Demystifying Universal Basic Income with Max Ghenis

Today on The Future of Teamwork, Max Ghenis talks with host Dane Groeneveld about universal basic income and positive examples that combat the negative spin this growing idea gets in the news. Max is the Co-Founder and CEO of Policy Engine, and the Founder and President of UBI Center. In his conversation with Dane, Max discusses his passion for policy, what inspired him to research UBI, and the potential for UBI to create stability and opportunity for disadvantaged populations. The two also discuss ways in which traditional thinking about aid can be destructive, and highlight how UBI could allow people to take control of their own destinies.

Key Takeaways:

• [00:11 - 02:00] Introduction to Max and his career as a data scientist led him to UBI
• [02:03 - 02:43] What is universal basic income?
• [02:46 - 03:29] Is universal basic income headed toward global policy?
• [03:32 - 04:13] The Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend
• [04:14 - 05:13] Iran's experiment in UBI and subsidies, cash assistance
• [05:38 - 06:46] The US and the UK, and the micro-simulation model
• [06:47 - 08:10] The level of income projected in Max's research is $10,000
• [08:13 - 09:07] The dystopian views on universal basic income
• [09:08 - 10:00] Different versions of UBI
• [10:02 - 13:13] A static model, and seeing the benefits of reducing poverty in many forms
• [13:13 - 14:52] The World Economic Forum's prediction on human needs as technology grows
• [14:52 - 16:02] The role of poverty on crime, and UBI's potential to reduce imprisonment
• [16:05 - 18:10] What are companies and communities adding to put more money into their neighbors and poverty areas?
• [18:14 - 19:35] Businesses like Google donating through GiveDirectly
• [19:36 - 22:14] Trials in UBI with randomized villages and the effect of conflict
• [22:17 - 24:35] The origins of UBI, and comparisons to building oil and gas projects
• [24:35 - 28:00] The Oregon People's Rebate, the organization the Citizen's Climate Lobby, and the Maryland Child Alliance
• [28:01 - 28:37] Some interventions outperform cash, evidence-based models and benchmarks
• [28:41 - 31:24] The overlap of Web3, crypto, and universal basic income
• [31:24 - 32:50] The intersection of Web3 and carbon tax, and tying it all to land
• [32:52 - 34:51] Worldcoin and assets that help redistribute funds locally to communities
• [34:51 - 36:59] The Team Up Foundation and investing in marginalized communities
• [37:01 - 39:56] Cash as a benchmark, how can we improve on cash
• [39:56 - 41:17] The irony of how aid can damage developing countries in unintended ways
• [41:24 - 43:26] Seeing UBI with a realistic lens instead of dystopian
• [43:27 - 45:16] Free extra utility, and creating progress for people