Author: Holly

Poverty Awareness Week in Saskatoon: October 13-17, 2014

In Saskatoon, October 13-17, 2014 is Poverty Awareness Week.

“Poverty Awareness Week promotes awareness of not only the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty but stands to remind people that sustained and concerted effort all year long is vital to entirely eliminating the iron grip of poverty.”

Events will be taking place throughout the week in Saskatoon, organized by Passion for Action Against Homelessness and Saskatoon Anti Poverty Coalition.

Wednesday: Public Forum on Housing in Saskatoon, 1:30-3pm at Station 20 West

Thursday: Lunch and Learn Essential Voices, 11:30am-1:30pm at the Crocus Co-op Meeting Room (135 Ave B South)

Friday: Chew on This (details TBA)

Friday: Hands Across the Bridge, gather at 5pm at Rotary Park near the Broadway Bridge

Check out Saskatoon Poverty Awareness Week on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/278122285716422/?ref_newsfeed_story_type=regular&source=1

 

National ‘Chew On This’ Event – October 17

Dignity for All: The Campaign for a Poverty Free Canada is organizing a campaign which will be held on October 17, 2014 to coincide with the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.

Across Canada on the lunch hour of October 17th, food bank workers and anti-poverty advocates will be joining together to call for a Federal Anti-Poverty Plan. The group is asking the federal government for systemic change to eradicate poverty and hunger for the 833,000 people in Canada who use food banks each month and for the millions of others struggling to get by.

Instead of handing out a free lunch, volunteers for the ChewOnThis campaign are “brown bagging their call to action.” They will be handing out lunch bags marked “Chew on This!” which will contain an apple along with a magnet and postcard calling people to action to sign on to the call for a plan to end poverty.

For more information: www.chewonthis.ca

Disability makes poverty likelier than ever: report

Toronto Star, September 25, 2014

Research about food bank utilization in the Greater Toronto Area suggests that being disabled is increasingly a trigger for poverty and hunger. In 2005, 17 per cent of food bank clients were receiving Ontario Disability Support Program benefits; the number has since almost doubled (28 per cent). The report suggests that allowances for disabled people are lagging behind the cost of living.

http://www.thestar.com/life/health_wellness/2014/09/25/disability_makes_poverty_likelier_than_ever_report.html

New Ontario Poverty Reduction Strategy

Realizing Our Potential: Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy (2014-2019) was released in September 2014. The new strategy includes sections focused on children & youth, homelessness, and employment. The document also acts as a reminder of the high cost of inaction; poverty cost the Ontario public $10.4 billion in 2008.

The strategy can be found here: https://www.ontario.ca/home-and-community/realizing-our-potential-poverty-reduction-strategy-2014-2019

All of Us Are Paying for Government Inaction on Poverty

Inequity is rising in Canada. Did you know that the 86 richest families in Canada now hold more wealth than the poorest 11.4 million?

Poverty and inequities hurt all of us in the long run. They erode social cohesion and create a burden on all taxpayers to pay for poverty reduction, healthcare services, unemployment, crime and homelessness.

Full article by John Millar is available from the Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/john-millar/poverty-measures_b_5656216.html

The CRA Should Not Define Poverty’s Threshold – Murtaza Haider

“The courts and the CRA must revisit their definitions of poverty, and perhaps consult with development economists who study the poor and poverty. The courts cannot be the sole arbitrator of how to define, measure, prevent and alleviate poverty. At the same time, the CRA may also not be the sole determinant of what constitutes charitable work.”

The complete article is available at: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/murtaza-haider/cra-poverty_b_5621872.html

New research about impact of poverty in Saskatoon Health Region

A new report by the Public Health Observatory of the Saskatoon Health Region discusses the need to address health inequities in the city. Residents living in lower-socioeconomic status neighbourhoods of Saskatoon tend to have lower life expectancies and poorer health (e.g. diabetes, injuries, and heart disease) compared to neighbourhoods with less deprivation.  For example, people living in the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods of the city have a life expectancy at birth of only 76 years, compared to 85 years in the most advantaged neighbourhoods. These health gaps have been persistent over the years.

Media article: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatoon/effects-of-poverty-in-saskatoon-are-illness-and-death-1.2685727

More information is available on the CommunityView Collaboration website: http://www.communityview.ca/infographic_SHR_health_equity_2014.html