Transformative change must begin with young people, organizing and advocating for solutions themselves. Our project is aimed at increasing awareness and dialogue among young people to mobilize support, and advocate for the implementation of unconditional basic income to a) ensure their economic well-being and, b) invest in a more equitable, just and sustainable growth of Alcácer do Sal.

Alcácer do Sal, Alentejo Litoral, Portugal

This project is geared towards addressing the socio-economic inequality by mobilizing and organizing youth in Alcácer do Sal. The primarily seasonal nature of labor linked to agriculture and tourism in the town, and the lack of high-paying jobs and stagnant wages have resulted in driving young people out of Alcácer. These factors have not only impacted Alcácer’s economic growth and development but also frayed the tight-knit fabric of the community, in particular, young people who have few opportunities to pursue after graduating high school.

We believe that youth must be empowered with the knowledge and skills to organize, lead and engage in important conversations pertaining to their region. This also means engaging in policy discussions and decisions related to the growth of Alcácer do Sal.

In Alcácer do Sal, most young people after graduating either leave the city for higher education or stay back but have little prospects for socio-economic growth. We are therefore committed to working with them, to empower young people to become youth ambassadors for leading and organizing dialogue and movement on economic justice and UBI in Alcácer do Sal. The population of high school students we aim to work with is 248 young people, between the age of 15 to 19, the majority of them girls.

Work with young people in Alcácer do Sal as youth ambassadors during the entire duration of the project. This will entail recruiting high school students from local high schools to build awareness and inform them about UBI and its goals, help them develop research skills to undertake qualitative research as part of the project and develop their skills to undertake effective advocacy through different workshops on organizing, design and communication.

Organize and conduct focus group discussions and interviews on the subject of UBI to ensure diverse voices from across the community are heard and represented in the shaping of the advocacy goals for UBI, using FGDs, in-depth interviews.

Organize and conduct youth-led community forums, conferences and consultations to mobilize public and political support for designing and implementing the UBI pilot.

The primary vision of the project is to enable young people to become active and informed citizens who lead and advocate for and contribute towards the growth and development of their communities in a sustainable and just way. The secondary change that we envision is that the community actively participates and collaborates in the co-creation, advocacy, and implementation of Portugal’s first-ever UBI pilot, in the short term, and a UBI policy in the long-term, geared towards benefitting and ensuring the economic security and local and sustainable development of the community.

Social and economic policymaking is often left to the experts, with little attention paid to the voices and needs of communities on the ground, particularly young people, resulting in a mismatch between what experts think people need versus what communities actually need. In our project, we believe that empowering the youth of Alcácer with information and knowledge about UBI, along with enabling them to mobilize the wider community to participate in designing UBI pilot, will strengthen young people's social and political engagement at the community level.

Rui Pereira and Surabhi Srivastava make up the project team.
Rui is born and raised in Alcácer do Sal, and for the past 20 years has seen the increasing inequality and growing lack of hope particularly for younger generations. Like himself, most young people are pushed to find opportunities elsewhere. Motivated by the hope to help the community, he co-created this idea with Surabhi who has experience in the NGO sector in India on issues of human rights and is currently pursuing a graduate degree in social policy and development. They are both motivated to challenge the contemporary development discourse by trying youth and community-centric approaches to grow and thrive.

Research Phase (8x FGDs and 10x Interviews) - €13970
8x Workshops - €3220
2x Conferences - €5700
2x Consultation with local government - €1250
Core Cost - €3250
Personnel Cost (2 people) - €4500
Monitoring & Evaluation - €3110

We will like feedback on fundraising and managing budgets. We would also appreciate feedback on establishing a non-profit organization or think tank in Portugal.