Ola! November-December 2010

Welcome to the November/December edition of Ola!, CPJ’s online newsletter! It has been a busy month as amidst our regular activities, we welcomed members of the Board to CPJ’s offices in mid-November. Discussions among these eleven volunteers from British Columbia to Nova Scotia ranged from analysis of CPJ’s research and policy activities to fundraising strategies and even some advance thinking towards CPJ’s 50th anniversary in 2013. Read on for more highlights from the past month!

One Step Closer to a Poverty Elimination Plan

CPJ was pleased to welcome the release of the report, Federal Poverty Reduction Plan: Working in Partnership Towards Reducing Poverty in Canada on November 17. The report was the result of a three-year study by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills Development, Social Development and Status of People with Disabilities (HUMA). Federal Poverty Reduction Plan is largely viewed as a positive step towards creating a federal poverty elimination strategy in Canada. CPJ joined partners in the Dignity for All campaign in a press conference on November 18, to congratulate HUMA Committee members for their work, and call for a positive response from the government.

For more on CPJ’s response and what you can do to support the report, please see CPJ’s Press Release: Citizens for Public Justice praises vision of Parliamentary Committee, Dignity for All’s Press Release: Dignity for All Applauds Report Calling for Federal Poverty Reduction Plan and Karri’s blog, which includes video footage from our press conference.

Joe Speaks to Christian Reformed Centre for Public Dialogue

CPJ’s Joe Gunn celebrated the opening of the Christian Reformed Centre for Public Dialogue on November 3rd, at First Baptist Church in downtown Ottawa. Known for over 40 years as the “Committee for Contact With the Government,” the new centre has moved to Ottawa from the church’s main offices in Burlington, and is staffed by veteran Mike Hogeterp. Joe welcomed the opening of this faith-based presence in our nation’s capital as a sign of hope at a time when other major church institutions are reducing staff in their social action ministries. Joe emphasized that proximity to Parliament Hill can be only as effective as the support and encouragement it receives from a committed Christian community that understands public justice as a ministry we all must share. Learn more about the Christian Reformed Centre for Public Dialogue, and its focus on Aboriginal issues and peace building in Afghanistan.

End Exclusion 2010: Disabling Poverty/Enabling Citizenship

On November 1st and 2nd CPJ’s Karri Munn-Venn and Jenny Prosser attended End Exclusion 2010. The event, hosted by the Council of Canadians with Disabilities, Canadian Association for Community Living and Canada Without Poverty, was an opportunity to learn more about poverty and disability. Featuring many excellent speakers the event included discussion of Aboriginal poverty, proposals for policy change, human rights complaints and claims, first-hand accounts of living with disability and poverty, and current efforts in working for change. End Exclusion provided further education on poverty issues in Canada and affirmed the need for a national poverty elimination plan created in concert with those groups in Canada who feel the effects of social exclusion.

For more on End Exclusion 2010, see Jenny’s blog.

CPJ Presents: The Great Turning

CPJ joined Kairos Spirituality for Social Justice Centre, Polaris Institute, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and the Council of Canadians in welcoming David Korten to Ottawa for an evening presentation of the Great Turning. Featuring responses to Korten’s vision for the global change from a Canadian perspective by Tony Clarke, Bruce Campbell and CPJ’s own Kathy Vandergrift, the evening was both thought-provoking and informative. Combined with the follow-up workshop the next day, the event did a lot to raise CPJ’s profile in the Ottawa social justice community.

Summaries from political, cultural and economic discussion groups as well as a video from David Korten’s visit to the CPJ offices can be found at www.thegreatturning.ca.  For more on The Great Turning and what that entails, see Joe’s feature.

