“Who gets to create, control, and benefit from the means of exchange must be one of the most basic principles of Democracy.” – Gordon Wilsom                                                           Read more about 4/27 Newsletter: Eyes on the Prize[…]

“Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not come yet. We only have today. Lets begin.” – Mother Teresa.  All of history has led up to the point where we find ourselves today. The “Land of the Free” has not lived up to its moniker since its inception; the Community Democracy Project aims to change that. The days Read more about 4/18 Newsletter: Mayor Releases Budget Proposal[…]

“Unjust laws exist: shall we be content to obey them, or shall we endeavor to amend them, and obey them until we have succeeded…”-Henry David Thoreau     GEAR UP CDP, WE LAUNCH IN JUNE!            Come summer, we will be hitting the streets of Oakland to gather signatures from those who share Read more about 4/11/13 Newsletter: We Launch in June[…]

    “Throw a pebble into the water and create ripples.” – Yoko Ohno“Good ideas are common – what’s uncommon are people who’ll work hard enough to bring them about.” – Ashleigh Brilliant Hello, CDPeeps!  How’s it going? FLASHBACK: I know our 2nd Community Building Event, Budget 101 was almost a month ago, but I’m Read more about 4/4/13 Newsletter: Throw A Pebble…[…]

Dear CDP community! Thanks for helping us reach 100 likes on facebook this week! Our 100th ‘like’ came from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico–excitement for people-powered democracy is international, indeed! We’re feeling the buzz: you’ve been dropping by our meetings and we welcomed new faces at our recent “Oakland Budget 101” community building event. Share the love! Read more about 03/19/13 Newsletter: 100 likes[…]

Our second Community Building gathering was a success =) *We had a good mix of folk, ranging from long-time CDP supporters and members to brand newbies. *We broke bread, shared personal stories, and learned about how the budget works. *We talked about next steps-—including having a presence at upcoming community budget forums, making an awesome Read more about 03/14/13 Newsletter: Connect, Learn, Organize[…]

http://communitydemocracyproject.org/ From the Wikipedia article on Porto Allegre, Brazil: “The first full participatory budgeting process was developed in the city starting in 1989. Participatory budgeting was part of a number of innovative reform programs to overcome severe inequality in living standards amongst city residents. One third of the city’s residents lived in isolated slums at the city Read more about 03/4/13 Newsletter: Community Building[…]

Happy Sunday, CDP friends! Bulletin Board: Do you have a passion for drawing, illustration, digital arts/graphic design, or similar things? Every good campaign has good lookin’ art and visuals, and we need you! Click over to our volunteer page, and mention that you do art in the comments section! Know of an event or neighborhood spot where we Read more about 02/24/13 Newsletter: Bulletin Board[…]

Dear CDP community, Thanks to you, we have 70% of the pledged signature gathering shifts we need to launch a strong volunteer signature campaign! What does this mean for us? In a little over a year, we have: We’ve reached hundreds of Oaklanders at festivals, on street corners, in parks, and online—and turned conversations into relationships and Read more about 2/12/13 Newsletter: No Stopping Us[…]

  Greetings, Brothers and Sisters in the movement to build a people-powered democracy!   More than ever it is plain to see: We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. The time to step up to the plate, the time to take our game to the next level, is now.   Some ways we’re stepping Read more about 2/8/13 Newsletter: Halfway Home[…]