One of the proposals championed during the 2020 Democratic primary was a baby bond, which would create steadily growing accounts for each child that they could access when they turn 18. Jamie Morgan, a PhD student at the Heller School of Social

The $1200 Check for Every American and What’s Yet to Come

Apr 6th, 2020 16m 22s

Recently, the CARES Act, the largest coronavirus relief package to date was signed into law, and it included, among many other things, a $1200 check for every legal adult resident making $75,000 (or $150,000 for couples), and $500 for each of t

Basic Income Interest Surges Due To COVID-19 Crisis

Mar 24th, 2020 19m 41s

While interest in universal basic income has increased steadily over the last five years, it has surged to unprecedented levels over the last five weeks. Cash transfers, either as a one-off or an ongoing program, are being discussed on both sid

Leah Hamilton: Why Basic Income Could Address Issues of Welfare Programs

Mar 17th, 2020 20m 35s

We often mention that our current welfare programs have serious inefficiencies, bottlenecks and unnecessary filters, and on this episode, we delve into the tragic human toll these bureaucratic issues cause. Dr. Leah Hamilton, author of Welfare

Alex Howlett: Making Basic Income Dynamic and Responsive

Mar 4th, 2020 18m 8s

The amount that everyone would receive under a basic income is generally stated as $1000 per month, give or take, with any nod to how this amount would change contained in the occasional "chained to inflation" at the end. Our guest this week, A

Stacey Rutland: Building a Post-Yang Campaign Basic Income Movement

Feb 25th, 2020 20m 25s

The Andrew Yang presidential campaign introduced millions of people to the idea of basic income, and galvanized many who are excited by the idea. Income Movement is an organization looking to build on this progress to create a sustained nationa

Jeremie Greer: Designing a Liberation Economy

Feb 16th, 2020 22m 13s

Most of us recognize that the way our economy operates today is leaving a lot of people behind. But what would it actually look like to have an economy that worked for everyone, and in particular, people of color who have been excluded in the p

Bliss Broyard: An Intimate Look at Basic Income Recipients in Stockton

Dec 18th, 2019 30m 7s

We have heard much about the basic income trial in Stockton, CA, and finally got some aggregate statistics earlier this year. These averages and other global reports are an important part of the story, but the actual experience of receiving unc

Morgan Harper: Running for Congress in Ohio on Universal Income

Nov 27th, 2019 21m 9s

While Andrew Yang has brought basic income to the national stage, we are seeing more and more state and local politicians exploring the idea as well. One of them is Morgan Harper, who is seeking to represent Ohio's 3rd Congressional District. H

Michael Stynes & Steve Nunez: Designing UBI Pilot Programs

Nov 20th, 2019 32m 19s

While there is much excitement around the various basic income pilots in progress or under consideration in the U.S. and around the world, it is worthwhile to ask what their value is, and how we can design them to maximize their value. Michael

Sukhi Samra: Early Results From The Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration

Nov 10th, 2019 15m 22s

The Stockton SEED demonstration has drawn national attention as a modern basic income trial. Recently, we got the first reports from basic recipients there, who are receiving $500 a month, funded by the Economic Security Project. The results ba

Workers Strength Fund: Providing financial security to precarious American workers

Nov 1st, 2019 27m 12s

For most of the late 20th century, having a job provided you with enough financial security to have a decent life in the United States. But today, millions of American workers are living in extreme precarity, just one emergency expense away fro

Conrad Shaw: The UBI Calculator

Oct 23rd, 2019 16m 27s

If we were to fund a basic income of $1,000 a month with a wealth tax, a carbon tax, some program consolidation and deficit spending, how much would your bank account increase or decrease after your income and current government assistance are

Basic Income Q&A: Paying for it, Inflation, and the Path Forward

Oct 8th, 2019 24m 26s

Recently we reached out to our audience asking for questions on basic income. This episode takes on three big ones: will rent and other costs increase, eating up the benefits of the UBI? How could a basic income fit into a national budget with

Rep. Tami Gouveia: Massachusetts Considers a Basic Income Pilot

Oct 1st, 2019 24m 48s

Recently, legislation was introduced in Massachusetts to launch a state-funded basic income trial. The bill would create a pilot project involving 300 families over three years. We spoke with one of the legislators, Rep. Tami Gouveia, proposing

Robert Stayton: Could Solar Dividends Provide a Basic Income?

Sep 25th, 2019 18m 54s

Robert Stayton proposes an outside-the-box idea for how to provide both ample clean energy and a basic income on the local, state or national level: solar dividends. This proposal would leverage the abundance of available solar energy with the

Reverend Liz Theoharis: Building a Movement Centered on Poor People

Sep 18th, 2019 21m 31s

The favorite basic income advocate of many supporters is Martin Luther King Jr., who led the Poor People's Campaign. This campaign has been revived in modern times by Rev. Liz Theoharis and Rev. Dr. William Barber, which looks at the issues fac

Basic Income and the Social Safety Net

Sep 11th, 2019 17m 41s

In this discussion episode, Jim lays out his ideas on how we should think about basic income in relation to other benefit programs like unemployment insurance and the Earned Income Tax Credit. We get into topics like whether basic income should

Jhumpa Bhattacharya: The Racial Wealth Gap and Basic Income Policy Design

Sep 5th, 2019 24m 12s

Basic income has been heralded as a policy that can partially address racial inequities in our economy and social benefit system, but how would the goals of racial equity inform basic income policy? Jhumpa Bhattacharya of the Insight Center for

Max Ghenis: Evaluating Today’s Basic Income Policies

Aug 28th, 2019 17m 36s

As basic income gains more recognition and interest, new proposals and ideas for what a basic income should look like are starting to emerge. While these proposals are occasionally studied on a one-off basis, the basic income conversation didn'

Rutger Bregman, Author of Utopia for Realists (rebroadcast)

Aug 13th, 2019 19m 10s

A conversation with Rutger Bregman, author of Utopia for Realists: The Case for a Universal Basic Income, Open Borders and a 15-Hour Workweek. We discuss what brought him to the basic income movement, some historical basic income experiments, a

What Basic Income Will And Won’t Solve (Rebroadcast)

Aug 9th, 2019 16m 53s

Basic income advocates often talk about what a transformative impact universal basic income could have on society — but what issues and challenges will it actually solve? Jim and Owen share their thoughts on whether basic income is the solution

Dr. Evelyn Forget on Mincome and Basic Income in Canada (Rebroadcast)

Aug 2nd, 2019 19m 33s

Canada’s basic income trials in trials in the 70s – the “Mincome” experiments – were largely forgotten until Dr. Evelyn Forget found records of the Mincome trials and individuals who had received a basic income. She discusses what she found, an

Why is Interest in Basic Income Surging? (Rebroadcast)

Jul 25th, 2019 18m 9s

Three years ago, few people had even heard of universal basic income. Now interest is growing across the country, and the idea is getting more exposure and support. What led to this shift? Owen and Jim delve into many of the factors at play, an

Roy Bahat, Head of Bloomberg Beta, on Innovation and Basic Income (Rebroadcast)

Jul 18th, 2019 17m 48s

Roy Bahat, Head of Bloomberg Beta, discusses the future of employment and why a universal basic income could spur innovation. He also discusses the mental leaps it requires to wrap our minds around the basic income, and what we can do to help o