Detailed data will help community organizations in Alberta develop effective injury prevention programs
A new report from the Injury Prevention Centre is the first in Alberta to provide data on injury-related emergency department visits by people experiencing houselessness – information that will help community organizations deliver injury prevention programs tailored to the distinct health-care needs of this population. “This is the first step in understanding what the injury issues are,” says…
May be a solution for most of the homeless people in Canada
As most of us remembered on Canada Day, this is a pretty good country to live in. It’s hard to think of a better one. But it’s not perfect. We do have some serious problems that need fixing, like homelessness. In a country as rich as Canada, no one should have to go hungry, and…
Allowing homeless people to live in city parks is unsafe, unwise and unnecessary
For the second time in slightly more than a year, Toronto’s Trinity Bellwoods Park is in the news. Roughly 10,000 people rushed into the park in May 2020 to enjoy a few hours of sunshine and socialization. Most of them were in their 20s and 30s and had expressed frustration at having been cooped up…
Not only does work help financially but it empowers people to take control of their lives and rise above poverty
Homelessness is increasingly a problem in cities big and small across North America. Yet as business leaders we tend think the issue isn’t our problem – unless, of course, we have a business affected by a homeless camp, squatters in our doorsteps or addicts in our alleyways. We can’t comprehend why people aren’t working like…
Unbefriended,’ these isolated seniors require more help to safeguard their access to basic daily needs, including companionship, and improve their quality of life
By Stephanie A. Chamberlain and Carole A. Estabrooks University of Alberta What happens when a person grows older and can no longer make health and financial decisions for themselves – but also doesn’t have family or friends who can make those decisions on their behalf? Health and social services use a hard-hitting term to describe…
Money budgeted for an elevated greenway for walkers and bikers should go to housing the homeless or easing traffic congestion
Vancouver is a great city. For people like me who use their feet for most of their transportation, it’s wonderful. But sometimes city decision-makers go overboard. For recreation and exercise, there’s the 28-km seawall, part of which circles Stanley Park. It’s been voted the best place to run in Canada. There’s also the nine-km Arbutus…
Developmentally delayed children come into a failing welfare system due to irresponsible parents placing substance abuse ahead of their children
More than half of Winnipeg’s Indigenous homeless population are former wards of Child and Family Services (CFS). A former CFS ward explained on CBC recently that the 50 per cent figure was too low, not taking into account the significant number of former wards who “couch surf.” This group relies on the kindness of acquaintances…
We need to address contributing factors to homelessness, including mental illness, addictions and poverty
Tonight, an increasing number of Canadians face the prospect of sleeping in a tent – not to welcome the summer camping season but as a last resort. Unlike regulated campgrounds, tent cities are without electricity, water and often bathrooms. These makeshift encampments appear to be on the rise with Winnipeg and Nanaimo, B.C., being two…
It’s more effective to supplement rents in times of high vacancy because each dollar spent gets the tenant more
In the recent Saskatchewan budget, the government made the surprise announcement that it would slowly phase out a rental housing assistance program known as the Saskatchewan Rental Housing Supplement. Given current rental housing market realities, the government ought to have done the complete opposite and expanded the program. High vacancy rates create a desirable climate…
As homes age, they should filter through various socio-economic strata. But construction approval roadblocks slow that process to a crawl
By Josef Filipowicz and Steve Lafleur The Fraser Institute The federal government’s new National Housing Strategy will benefit specific groups but doesn’t target broader affordability issues in Canada’s most expensive housing markets. The strategy includes a portable “housing benefit” of $2,500 per year, on average, to low-income households. It also proposes the construction or renovation of hundreds…
A new report from the Injury Prevention Centre is the first in Alberta to provide data on injury-related emergency department visits by people experiencing houselessness – information that will help community organizations deliver injury prevention programs tailored to the distinct health-care needs of this population. “This is the first step in understanding what the injury issues are,” says…
