1. Introduction: Maturity of Basic Income and Its Prospects in Canada and Elsewhere

The popularity of basic income as a topic of discussion in its many forms cannot be disputed, even as prosperous societies grapple with other problems, including most recently the COVID-19 pandemic. This chapter outlines how the book will assess the modern evolution of basic income and prospects for its realization in the advanced economies of North America and Europe, with a special focus on Canada in later chapters, based on an extensive corpus of research but also some promising political developments. The pandemic has enhanced interest to protect those with low incomes and exposed the limitations of current income support programs, but the design and implementation of an effective basic income plan require a sound understanding of what would work best grounded in past and present research and experience.