Reading Material

Articles, Papers & Reports

This list of resources provides an excellent introduction to basic income. For newcomers, these readings will help you delve into the conversation and for long-time supporters, this is a great list to revisit when you want to refresh your knowledge.

Tackling Poverty: the power of a universal basic income by Howard Reed et.al.

Alternative Federal Budget 2022 by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Download the French version here.

Basic Income & The Care Economy by Cee Straus. Download the French version here.

Basic Income Gender Disability by Sally A. Kimpson. Download the French version here.

Toward a Guaranteed Livable Income: Annotated Bibliography by Senator Kim Pate  – organized by subject areas like health, food security, the economy, it also includes American and International resources. Download the French version here.

A Federal Basic Income Within the Post Covid-19 Economic Recovery Plan (2020) by Hugh Segal, Evelyn L. Forget and Keith Banting for the Royal Society of Canada. Download the French version here.

Southern Ontario’s Basic Income Experience by Mohammad Ferdosi, Tom McDowell, Wayne Lewchuk and Stephanie Ross 

Social-Ecological Transformation and the Necessity of Universal Basic Income by James P. Mulvale 

Implications of a Basic Income Guarantee for Household Food Insecurity by Valerie Tarasuk 

What Could the Basic Income Guarantee do for Women’s Rights? by Josephine Grey

Basic Income and Gender Equality: Reflections on the Potential for Good Policy in Canada by Sheila Regehr

Economic Contribution of the Canada Child Benefit: A Basic Income Guarantee for Canadian Families with Children by CANCEA (2020)

How the Canada Child Benefit is Performing by Mark Stabile and Michael Baker (2021)

Cases for Basic Income, a series focusing on groups and sectors—like work, women, the arts, small business—can be found on the OBIN website.

Why a Guaranteed Livable Income? – Our Perspective, from the office of Senator Kim Pate

Potential Economic Impacts and Reach of Basic Income Programs in Canada, by the Canadian Centre for Economic Analysis (2020)

Books

Basic Income for Canadians: From the COVID-19 Emergency to Financial Security for All by Evelyn L. Forget (shortlisted for the Donner Prize for the best public policy book by a Canadian) is one of the most comprehensive and readable books on the possibilities for Canada.

This book is also available at libraries and for purchase at bookstores.

Other Canadians who have written books with perspectives on basic income include Hugh Segal, Art Eggleton, Roderick Benns, Dr. Danielle Martin, Richard Pereira, Sally Lerner, Francois Blais,. 

For perspectives beyond Canada, Guy Standing, Rutger Bregman, Kathi Weeks and Andy Stern are great authors to check out.

What's New?

The Case for Basic Income: Freedom, Security, Justice, book by Elaine Power and Jamie Swift, available May, 2021