On a landmark Earth Day at City Hall, Mayor Ras J. Baraka and Chief Sustainability Officer Nicole Hewitt-Cabral announced the winning projects of the Gen Green initiative. This program is the first of its kind in the nation—a youth led participatory budgeting process focused entirely on climate and sustainability. By putting the power of the purse directly into the hands of the next generation, Newark is proving that young people are not just imagining a sustainable future. They are building it.
The Office of Sustainability, Resilience, and Community Transformation set aside $50,000 for Newark residents aged 23 and under to determine exactly how those funds should be invested. This process included 24 schools and multiple afterschool programs, engaging more than 3,000 young voters who cast ballots on 14 community proposed projects.
Habits and Agency
Mayor Baraka emphasized that Gen Green is about more than just the environment. It is about instilling democratic habits and confidence in our youth.
“In Newark, this is a priority—to foster democratic habits and include youth in the electoral process that is our American birthright,” said Mayor Baraka. “Because the next generation is now deciding what their future will be, we know Newark is moving toward environmental stability.”
The initiative was supported by the Participatory Budgeting Project and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, creating a model for democracy where the people most impacted by public decisions are the ones leading the way…