Eradicate Poverty: Get Involved

October 17 is the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. People around the world will be coming together, writing letters, and learning more about how to end poverty so everyone has access to a life of dignity and wellbeing.

Here’s how you can be a part of it:

Speak Out

• Contact your MP and
  • share your concerns about poverty
  • ask them to wear the “End Poverty” button they’ll be receiving from the Dignity for All campaign on October 17
  • ask them to attend the forum they’ve been invited to that day in Ottawa, “Ending Poverty Together: Real Stories, Real Solutions”
• Add your endorsement to Dignity for All: the campaign for a poverty-free Canada, co-led by Citizens for Public Justice.
• Check out our Advocacy Toolkit for lots of ideas about how to share your concerns with politicians, the media, and people in your community.
• Consider poverty as a theme for our exciting new high school video contest: pass it on to students and teachers!

Learn More

• Visit our Poverty page for a wide range of articles and CPJ commentary on poverty and public policy in Canada.
• Watch for the November issue of The Catalyst, which will highlight the October 17 events and outcomes. Become a member of CPJ to get The Catalyst all year round!
• Try two interactive Web experiences: Spent, an online game from an American outreach ministry that gives a sense of what making hard choices on a tight budget can be like, or Do the Math from The Stop in Toronto, which lets you create a budget and then compare it to what people on Ontario social assistance actually live on.
• Stay tuned for CPJ’s October 17 release of the first part of the Poverty Trends Scorecard—Canada 2012 which measures Canada’s progress against poverty, highlights areas of success, and identifies where further work is needed.

Pray and Worship

• Use the October 17 insert,  which includes both a prayer and action ideas, in your church bulletin on a Sunday close to the date.
• Find reflections, prayers, and activities in Living Justice: A Gospel Response to Poverty, an ecumenical Canadian resource available from CPJ. Six Living Justice Bible studies that are great for groups are also online.
•  Use the complete liturgy for October 17 created by the Presbyterian Church in Canada.
• Think of ways to connect poverty in Canada with Thanksgiving (October 6) or World Food Day (October 16).
• Include the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty in your reflections on the lectionary text for October 14, one of Jesus’ most powerful teachings about poverty. (Mark 10:17-31)

Be There

• If you’re in Ottawa, come out to CPJ’s and Dignity for All: the campaign for a poverty-free Canada’s public forum “Ending Poverty Together: Real Stories, Real Solutions” on October 17 at 6:30 p.m. at the Government Conference Centre, 2 Rideau St. Panelists will include members of the newly-formed All-Party Anti-Poverty Caucus (APC) and people with a lived experience of poverty. The evening will focus on drawing attention to the day-to-day reality of poverty, highlighting how sound social policy can make a difference, and getting APC members to identify their common priorities for the next year. Please RSVP to Simon at 613-232-0275 x222 or simon[at]cpj.ca no later than Thursday, October 11.