Universal Basic Assets (Map)

A manifesto for a more equitable future

To regain balance and enable sustainable livelihoods for large swaths of the population, the Institute for the Future (IFTF) proposes a framework called Universal Basic Assets (UBA), which identifies a fundamental set of resources every person needs access to, from financial security and housing to healthcare and education.

In the UBA framework and manifesto, we focus on three broad classes of assets: Private assets include money, land, and housing. Public assets refer to infrastructure and services like education, health, and public utilities. Lastly, open assets are a growing category of mostly digital assets that are communally created and open to everyone, from Wikipedia and open education resources to scientific knowledge, artificial intelligence tools, and much more.

IFTF’s Universal Basic Assets framework and manifesto do not advocate collectivizing or seizing and distributing resources. Rather, they are a call to action to collaboratively identify the key assets people will need today and in the future in order to lead sustainable livelihoods as individuals, households, and wider communities. UBA offers actionable tools for designing policies and mechanisms for widening access to such resources.

Publication Date: 2017