Welcome to

UBI Bath

UBI Bath brings together researchers from across the University of Bath and beyond working on Universal Basic Income and its intersection with contemporary public policy challenges.

About UBI Bath

Defined as a periodic cash payment delivered to all without means-test or work requirement, UBI is a social policy idea that many believe could transform the way our societies work.

In the face of social, economic, and ecological crisis, policymakers around the world are asking whether UBI could be the answer. UBI Bath marshals international, interdisciplinary expertise to help them decide.

Meet the team

The UBI Bath team brings together senor, mid and early career researchers, including students. We work across a range of disciplines and in countries as diverse as India and the UK.

Dr. Neil Howard

Beacon Lead (Reader in International Development)

I am an anthropologist of development turned social protection scholar.

Dr. Joe Chrisp

Beacon Co-Lead (Postdoctoral Research Associate)

I am an interdisciplinary researcher working across across economics, politics, and social policy.

Dr. Sophia Hatzisavvidou

Senior Lecturer

I am a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Politics.

Dr. Melanie Channon

Reader in Public Health

I am a demographer and social statistician working on issues affecting low- and middle-income countries.  My main research interests include menstruation, son preference, fertility transition, sexual and reproductive health, violence against women, and gender statistics.  I have expertise in the demography of South Asia, Latin America, and Africa, with a particular focus on Nepal.

Dr. Sarath Davala

is chair of BIEN (Basic Income Earth Network) and coordinator of the Indian Network on Basic Income (INBI). He is co-author of the book Basic Income: A Transformative Policy for India.

Mr Vibhor Mathur

Doctor of Philosophy, Postgraduate Research Student

I’m a researcher in social policy and development, and social entrepreneur with many years of experience in working with vulnerable and marginalised populations around the world.

Joseph Cooke

Undergraduate Research Assistant

“A,Politics and International Relations Bsc student at the University of Bath.

Ms Maria Franchi

Doctor of Philosophy,Postgraduate Research Student

I am a doctoral student in SPS researching women’s experiences of the WorkFREE Universal Basic Income (UBI) project in Hyderabad, India in order to inform what might constitute a feminist UBI and contribute to realising the potential transformative impacts of Universal Basic Income for women and those facing other intersectional inequalities.

Prof Nick Pearce

Director of the Institute for Policy Research

I research in two broad areas: politics and contemporary history in the UK; and public policy, particularly social policy.

Dr Jurgen De Wispelaere

I am a political theorist turned public policy scholar who has specialised in the political economy of basic income.

Mr Nicholas Langridge

Doctor of Philosophy,Postgraduate Research Student

My research concerns the socio-ecological credentials of basic income and its compatibility with a degrowth transition.

Harisa Raja

Undergraduate Research Assistant

I’m an undergraduate student in Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Bath with an interest in human needs, and an eagerness to support the international development of Universal Basic Income as a provider for such.

Prof Lindsay Stirton

Scholar of public administration, Professor of Public Law

Lindsay Stirton is a lawyer and a scholar of public administration. He is a Professor of Public Law at the University of Sussex and Treasurer of the Basic Income Earth Network.

Dr. Ian Orton

Associate

I am currently a Social Protection Policy Officer in the Universal Social Protection Department of the International Labour Organization.

Diana Bashur

Diana is a doctoral candidate at the University of Vienna researching basic income as a complement to traditional development and peacebuilding efforts, with a focus on its potential for social cohesion.

Ongoing Projects

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UBI in Film

The UBI Bath team have been involved in making multiple films. This Whiteboard Explainer speaks to why UBI could help address poverty in the UK: https://x.com/NeilPHoward/status/1785376746952392818 &#

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BIEN Congress 2024

The Bath UBI Beacon is collaborating with the Basic Income Earth Network to host the world’s largest annual Basic Income Conference in Bath, from August 29th to 31st, this year. The BIEN Congress will

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WorkFREE

WorkFREE brings together scholars, activists and civil society institutions from India and the United Kingdom to pilot what we call ‘UBI+’ in four informal settlements in inner-city Hyderabad, India.

