The Abundant Birth Project was conceived in 2019 by a coalition of city leaders, stakeholders, birth workers, pregnant people and mamas working to improve birth outcomes in San Francisco. We recognized that in order to see different health outcomes in our community, we needed to do something different. We centered the experiences and wisdom of folks experiencing the greatest birth disparities in the design and implementation of the San Francisco Abundant Birth Project pilot, which ran from 2021-2023.
At the core of Abundant Birth Project is a deep trust of mothers (and other birthing parents) as experts in their own lived experiences. Authentic power sharing with communities experiencing racism is an integral and restorative component of all work we do. From hosting community design sessions that established the parameters of ABP, to establishing our Community Governance Council, to training Community Researchers to support the program evaluation, we strive to practice our values and hold community wisdom sacred.
While the Abundance Birth Project was the first pregnancy-guaranteed income supplement in the United States, we have learned from the path others forged before us.
An evaluation of Nurse Family Partnership (NFP), a federally-funded home visiting program designed to improve maternal and infant health outcomes, found that NFP services had no effect on adverse birth outcomes for any demographic. (8)
A study in Manitoba, Canada, found that an unconditional income supplement provided during pregnancy produced a 17.5% decrease in preterm birth and 21% decrease in low birth weight.(9)
Studies of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) find that the refunds are associated with reductions in maternal financial stress, improved access to prenatal care, and reductions in low weight births and maternal depression.(6,10)
Receipt of the EITC is shown to have differential effects by race and ethnicity, with nearly four times the reduction in the low birth weight for Black infants, compared to White infants for families receiving the EITC.(11)
Stockton's SEED project, which provided a guaranteed income of $500 per month to low income families found that the participants were healthier and less anxious, were able to find full-time employment, and spent the majority of cash on basic needs.(12)
We know that racism is the root cause of racial disparities in birth outcomes. (7) We also know that in order to address racism as a root cause, we need to implement long-term solutions that have a precise impact, focus on systems (versus individual-level) change, and shift resources directly to communities most impacted by racism. We believe the Abundant Birth Project meets these criteria, and is one solution that has the potential to change the lives of many.
We use floral imagery and nature to represent the Abundant Birth Project because we realize how important it is for our environment to be healthy in order for us – like flowers – to grow and bloom. Water, sunshine, and healthy soil are all necessary for us to be abundant and thrive. The Abundant Birth Project seeks to nourish mothers and birthing people so that all of our communities can blossom.
Our research team is composed of researchers from UC Berkeley, UC Davis, and Oregon Health & Science University-Portland State University (OHSU-PSU), as well as local community researchers. You can learn more about our team and the community researchers on the ABP evaluation research website - COMING SOON!
Learn more about the team behind the California Abundant Birth Project!
