Abbreviation | BIEN |
---|---|
Formation | 1986 |
Type | Non-governmental organisation |
Legal status | Charitable Incorporated Organisation |
Purpose | To educate the general public about Basic Income, that is, a periodic cash payment delivered to all on an individual basis, without means test or work requirement; to serve as a link between the individuals and groups committed to, or interested in, Basic Income; to stimulate and disseminate research about Basic Income; and to foster informed public discussion on Basic Income throughout the world. |
Headquarters | 286 Ivydale Road, London SE15 3DF, United Kingdom |
Membership | https://basicincome.org/about-bien/membership/ |
Official language | English |
Chair | Sarath Davala [1] |
Vice-Chair | Hilda Latour |
Secretary | Diana Bashur |
Treasurer | Malcolm Torry |
Main organ | Executive Committee / General Assembly |
Website | https://basicincome.org/ |
Remarks | Updated in 2023 |
Formerly called | Basic Income European Network |
The Basic Income Earth Network (BIEN; until 2004 Basic Income European Network) is a network of academics and activists interested in the idea of basic income. It serves as a link between individuals and groups committed to or interested in basic income, and fosters informed discussion on this topic throughout the world. BIEN's website defines a basic income as "a periodic cash payment unconditionally delivered to all on an individual basis, without means-test or work requirement."
Formed in 1986, BIEN held its first international conference in Louvain-la-Neuve in September of that year. It expanded its scope from Europe to the Earth in 2004. From 1988 BIEN published a paper newsletter three times per year; later replaced by an electronic NewsFlash Archived 2017-06-06 at the Wayback Machine , distributed first six and now twelve times per year. Since 2011, BIEN has sponsored a news website, called Basic Income News .
The main founders of BIEN are Yoland Bresson, Philippe Van Parijs, Karl Widerquist, Alexander de Roo, Guy Standing and David Casassas.
Every two years until 2014, and every year since 2016, BIEN has organised an international congress gathering academics and activists for basic income. The 2016 Congress took place in Seoul, South Korea; the 2017 Congress in Lisbon, Portugal; The 2018 congress took place in Tampere, Finland; The 2019 BIEN congress takes place at Hyderabad, India. For a full list of congresses, see BIEN's website. [2] Papers given at the congresses can also be found on the organisation's website. [3]
BIEN recognises a number of national and regional affiliated networks across the world. [4]
BIEN's secretaries have been Walter Van Trier (1986–1994), Philippe Van Parijs (1994–2004), David Casassas (2004–2014), Anja Askeland (2014–2016), and Julio Aguirre (2016–). In May 2016, BIEN appointed Malcolm Torry as its General Manager.
Chairing of BIEN was a flexible matter during the early years: Those chairing were Peter Ashby, Claus Offe, Guy Standing (1986–88), Edwin Morley-Fletcher, Guy Standing (1988–1996), Edwin Morley-Fletcher, Ilona Ostner, Guy Standing (1996–1998), Ilona Ostner, Guy Standing (1998–2004). In 2004, a revision of the previously sketchy statutes established that there would be either a Chair and Vice chair, or two Co-chairs. Following 2004, posts were held as follows: Guy Standing, Eduardo Suplicy (co-chairs 2004–2008), Ingrid Van Niekerk and Karl Widerquist (co-chairs 2008–2014), Louise Haagh and Karl Widerquist (co-chairs 2014–2018). The new constitution of 2018 provided for a Chair and a Vice Chair: Postholders as follows: Louise Haagh (Chair, 2018–), Sarath Davala (Vice Chair, 2018–).
Citizen's dividend is a proposed policy based upon the Georgist principle that the natural world is the common property of all people. It is proposed that all citizens receive regular payments (dividends) from revenue raised by leasing or taxing the monopoly of valuable land and other natural resources.
Philippe Van Parijs is a Belgian political philosopher and political economist, best known as a proponent and main defender of the concept of an unconditional basic income and for the first systematic treatment of linguistic justice.
Manna is a 2003 science fiction novel by Marshall Brain that explores several issues in modern information technology, automation and economics, as well as user interfaces and transhumanism.
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Universal basic income (UBI) is a social welfare proposal in which all citizens of a given population regularly receive a minimum income in the form of an unconditional transfer payment, i.e., without a means test or need to work. In contrast a guaranteed minimum income is paid only to those who do not already receive an income that is enough to live on. A UBI would be received independently of any other income. If the level is sufficient to meet a person's basic needs, it is sometimes called a full basic income; if it is less than that amount, it may be called a partial basic income. As of 2024, no country has implemented a full UBI system, but two countries—Mongolia and Iran—have had a partial UBI in the past. There have been numerous pilot projects, and the idea is discussed in many countries. Some have labelled UBI as utopian due to its historical origin.
Renana Jhabvala is an Indian social worker based in Ahmedabad, India, who has been active for decades in organising women into organisations and trade unions in India, and has been extensively involved in policy issues relating to poor women and the informal economy. She is best known for her long association with the Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA), India, and for her writings on issues of women in the informal economy.
Guy Standing is a British labour economist. He is a professor of development studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, and a co-founder of the Basic Income Earth Network (BIEN). Standing has written widely in the areas of labour economics, labour market policy, unemployment, labour market flexibility, structural adjustment policies and social protection. He created the term precariat to describe an emerging class of workers who are harmed by low wages and poor job security as a consequence of globalisation. Since the 2011 publication of his book The Precariat: The New Dangerous Class, his work has focused on the precariat, unconditional basic income, deliberative democracy, and the commons.
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Universal basic income refers to a social welfare system where all citizens or residents of a country receive an unconditional lump sum income, meaning an income that is not based on need. The proposal has been debated in a number of countries in recent years, including Japan.
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Universal basic income in Germany has been discussed since the 1970s, with emphasis placed on its unconditional dimension by 2003. The universal basic income concept has many definitions, such as Philippe Van Parijs', which described it as the income paid by the government, at a uniform level and regular intervals to each adult citizen and permanent residents of the country. The Basic Income Earth Network's criteria constitute one of the most popular proposals and they include: 1) income must be paid to individuals instead of households; 2) income should be paid irrespective of income from other sources; and, 3) it must be paid without requiring performance of any work.
Universal basic income (UBI) is discussed in many countries. This article summarizes the national and regional debates, where it takes place, and is a complement to the main article on the subject: universal basic income.
Universal basic income pilots are smaller-scale preliminary experiments which are carried out on selected members of the relevant population to assess the feasibility, costs and effects of the full-scale implementation of universal basic income, or the related concept of negative income tax (NIT), including partial universal basic income and similar programs. The following list provides an overview of the most famous universal basic income pilots, including projects which have not been launched yet but have been already approved by the respective political bodies or for the negotiations are in process.
Karl Widerquist is an American political philosopher and economist at Georgetown University on its campus in Qatar. He is best known as an advocate of basic income, but is also an interdisciplinary academic writer who has published in journals in fields as diverse as economics, politics, philosophy, and anthropology. He is a consistent critic of propertarianism, right-libertarianism, social contract theory, and the belief that modern societies fulfill the Lockean proviso.
Louise Haagh is an academic expert on economic security, and social advocate who is best known for her leading role in the basic income movement. She is Professor of Politics at the University of York. She was born and grew up in Denmark, spent several years in Latin America and later settled in Britain, and is a dual Danish-British citizen. She is co-editor-in-chief of the academic journal Basic Income Studies. Since 2011, she has been Co-Chair, chair, and now Chair Emeritus of the Basic Income Earth Network. She is a former trustee and now patron of the Citizens’ Income Trust in the UK and a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.
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