For me personally, as one of the founders of Causevest, the main reason behind the creation of Causevest is to create the technology for new types of debt instruments that are backed by the public.

We envision a revolutionary change by allowing the public to vote on debt issuances directly especially if their long term wealth is effected.

The Role of Causevest’s Blockchain: Transparency in Decision-Making

Embedded in Causevest’s code is our participatory budgeting technology. This means that whether you’re voting for a cause or a debt issuance, everything is traceable on our blockchain. Transparency is key and all users will easily be able to see the impact of their decision making on our block explorer.

Democratic Decline:

We understand not everyone wants to be involved in decision making and that’s fine but what about those people who do? There are no democratic systems that allow for additional involvement beyond petitions that are ultimately ignored and with your support Causevest can finally change this.

Since 2020 and before, democracy has faced steady erosion.

A fundamental reality of real poverty is the lack of choice. A participatory budgeting blockchain offers a solution to this issue.

From a philosophical standpoint we can learn from ancient Athens.

Conclusion: Causevest’s Pledge to a Better Future

In conclusion we are building a blockchain that you can be proud to own, that you can utilise to impact the causes that matter to you.