Ted Audio Collective

I remember growing up in Spanish Harlem, going to the grocery store to buy something for

my mom, and noticing that while I was paying with cash, other people were paying with some

other form of currency.

I later learned that currency was food stamps, monopoly-looking money given by the government

to those who are low income to subsidize their basic needs.

Fast forward to 2023, no more monopoly-looking money, instead a type of debit card, an

EBT card, which stands for Electronic Benefit Transfer.

It's a card used by those receiving grocery assistance where they can swipe like anyone

else.

Look at the power of technology.

No more shame, because I've had friends who were on food stamps and they would hate going

to the grocery store because everyone would know and see that they were on food stamps.

And talk about efficiency too.

With EBT cards, there's no need for multiple currencies.

So what else might we do to rethink the way we support low income folks altogether?

I'm Madu Bacanola, this is Ted Business.

Our speaker today is journalist Aaron Bastani.

In this talk, Aaron pushes us to think about how to use technology in a way that can boost

prosperity for everyone.

After the talk, I'll share some tips about how organizations can establish innovative processes

to support people at all income levels.

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