A Basic Income is a periodic cash payment unconditionally delivered to all on an individual basis, without means-test or work requirement.
The Royal Society of Arts Explains: [2 minutes]
Recent News, Opinion, and Research
UK: The current welfare state is reaching its limits, as evidence on inequality and poverty in the UK is surfaced
Philip Alston. Picture credit to: BBC News Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, was in the UK last November 2018, presenting his findings on this press conference. It seems that the UK, the 5th world economy in terms of GDP, drags...
Australia: Attempt to Form the Citizen’s Dividend Party
Picture Credit: Timothy Swinson Paul Ross is trying to found the Citizen’s Dividend Party (CDP) in Australia, and to take part in the election of May 2019. The foundational pledge, as found on the website, is: “To render...
International: Free Lunch Society film finished and soon to be released
Milton Friedman once gave a lecture in which he demonstrated, in a very particular logic, that the so-called “free lunch” was a myth. The origin of the term is unknown, but in early twentieth century it was already in use. Since then it has been so frequently employed...
India: Sikkim state is on the verge of becoming the first place on Earth implementing a basic income
Flowers, on the way to the mountain. Picture credit to: Rookie's Journal Sikkim, the second smallest state in India, has grown a reputation, over the years, for environmental consciousness, ethnical diversity and tourism. It is also the home of one of the most...
India: 2019 General Elections and basic income
Indian woman worker with spectacles. Picture credit to: Sarah Day New ideas seem to be running dry in the Indian political context. Within Congress, Government (BJP – Bharatiya Janata Party) and opposition parties (ex.: AAP - Aam Aadmi Party). Tweaking with the...
France: The “yellow vests” movement spurs renewed discussion over the economy, society and basic income
A new series of demonstrations have erupted in France: the “gilet jaunes [yellow vests]”. This movement started in 2018, from an online petition which had grown 300 000 signatures large by October. From there, massive street demonstrations have followed, with...
Farmers’ Distress, Electoral Democracy and Basic Income Discussion in India
In the last two weeks, there has been much speculation in some sections of media about Prime Minister Narendra Modi seriously considering basic income as a policy option..
Michael Howard: “We have two years to avoid climate disaster. A carbon fee and dividend will help”
Michael Howard. Picture credit to: University of Maine Michael Howard, a professor of Philosophy and Political economy at the University of Maine, who also specializes in environmental issues, has published an article on how a carbon fee and dividend might help...
International: Basic Income Earth Conference 2019 announcement (call for papers)
The Call for Papers for the 19th Basic Income Earth Network (BIEN) Congress, in Hyderabad, India, has been released. From the 22nd through the 25th of August 2019, scholars, community organizers and artists are invited to make presentations pertaining to any of the...
Book Announcement: A Critical Analysis of Basic Income Experiments for Researchers, Policymakers, and Citizens
Karl Widerquist has published a new book, titled A Critical Analysis of Basic Income Experiments for Researchers, Policymakers, and Citizens. It focuses on the actuality of basic income experiments, and presents the following summary: At least six different...
New Research Dispels Common Myths About Unconditional Cash Transfers
Credit Picture to: The Open University A new paper, “Myth-Busting? Confronting Six Common Perceptions about Unconditional Cash Transfers as a Poverty Reduction Strategy in Africa”, based upon evidence collected in eight Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) over a decade, presents...
Canada: Canada’s Federal Government is assembling a National Advisory Council on Poverty
Picture credit to: Opportunity for All (Government of Canada) Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development for the Canadian Federal Government, has launched a call for applications to assemble a so-called National Advisory Council on...