On February 14, CPJ and the Dignity for All campaign for a poverty-free Canada are hosting "What’s Next: How do we Address Poverty in Canada?” in Ottawa. The event will feature a panel discussion and Q & A session with MPs, social policy & advocacy groups, and members of the public, including those living in poverty, with an aim to promote non-partisan dialogue and to identify concrete and achievable goals for reducing poverty in Canada. Read more »
Eleven years past the federal government's deadline of eradicating child poverty by the year 2000, 1 in 10 children continue to live in poverty. Why hasn't more progress been made? Read more »
This is the second part in a series exploring climate change, poverty, how the two are related, and their impacts on Canadian Inuit. The first part explored the major impacts of climate change in Canada’s North, both on the environment and on the Inuit living there. This installment examines how poverty affects the Inuit. Read more »
October 17th marks the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. Here in Canada, countless reports, resolutions and commitments have been made over the years about ending poverty, yet the problem persists. What sort of action is needed? Perhaps it's time to re-think our approach... Read more »
To achieve a sustainable economic recovery in Canada, all Canadians need an affordable place to call home. Canada’s serious housing problem is cause to reconsider priorities for the next federal budget. Included in this budget are plans to cut corporate taxes. CPJ’s recommendation: hold the corporate tax cuts and direct funds toward affordable housing. Read more »
In federal elections, it is always hard to determine what is going to get attention. So far housing has largely been passed over and ignored for other discussions. Unfortunately, many Canadians do not share this luxury. An estimated 300,000 Canadians are homeless and an estimated 1.5 million Canadian households are involuntarily spending more than 30% of their income on housing (the threshold for affordability). In 2006, 40% of all renter households were in core housing need, living in conditions below standards for adequacy, suitability and affordability. The health implications of poor housing are also being increasingly documented.
Read more »
It was with great anticipation and cautious hopefulness that we awaited the Government of Canada response to In from the Margins: A Call to Action on Poverty, Housing and Homelessness. Action on the 74 recommendations it contains could have had a profound impact on the lives of Canadians living in poverty. The Senate has challenged our government to assume its responsibility to care for its citizens, to respect international human rights commitments, and to invest our collective resources conscientiously. Sadly, the government’s response illustrates a disappointing unwillingness to constructively assume this responsibility. Read more »
It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon when a lively group of Ottawans rambled down the highway to Hamilton. There were two priests, two young adults from a local parish and the two of us. We were among the 85 or so clergy and lay people from across the country making our way to “Community Justice Camp – Live the Change you want to see.”
Community –be it geographic, experience-based, or otherwise –is central in our pursuit of social justice. At Justice Camp we had the opportunity to be among a wonderful group of justice advocates from across the country to learn, share, and grow together as we explored how to discern and interpret local needs in a way that leads to charity, justice, and a strong and healthy community for all. Read more »
Just over a year ago, in April 2009, Libby Davies (MP, Vancouver East) introduced her private member’s bill for a “Secure, Adequate, Accessible and Affordable Housing Act” (Bill C-304). If passed, this legislation will require the establishment of a national housing strategy. A strategy developed in consultation with the provinces and other stakeholders that guarantees the right to safe, secure, adequate, affordable and accessible housing for all Canadians.
Bill C-304 is currently on its way to third reading. If passed, it would serve as landmark legislation by acknowledging the right to housing. It would also provide a valuable model for future legislative efforts to address poverty, its causes, consequences, and complexities. Read more »
The recession has had a tremendous impact on Canadians. Job losses and a faltering safety net have added hundreds of thousands of people to the population of Canadians living in poverty. Economic stimulus and deficit spending are most certainly required to confront this vulnerability. Measures to create and sustain jobs and to build a strong and healthy country are needed. But this cannot be done at the expense of those on the margins, excluded from mainstream society. Read more »
On February 14, CPJ and the Dignity for All campaign for a poverty-free Canada are hosting "What’s Next: How do we Address Poverty in Canada?” in Ottawa. The event will feature a panel discussion and Q & A session with MPs, social policy & advocacy groups, and members of the public, including those living in poverty, with an aim to promote non-partisan dialogue and to identify concrete and achievable goals for reducing poverty in Canada. 
Eleven years past the federal government's deadline of eradicating child poverty by the year 2000, 1 in 10 children continue to live in poverty. Why hasn't more progress been made? 
This is the second part in a series exploring climate change, poverty, how the two are related, and their impacts on Canadian Inuit. The 
October 17th marks the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. Here in Canada, countless reports, resolutions and commitments have been made over the years about ending poverty, yet the problem persists. What sort of action is needed? Perhaps it's time to re-think our approach... 
To achieve a sustainable economic recovery in Canada, all Canadians need an affordable place to call home. Canada’s serious housing problem is cause to reconsider priorities for the next federal budget. Included in this budget are plans to cut corporate taxes. CPJ’s recommendation: hold the corporate tax cuts and direct funds toward affordable housing. 
In federal elections, it is always hard to determine what is going to get attention. So far housing has largely been passed over and ignored for other discussions. Unfortunately, many Canadians do not share this luxury. An estimated 300,000 Canadians are homeless and an estimated 1.5 million Canadian households are involuntarily spending more than 30% of their income on housing (the threshold for affordability). In 2006, 40% of all renter households were in core housing need, living in conditions below standards for adequacy, suitability and affordability. The health implications of poor housing are also being increasingly documented.
It was with great anticipation and cautious hopefulness that we awaited the Government of Canada response to In from the Margins: A Call to Action on Poverty, Housing and Homelessness. Action on the 74 recommendations it contains could have had a profound impact on the lives of Canadians living in poverty. The Senate has challenged our government to assume its responsibility to care for its citizens, to respect international human rights commitments, and to invest our collective resources conscientiously. Sadly, the government’s response illustrates a disappointing unwillingness to constructively assume this responsibility. 
Just over a year ago, in April 2009, Libby Davies (MP, Vancouver East) introduced her private member’s bill for a “Secure, Adequate, Accessible and Affordable Housing Act” (Bill C-304). If passed, this legislation will require the establishment of a national housing strategy. A strategy developed in consultation with the provinces and other stakeholders that guarantees the right to safe, secure, adequate, affordable and accessible housing for all Canadians.
The recession has had a tremendous impact on Canadians. Job losses and a faltering safety net have added hundreds of thousands of people to the population of Canadians living in poverty. Economic stimulus and deficit spending are most certainly required to confront this vulnerability. Measures to create and sustain jobs and to build a strong and healthy country are needed. But this cannot be done at the expense of those on the margins, excluded from mainstream society. 