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CLARISSA Social Protection

Like WorkFREE, the CLARISSA Social Protection pilot is a ‘cash plus’ social experiment, run across an entire slim community in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Led by the Institute of Development Studies and partne

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UBI Piloters Network

Research, policy, and activist interest in UBI has exploded in recent years, and this has led to a huge rise in the number of global UBI pilots. Yet for all this amazing growth, until now, no global p

Read More

The Health Case for Basic Income

The Bath UBI Beacon works with colleagues at the University of Northumbria and Autonomy to assess the health case for basic income. Building on funding from the National Institute of Health Research,

Read More

UBIdata

UBI Bath and the Basic Income Earth Network have just launched UBIdata, an innovative new tool with a mission to match reliable information about basic income with a rapidly growing global user base

Read More

The Economics of Basic Income

This project examines the scope for basic income as a necessary element of macroeconomic demand management. From empirical economic data, the research will test the hypothesis that in high technology

Read More

UBI in Film

The UBI Bath team have been involved in making multiple films. This Whiteboard Explainer speaks to why UBI could help address poverty in the UK: https://x.com/NeilPHoward/status/1785376746952392818 &#

Read More

BIEN Congress 2024

The Bath UBI Beacon is collaborating with the Basic Income Earth Network to host the world’s largest annual Basic Income Conference in Bath, from August 29th to 31st, this year. The BIEN Congress will

Read More

WorkFREE

WorkFREE brings together scholars, activists and civil society institutions from India and the United Kingdom to pilot what we call ‘UBI+’ in four informal settlements in inner-city Hyderabad, India.

Read More

CLARISSA Social Protection

Like WorkFREE, the CLARISSA Social Protection pilot is a ‘cash plus’ social experiment, run across an entire slim community in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Led by the Institute of Development Studies and partne

Read More

UBI Piloters Network

Research, policy, and activist interest in UBI has exploded in recent years, and this has led to a huge rise in the number of global UBI pilots. Yet for all this amazing growth, until now, no global p

Read More

The Health Case for Basic Income

The Bath UBI Beacon works with colleagues at the University of Northumbria and Autonomy to assess the health case for basic income. Building on funding from the National Institute of Health Research,

Read More

UBIdata

UBI Bath and the Basic Income Earth Network have just launched UBIdata, an innovative new tool with a mission to match reliable information about basic income with a rapidly growing global user base

Read More

The Economics of Basic Income

This project examines the scope for basic income as a necessary element of macroeconomic demand management. From empirical economic data, the research will test the hypothesis that in high technology

Read More
View All projects

Other Collaborators at Bath

This group includes scholars from Anthropology, Demography, Economics, International Development, Management, Mathematical Sciences, Political Science, Psychology, Public Health, Social Policy, and Sociology.

We work with colleagues across multiple Faculties within the University, including: Prof. Anna Gilmore (Psychology); Dr. Tristan Pryer (IMI); Dr. Ana Weeks (POLIS); Prof. Whitmarsh and Dr. Demski (CAST); Dr. Stefanie Gustaffson (CfW); Prof. James Copestake (CDS and SDR); Dr. Jennifer Golan (SPS); and Dr. Garcia-Lazaro (IPR). This group includes scholars from Anthropology, Demography, Economics, International Development, Management, Mathematical Sciences, Political Science, Psychology, Public Health, Social Policy, and Sociology.

News and Events

All News

Unconditional Film Launch - Monday Nov 18, Chancellor's Building2.1, Bath Uni, 6.15pm

  What would it mean to help the poor without preconditions? To address the precarity at the heart of poverty?…

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OpenResearch Unconditional Cash Study: Research Insights and Early Learnings

This two-hour conversation with Dr. Karina Dotson and Dr. Elizabeth Rhodes will see the researchers behind the pioneering OpenResearch Unconditional…

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New Winter School: Basic Income in the Global South

A universal basic income (UBI) is a periodic cash payment unconditionally delivered to all individuals, without means testing or work…

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24-25 Termly Talk Series

UBI Bath will be hosting termly guest lectures and seminars bringing you some of the most exciting developments in basic…

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New Winter School: Basic Income in the Global South

A universal basic income (UBI) is a periodic cash payment unconditionally delivered to all individuals, without means testing or work…

Learn More

24-25 Termly Talk Series

UBI Bath will be hosting termly guest lectures and seminars bringing you some of the most exciting developments in basic…

Learn More

The Bath UBI Beacon

Brings together researchers from across the University of Bath working on Universal Basic Income and its intersection with contemporary public policy challenges.

Learn More