Civic participation at the local level — an example of the city of Opole

Abstract

The issue of citizen participation at the local level becomes important in the practice of Polish cities. However, it should be noted that the initiatives on participation in social consultations undertaken in this area are of an optional nature. The experiences of individual urban centres regarding the involvement of residents in this type of political participation are probably very diverse. The participation of the local community enables real recognition and taking into account the needs and expectations of the residents regarding shaping their immediate environment. Thus, it influences the improvement of the quality of life and the optimization of the urban offer. Bad experiences from participation may result in weakening the willingness to continue (both by local authorities and residents). To promote good practices, it is therefore necessary to systematize knowledge in the field of research in question. The aim of the article is at least partially to fill the gap in the presented research area, while the research perspective narrows down to the administrative borders of the city of Opole. Due to the diversity of participation categories referring to the term “civic participation”, it should be noted that the content of this article focuses only on two of them, namely the involvement of Opole’s residents in public consultations and the civic budget.