Common Wealth Canada

Congrats @alvintedjo.bsky.social on being elected as Mississauga's new mayor. We've been supporting him since his first run in 2020 (when we campaigned on basic income together) and have seen him become a great leader and beloved councillor. Alvin wishing you the best.

bsky.app/profile/ubiw...

literally everyone craves meaningful work

UBI from sovereign wealth funds, like Alaska's dividend, is elegant and practical. If AI does the work, the public should get dividends. Dr. Tony Annett, economist, author of Cathonomics, ex-IMF

Author of Bullshit Jobs, David Graeber said basic income unleashes human creativity and innovation, which both the left and right can support. Instead, we're held back by bullshit jobs. The next John Lennon "is lifting boxes in some department store as welfare conditionality".

South Korea's UBI grew the economy and gave workers a hand up.

Congratulations to Alvin Tedjo on being elected Mayor of Mississauga! He’s been making the case for basic income for years. @alvintedjo.bsky.social

"If we want real affordability we need to stop pretending that supply alone can fix this crisis. No matter how much we build investor demand is growing even faster."

Common wealth dividends give everyone a financial stake in the success of our economy.

People working full-time can't get affordable housing.

The Economist on housing and LVT: "There are also ways to reduce landlords' profits that do not interfere with housing supply, such as taxing the value of land regardless of how it is used." In fact, research shows shifting taxes to land can promote more supply.

The US, UK, Canada and Ireland all have a similar number of housing units per capita, yet Canada is far more expensive. Of course we need more homes built, but this just shows that there's more at play than just supply.

Vast majority of Canadians say children will be worse off, way above global median (57%) — Pew Research This is a symptom of a nation that treats housing as investments first and homes second, at the expense of real productivity.

Most of it is land value (80% in urban). Every dollar in land is a dollar not invested in the real economy, building businesses and raising families. Instead of taxing income & productive capital, we should tax land to drive investment elsewhere and put Canada back on track.

200+ economists and AI researchers, 16 of them Nobel laureates, say we must act now on AI job displacement. Canada's own Yoshua Bengio is a signatory. If AI transforms the economy, basic income is how we make sure everyone shares in the gains.

"How do we help the at-risk youth with housing?!" "Well these programs where they just give them money with no strings attached while they get things together seems to help." "....If only there were a way. Let's do more research."

JUST IN: we need ubi

A window into what's driving the housing crisis. It's often more profitable to keep land in a state of blight than put it to better use for humanity. Tax the land and fix the incentives.

Governments are starting to ask the right question: If AI is going to create trillions in new wealth while reshaping jobs, industries, and entire economies, how do we make sure people share in the upside? AI dividends are no longer a fringe idea. They're common sense.

Helen Keller probably supported Henry George's idea of taxing land instead of workers' incomes.

LVT is about fairness—returning land value back to the community that created it in the first place. "land value tax also claws something back: the value generated by transit for landowners. Because of this, the measure is a much more progressive one."

work to thrive, not to survive

Another UBI skeptic flipped because of AI--a contributor to the American Conservative and New York Post "For years, I opposed Universal Basic Income, firmly and reflexively... That position no longer survives contact with reality."

Dr. Tyler Black highlights a truth proven by data: "Every experiment on basic income shows it saves, not costs, extra money."

UBI isn't the only answer to AI job losses. It's the floor everything else stands on. Hinton calls it "a good start." Amodei says tax AI companies to fund it. We agree.

One of Canada's biggest media voices has been thinking about UBI.

"Some of these places don't even have closets. Investors aren't very choosy about whether the floorplan works...they just want the best value for their money." Our economy treats housing as investment first, home second. Time to reverse this mindset.

Great idea. We can take it a step further - shift taxes from productive housing towards land value.

3/4 of Canada's wealth is in real estate. The bulk of it lies within land. The vast majority of that is 'unearned' - not through the work of individuals but from public investment. Recouping part of that back is fair and efficient.

Stop the waste.

Leading economists generally agree: tax land, not work.

This ad is all the reason we need to tax land more and work income less.

Many people wonder why land value tax won't just raise rents. Answer: you can't create or destroy land. That's why economists consider it the 'least bad' (even 'perfect') tax. It could lower income or property taxes and encourage more housing supply.

David Graeber perfectly captures the essence of why UBI is essential: it gives us back our agency.

Basic income is a top issue this BC election. Almost half of British Columbians have a Green candidate who signed our pledge to work towards guaranteed basic income if elected. This would be a generational investment in BC's future.

BC, is your candidate on the list? See every signer, read what candidates told us, and ask yours where they stand before polls close on Oct 24. Takes under a minute: www.ubiworks.ca/bcelection2026

Thank you to the 40 @bcgreens.bsky.social candidates who signed the Basic Income Pledge, including @kiteformre.bsky.social @francoiser.bsky.social @nicespurling.bsky.social @beanjammin.bsky.social @smyliechar.bsky.social @adamhawkbc.bsky.social @christinekinnie.bsky.social

CEO of Inclusion Canada calls for basic income for disabled people to match basic income for seniors. Basic income already works for some -- let's build on it for all. Published in The Winnipeg Sun (which leans conservative).

One of the greatest music producers of all time is pro-UBI. No surprise here.

BC NDP candidate Kory Clark has signed our Basic Income Pledge. Kory's reason is personal: a close friend on disability support who still struggles to make ends meet. "Her situation is familiar to many throughout this province." Thank you, Kory. Who's next?

The only real answer is UBI as a dividend to citizens as shareholders

Top economists agree: stop overtaxing working and building. The best option to fix our economy and housing market is to tax land instead.

Wharton Finance Professor casually destroys NYC's tax on wages, property, and sales. Why punish work, consumption, and building, and drive people away? The far better option is to tax land. It does "the least damage you can to the private economy" while fixing housing.

"It would give everyone a minimum stake in the success of the country, of capitalism." Investor Bill Ackman says we should give every baby born money invested in index funds, a form of 'universal basic capital' to address inequality. "By 65 it's a million dollars."

No politicians ever talk about this Your wages are taxed more than that parking spot

Canadian entrepreneur who sold to Twitter wants higher taxes on the wealthy to fund nonprofit housing, and land value tax. "luxury-property owners should be paying land value taxes even if their homes never sell; that would help to bring prices back down from the stratosphere."

We need a tax system that rewards genuine effort and community building, not just the passive accumulation of wealth.

Paging @naheednenshi.bsky.social and @albertandp.ca - while the Alberta 2027 election may be a year away (or less, who knows?) This might be a good idea to sign on/sign up for! A strong Alberta is ensured by directly investing in Albertans! #BasicIncome4All #BasicIncomeNow #Alberta

In the 18th century, common land was seized for private gain. Today, it's a double enclosure: 1️⃣ Private firms profit from public-funded research. 2️⃣ AI is trained on our collective data 'commons.' We aren't asking for a handout; we're asking for our share.

Natural resources are gifts of nature owned by all citizens. It should benefit all citizens through universal dividends.