What We Do

We tell the story.

For too long cash has been sold as one of the tools for addressing basic needs like food and shelter. But we believe it is the only solution that truly works.

Progress destroyed the value of time. A person can no longer plow a field, build a house, start a fire, and survive. But that was the point! We freed time from that purpose. But we forgot to share the fruits of that effort. It’s time to do so.

Other solutions must be tailored and that makes them more expensive. There are four reasons we might be willing to pay that extra cost:

1. Exploitation: We take advantage of people’s time. We’re not doing that anymore.

2. Coercion: We dangle help to win them to our faith or political position. But let’s fill bellies and win with hearts and minds.

3. Paternalism: We think we know better than them what they need. But … it’s food and shelter!

4. Fear: We think they won’t actually spend it on their needs, and we’ll still have to solve the problem … essentially paying for it twice.

Not many of us are willing to justify the first two. The third one is silly. But that fourth one could have legs. So look into it like your life depends on it. Because it does. We are wasting too much time, money, and cognitive bandwidth on the fallout from poverty. Before dismissing a simple solution, you better be sure it won’t work. We’re convinced that it does. Look into the trials. Go meet someone living on the edge. If you give the poor a steady stream of cash, they’ll spend it wisely.