ABOUT THE ROLE:
The Budget Office is seeking a Participatory Budgeting (PB) and Engagement Intern beginning in late summer of 2026 ending in March 2027 to support the City of Cambridge Budget Office in running the thirteenth cycle of Cambridge Participatory Budgeting (PB13) and citywide budget engagement efforts.
Through the Participatory Budgeting process, Cambridge residents age 12 and older, including non-US citizens, will vote on how to spend City funds as part of the City’s annual Budget.
Under the direction of the Budget Director and the Participatory Budgeting & Engagement Coordinator, the PB intern will be instrumental in helping to plan and run the PB13 cycle. The intern will participate in conducting outreach and gathering PB ideas from community members in summer and fall of 2026. The intern will then continue to support the Budget Office in organizing and running PB delegate meetings throughout the winter, and plan and support the vote in March 2027. The intern will also support the planning and organization of other budget engagement events throughout the internship period.
This internship is an excellent opportunity to learn about and become involved in municipal government, civic engagement, and community building. Cambridge residents are especially encouraged to apply. Please visit pb.cambridgema.gov for more information about Participatory Budgeting in Cambridge.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:
Intern duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to the following:
Assist in running idea collection workshops in community groups throughout the summer, including collaborating with City departments in order to maximize participation. Assist in sharing information and project updates on ongoing PB projects through promotional materials, community events, and other communications.
Attend and assist PB tabling activities, including set up and clean up, at various city events throughout the summer and early fall.
Reach out to nonprofit, neighborhood, and community-based organizations to form and maintain partnerships to promote PB; expand and strengthen outreach efforts to involve more underserved communities in PB; distribute PB flyers and posters around Cambridge; draft social media posts to promote PB events.
Collaborate with the City Communications team to create promotional materials for Idea Collection, Proposal Development, and the Vote.
Enter paper and email PB ideas into online idea collection mapping tool; manage multiple PB contact lists; compile notes from PB meetings; manage various PB idea datasets for analysis.
Support community events and volunteer delegate meetings throughout the proposal development process.
Create content for the PB newsletter throughout the cycle.
Support in planning and organizing engagement events on the City’s budget utilizing PB engagement strategies.
Assist Budget Office staff with other duties as necessary.
Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
Currently enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate school program with a strong interest in community engagement, local government, or municipal budget/finance.
Extremely organized, reliable, detail-oriented, and able to work independently.
Outgoing and friendly; very comfortable speaking to members of the public one-on-one and in groups.
Ability to attend in-person events in Cambridge.
Ability to work well with people from diverse backgrounds.
Excellent writing skills.
Knowledge of Cambridge and it's neighborhoods.
Proficiency in Microsoft Office and Google Drive required; proficiency with Zoom, Teams, Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and/or InDesign is a plus.
Fluency in Spanish, Chinese/Mandarin, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, Arabic, Bangla, Hindi, Japanese, or Amharic is a plus (to assist with interacting with the City’s diverse population).
The City of Cambridge's workforce, like the community it serves, is diverse. Applicants must have the ability to work and interact effectively with individuals and groups with a variety of identities, cultures, backgrounds, and ideologies.
REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:
Please upload the below documents to complete your application:
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, a nexus of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Notably, Cambridge is home to two internationally prominent universities, Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. According to a 2008 census estimate the city population was 105,594. It is the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, Worcester, and Springfield. Cambridge is one of the two county seats of Middlesex County (Lowell is the other).
The site for what would become Cambridge was chosen in December 1630, because it was located safely up river from Boston Harbor, which made it easily defensible from attacks by enemy ships. The first houses were built in the spring of 1631. The settlement was initially referred to as "the newe towne". Official Massachusetts records show the name capitalized as Newe Towne by 1632. Located at the first convenient Charles River crossing west of Boston, Newe Towne was one of a number of towns (including Boston, Dorchester, Watertown, and Weymouth) founded by the 700 original Puritan colonists of the Massachusetts Bay Colony under governor John Winthrop. The original village site is in the heart of today's Harvard Square. The marketplace where farmers brought in crops from surrounding towns to sell survives today as the small park at the corner of John F. Kennedy (J.F.K.) and Winthrop Streets, then at the edge of a salt marsh, since filled.