CPJ on the Road

On October 19th CPJ Executive Director Joe Gunn spoke, in both official languages, to a crowd at l’Université de Moncton, New Brunswick. The topic was poverty reduction in Canada, and the event was organized to mark the UN’s International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, two days previous. While noting the possibilities to move poverty to greater prominence on the agenda of the federal government, Joe also pointed to the situation in New Brunswick. This province had one of the smallest increases in unemployment during the recession, likely because it already had the third highest unemployment rate in the country. Next day, Joe met with 35 members of the Canadian Religious Conference from the four Atlantic provinces, who committed to build support for the Dignity for All campaign and to contact their MPs in this regard. Thanks to these efforts, some new MP signatures have already been received!

CPJ on the Hill

Campaign 2000 MP Breakfast
Reduced poverty means better health for all. This was the focus of discussion at Campaign 2000’s breakfast with Members of Parliament on Parliament Hill, November 25. The event followed the release of Reduced Poverty = Better Health for All, 2010 Report Card on Child and Family Poverty in Canada, and offered an opportunity for advocates, MPs and service providers to gather and discuss poverty. Joe Gunn chaired the event, while Karri Munn-Venn and Jenny Prosser were on hand to learn more about the social determinants of health, speak with MPs, and spread the word about Dignity for All.

Meeting with MP Mike Savage
Joe Gunn and Jenny Prosser met with MP Mike Savage on November 3, along with Make Poverty History’s Dennis Howlett and Michelle Jackson-Brown, for a discussion on poverty. Anticipating the release of the HUMA report on poverty, discussion centred around how best to respond to the report and raise awareness of the issues and advance the Committee's recommendations.

Web Features

Our web features this month have explored a variety of important issues currently prominent on the Canadian scene, such as human trafficking and recent calls for a national poverty elimination strategy. Read on to find out more!

You can’t always get what you want... But then sometimes, you do.

By Karri Munn-Venn
Early in 2008, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills Development, Social Development and Status of People with Disabilities (HUMA) initiated a study on the federal role in reducing poverty. Since then, there has been a federal election and Parliament has been prorogued twice. There were times when we wondered if the results of this study would ever see the light of day. On November 17, Federal Poverty Reduction Plan: Working in Partnership Towards Reducing Poverty in Canada was released. The publication of the HUMA report seemed a victory in and of itself, but the content has us really excited. Read more…

Korten comes to Canada: The Great Turning

By Joe Gunn
CPJ, with several community partners, hosted the October visit of David Korten to Canada. This well-known author and engaging public speaker regaled his audience with the need to undertake a “Great Turning” in our cultural, political and economic behaviours. Mr. Korten shared some of his insights with us at the CPJ office, as well as at several public meetings in Ottawa. Read more…

Human Trafficking in Canada: The Need for Action

By Callandra Cochrane
In September 2010 Conservative MP Joy Smith released Connecting the Dots, a proposal to combat human trafficking in Canada. Through highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of the proposal, we explore the need for a comprehensive national action plan.

While it is imperative for Canada to implement an action plan, should the government adopt the proposal outlined in Connecting the Dots? Read more…

Reflection

God of all creation, how abundant is your love! How loving are your ways!

Through Jesus you taught us the words and actions for how to love – with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our mind, and with all our strength; we are to love others as we love ourselves.

Through Jesus you showed us whom to love: poor and rich, sick and healthy, homeless and homeowner, unemployed and manager, hungry and banquet host, shunned woman and respected homemaker, lost child and dutiful offspring, disabled and able-bodied, wrongfully accused and interpreter of the law, pious leader and questioning follower, members of another race or faith and the powerful.  The list is as endless as your love, which is never “either–or” but always “both.”

With the persistence of your disciples, may we love inclusively and abundantly, bringing good news and transformation to the world, and a celebration of the diversity and uniqueness of your creation.

Amen.

*Opening Prayer by Anne Saunders in “Liturgical Resource for October 17th, International Day for the Eradication of Poverty” from the Presbyterian Church in Canada. http://www.presbyterian.ca/pcconnect/daily/5440

From all of us here at CPJ, Jenny Prosser. May the coming Advent season be a peaceful time for you and your family.