The Société de développement économique Ville-Marie (CLD) has awarded Open North $10,000 to support its work of better involving citizens in the decision-making processes of governments in Canada. Open North received the grant through the SDEVM’s Development Fund for Social Economy Enterprise (FDEÉS) which aims to support nonprofits and cooperatives based in the Montreal borough of Ville-Marie.
The SDEVM’s mission is to provide frontline services to businesses in Ville-Marie in order to create sustainable enterprises that generate new jobs and services and increase the quality of life in downtown Montreal.
This grant was made in particular to support Citizen Budget, our consultative budget simulator. Citizen Budget is already used by two municipal governments – Plateau Mont-Royal and Newmarket – and more are planning to implement the tool later this year. With the support of SDEVM, Open North is able to promote to more municipalities the advantages of involving citizens in the difficult choices and trade-offs surrounding municipal budgets.