Indications are that the Swiss rejected the Basic Income referendum 4:1. Yet, this is not a defeat as Jim Pugh explains. Meanwhile, support for Basic Income is rising in the UK. The Green Party already had Basic Income in their general election manifesto. Heather Stewart reports in The Guardian that the Labour party is taking a look at this idea, with both John McDonnell, …
Tag: Universal Basic Income
Roundup of Basic Income pilots conducted
Here’s a short list of pilots of Universal Basic Income. The pilot in India by UNICEF & SEWA in Madhya Pradesh is presently considered the best study. Watch the video, read the executive summary, the full report, or buy the book. Bolsa Familia in Brazil is a conditional cash transfer, but probably one of the largest. We should not forget Scott Santens, who has a …
March roundup on Basic Income
With the exploding interest in Basic Income, Scott Santens sends out his first monthly update. Scott is one of the more thoughtful writers on the subject. Interestingly, Scott has created his personal basic income (through Patreon), so that he can focus on advocating the idea.
India Network for Basic Income
We are proposing that the real income from the Goenchi Mati Permanent Fund be distributed equally to all as a right of ownership over the commons, a Citizen’s Dividend. The Citizen’s Dividend is actually a form of Unconditional Basic Income. A group of concerned citizens have formed the India Network for Basic Income, to examine all varieties of Basic Income. Like …
The AI case for a Universal Basic Income
Scott Santens warns that the recent victory of Google’s Deep Mind in the game of Go portends a very rapid automation of an overwhelming majority of jobs. For instance, “Amelia is just one AI out there currently being beta-tested in companies right now. Created by IPsoft over the past 16 years, she’s learned how to perform the work of call center employees. …
Gross National Happiness and poverty
Casey Ready muses about the link between our values, Gross National Happiness, poverty and the Mincome experiment (a Universal Basic Income experiment in Canada between 1974 & 1978). The image is from Bhutan.
Is Kazakhstan planning a UBI
The Kazakhstan government is banning smartphones within the government. The reason is the continuing leak of government information. Among the leaks is a presidential decree to the government ordering the ministers to analyze possibilities of introducing unconditional basic income. Unfortunately, there isn’t much more information available online in english. Kazakhstan set up the Natural Fund of the Republic of Kazakhstan in 2000 from …
Nauru’s Citizen’s Dividend
The tiny pacific island of Nauru is a cautionary tale for mineral royalties being saved in a Permanent Fund and paying out a Citizen’s Dividend. The island was covered by guano, a form of phosphate, a fertilizer. The royalties from phosphate mining resulted in Nauru having the highest per capita income in the world. The phosphate royalties were paid into the Nauru …
The realistic Swiss
Switzerland will be having a referendum later this year on whether to implement a Universal Basic Income or not. There’s been a survey done, and the results are interesting. Only 2% would give up working. 56% of the population thinks Basic Income will never be implemented. People under 35 are more optimistic – 58% feel it will be implemented. However, …
Sudden burst of interest in the UK
A few weeks back, the Green MP Caroline Lucas tabled a discussion in the House of Commons on Basic Income. Now the Labour Shadow Chancellor, John McDonnell says the Labour party will not rule out a Universal Basic Income. Incidentally, some of his key advisors are proponents of Basic Income. John McDonnell also has a connection to Goa – his wife is Goan. …