The ballots for the City of Victoria’s inaugural Participatory Budgeting process have been tallied and the top three projects have been announced!
4,300 residents voted! $52,500 will fund these Participatory Budgeting projects: an employment training program for our most vulnerable citizens, a pop-up native bee apiary and an educational learning garden! Democracy in action! https://t.co/2Mn4fJojpd #participatorybudgeting pic.twitter.com/4KlWnJvtN8
— City of Victoria (@CityOfVictoria) January 31, 2018
Earlier this year 28 individuals and organizations submitted ideas for community projects. Eight ideas were then shared with the community for the purpose of voting between Dec. 13, and Jan. 20.
The winning projects include an employment preparedness training program for Victoria’s most vulnerable citizens, a “pop-up native bee apiary” and an educational learning garden.
The City will distribute $52,500 worth of funding to the community-based projects.
Photo credit: City of Victoria
Project details include:
- Next Steps Employment Program: ($25,000) A program by Our Place Society that will create pathways to employment for Victoria’s most vulnerable citizens.
- Urban Alive Pop-Up Native Bee Apiary ($11,500): Border Free Bees, Emily Carr University and Pollinator Partnerships Canada will collaboratively design and build an apiary to house docile native bees and educate the public on the crucial role they play in natural ecosystems.
- Learning Garden: ($16,000) Food Eco District (FED) and LifeCycles Project Society will build an educational outdoor classroom at the Greater Victoria Public Library’s downtown branch.
The winning projects will be implemented later this year.
For more information, visit the City of Victoria website.
