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With an increasing number of people struggling financially due to the pandemic, the topic of universal basic income, or UBI, has been gaining popularity. But what exactly is universal basic income? Is it the silver bullet to improve everyone’s standard of living? Or is it a trap that will lead to increased laziness?

As a long-time expert on poverty and inequality, Esther Duflo emphasizes the need for universal basic income in this lecture series, providing evidence from various experiments, extensive surveys, and historical events. She also corrects some of the basic misunderstandings and unfounded beliefs regarding UBI and explains the difficulties of achieving political consensus and of wealth redistribution itself. She also shares her opinions on country-specific solutions to improving welfare systems and securing public support in these uncertain times of a pandemic, global warming, the rise of artificial intelligence, and trade wars. Finally, she emphasizes that in order to overcome poverty, we must see the world from the perspective of the poor and feel a sense of connectedness with their struggles.

On GREAT MINDS, Esther Deflo’s lecture series, “Good Economics for Hard Times,” will offer straightforward answers to questions on universal basic income and act as a guide to implementing an ideal welfare system to lift millions out of poverty.