Abstract
The newly emerging concept of sustainable welfare refers to welfare systems which aim to satisfy everyone's needs within planetary boundaries and to decouple the welfare-growth nexus. Both Universal Basic Income (UBI) and Universal Basic Services (UBS) have been discussed as suitable, but potentially competing, approaches that could support sustainable welfare. This paper contributes to this debate by asking how UBI and UBS compare in relation to four sustainable welfare criteria: a) planetary boundaries, b) needs satisfaction, c) fair distribution, and d) democratic governance. The paper argues that UBI and UBS are not so much conflicting but complementary approaches for supporting sustainable welfare. UBI focuses on the consumption side of the economy while UBS addresses the production side more directly, both of which would be relevant in any sustainable welfare system. Sustainable welfare outcomes of UBI and UBS would be shaped by the institutional contexts within which they operate, especially by the governance of markets, collective provisioning systems and decision-making at all levels. More attention needs to be paid to these institutional contexts when discussing potential sustainable welfare outcomes of UBI and UBS.
Highlights
The increasing urgency to tackle the climate crisis and social issues such as global inequality and conflict calls for rebuilding economic systems so that they stay within planetary boundaries (Rockstrom et al, 2009; Steffen et al, 2015) and satisfy human needs (Doyal and Gough, 1991; Max-Neef et al, 1991)
This paper addresses the relationships between sustainable welfare, Universal Basic Income (UBI) and Universal Basic Services (UBS) in the context of the global north where advanced welfare states exist but are institu tionally coupled with unsustainable economic systems that exceed planetary boundaries, and where state capacity for the provision of services is relatively high
Specific opportunities and risks can be identified in relation to each of these proposals. Not to understand these opportunities and risks as inherent features of UBI and UBS but rather as co-shaped by institutional contexts that influence the ways in which UBI and UBS operate and the outcomes they generate
Summary
The increasing urgency to tackle the climate crisis and social issues such as global inequality and conflict calls for rebuilding economic systems so that they stay within planetary boundaries (Rockstrom et al, 2009; Steffen et al, 2015) and satisfy human needs (Doyal and Gough, 1991; Max-Neef et al, 1991). UBS start from the identification of basis needs, organise the collective provision of goods or services required to satisfy these needs, and provide people with free access to these goods and services Each of these approaches has distinct strengths and weaknesses which this paper discusses, and any sustainable welfare system is likely to require a combination of these approaches. This paper addresses the relationships between sustainable welfare, UBI and UBS in the context of the global north where advanced welfare states exist but are institu tionally coupled with unsustainable economic systems that exceed planetary boundaries, and where state capacity for the provision of services is relatively high.
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