Poverty Reduction- Plans & Actions By: Kelly Schmidt CRDS Practicum Student

Calgary Statistics of Poverty ACA Data In 2006 there were 157,615 people with disabilities in Calgary, representing 16.1% of the total population (Statistics Canada, 2006 Census of Canada) According to the census agility (difficulty bending, dressing, getting out of bed, most types of daily living skills) and mobility are the most common types of disabilities Approximately 8% of total population report difficulties with these functions. Works out to between 78,000-80,000 Calgarian’s. Affects 40% of the population over 75 A projection of these numbers shows that between 2012-2014 these populations will increase by 50%. By 2013 the total number of PWD will be 193,578 out of a total population of 1,144,300 about 16.9% By 2042 22.1% of Calgary’s population will be persons with disabilities

Calgary Statistics (cont.) Prevalence of low income also depends on the PWD ability to work For individuals 15 years of age and older with a disability working full time is only 8% 10-18% worked part time year round In 2005, PWD 15 years of age and older income was $23, 463 compared to $32, 351 with no disability

Poverty in Alberta Action to end poverty- According to the Poverty Costs report- “Poverty is experienced in 148,000 families in Alberta and by 73,000 children, 34,000 of whom are below the age of 6” Poverty costs Alberta 7.1-9.5 Billion dollars every year Nearly 400,000 Albertans live in poverty

Poverty in Canada- (Federal Reduction Plan: Working in Partnership Towards Reducing Poverty in Canada, 2010) Canadians with disabilities are more than twice as likely to live in poverty as other Canadians Incidence of poverty among Aboriginal people with disabilities is even higher People with disabilities face exclusion from quality education, employment, and from participation in their communities Women with disabilities face additional economic disadvantage

Poverty in Canada- Federal Reduction Plan (cont.) Committee was told that the current disability income security system does not adequately protect people with disabilities from falling into poverty. They realize that many are trying to survive off of social assistance benefits Human rights- believe that Canada has a strong reputation internationally for being a leader on disability rights issues and assisted in the development of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) that was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2006 Believe that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and Canadian Human Rights Act will help protect PWD Believe that the Canada Pension Plan Disability (CPPD) Program will help those individuals that cannot work on a daily basis Want to make the definitions of disability and eligibility criteria to be the same across disability programs so that individuals are recognized and can automatically receive Disability Tax Credit

Organizations in Calgary Whose involved in what? Public Interest Alberta (PIA)- cowrote a forum with two members of the Edmonton Social Planning Council (ESPC) called “Achieving the Promise. Ending Poverty in Alberta” in November 2012 http://pialberta.org/sites/default/files/Documents/Achieving%20the%20Promise%202012%20Final_0.pdf The forum is based off of Premier Alison Redford’s promise to end child poverty in 5 years and everyone else in 10 years Have a “Task Force” that is made up of concerned Albertan’s who meet up regularly to discuss ideas, knowledge and create strategies

Action to End Poverty Action to End Poverty- have made the initial steps towards a poverty-reduction strategy. Want a unified plan to all stakeholders, including elected officials, government administration, policy makers, organizations and the public Goal is to create a comprehensive plan to prevent, reduce, and ultimately eliminate poverty in Alberta Cowrote “Poverty Costs” with Vibrant Communities Calgary Joe Ceci wrote “Breaking the Cycle” talks of the costs of poverty, the societal values, and what we should do about all of this

Calgary Poverty Reduction Initiative (CPRI) Vision is “a community where no human being is deprived of the resources, means, choices and power to acquire and maintain self sufficiency while being able to be an active participant in society” Derek Cook wrote “Beyond the lines” in the CPRI’s newsletter. Finds there are some unanswered questions when it comes to changing how the community views poverty. “The unanswerable question becomes not how do we change people’s values, but how do we enable people to fully live out the values we already hold “

United Way Poverty Reduction Have written “Sustained Poverty Reduction: The Case for Community Action” Talks about poverty in Alberta and Canada. Discusses how some policies have hindered the ability to move forward with eliminating poverty In the midst of Calgary Poverty Reduction Initiative (CPRI) between United Way and City of Calgary CPRI was created to develop a long-term community-based strategy to significantly reduce poverty in Calgary

Vibrant Communities Calgary Cowrote “Poverty Costs” report Starting on the follow up to Poverty Costs called Poverty Costs 2.0 2.0 is about sharing great ideas to help us invest in lasting solutions to poverty Also conduct Poverty TALKS workshops which are designed to provide people living in poverty with the opportunity to identify issues or concerns Make sure all of these issues are addressed in all forms of government http://www.vibrantcalgary.com/uploads/pdfs/Poverty_Costs.pdf

Poverty TALKS A collaborative initiative to support people who live in poverty to become involved in the political processes and to raise public awareness of poverty issues Designed to “empower individuals in their own communities to develop grassroots initiatives that they can use to change society and governments for the betterment of people living in poverty”

SCOPE/Disability Action Hall Front line services Many programs Disability Action Hall is run by self-advocates and allies to work towards a better Alberta for everyone Is a part of SCOPE, CAN and many other organizations to work in collaboration to help in poverty reduction strategies

Environmental Scan Poverty Reduction Project.pdf

Comparison Table Poverty reduction comparison table.pdf

Questions/concerns/comments? Thank-you all for taking the time to listen to my presentation!

References Action to End Poverty. (2013). Poverty Costs. Retrieved from http://www.actiontoendpovertyinalberta.org/index.php/poverty-costs City of Calgary.(2013). ACA Data Request. Social Policy and Planning Calgary Ability Network. (2013). Calgary Ability Network. Retrieved from http://www.calgaryabilitynetwork.ca/ Calgary Herald. (2012). John Rook on Secondary Suites. Retrieved from http://www.vibrantcalgary.com/vibrant-resources/category/vibrant-news-around-the-world/ Calgary Poverty Reduction Initiative. (2013). Enough for all. Retrieved from http://www.enoughforall.ca/ Disability Action Hall. (2013). Disability Action Hall Blog. Retrieved from http://www.actionhall.ca/ House of Commons Canada. (2010). Federal Poverty Reduction Plan: Working in Partnership Towards Reducing Poverty in Canada. Report of the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities. 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. 1-261. Public Interest Alberta. (2013). Action Areas. Retrieved from http://pialberta.org/action-areas Statistics Canada, 2006, Census of Canada Vibrant Communities Calgary. (2013). Vibrant Initiatives. Retrieved from http://www.vibrantcalgary.com/vibrant-initiatives/ United Way Calgary and Area. (2005). Sustained Poverty Reduction: The Case for Community Action. Retrieved from http://www.calgaryunitedway.org/main/sites/default/files/Sustained%20Poverty%20Reduction%20The%20Case%20for%20Community%20Action%20final%20mar05.pdf