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…
Almost half of the people visiting food banks live alone. The single-household economy is clearly not doing so well. It's time for some social retooling
We’re reminded every year how many Canadians are left behind in our society, without enough food. Hunger Count 2019 has just been released. The report says that despite a strong economy and living in one of the richest countries in the world, many Canadians still don’t have enough food. The report says food banks have…
ATCO Village, a Homes for Heroes initiative, features 15 tiny homes, a resource centre, counsellor’s office, family suite and community gardens
The first Homes For Heroes village, a housing initiative for homeless Canadian Forces veterans, has launched in Calgary. ATCO Village, in southeast Calgary, features 15 tiny homes, a resource centre, counsellor’s office, family suite and community gardens. Officials say a tiny home provides veterans with privacy, a sense of security, peer-to-peer support and the ability…
Lloyd Cenaiko talks about the work his organization HART does in Eastern Europe and why each small act makes a difference
Lloyd Cenaiko is president of HART. What is HART and what does it do? Cenaiko: HART is a relief, aid and missions agency, dedicated to alleviating poverty and injustice in Eastern Europe. For the past 20 years, HART has been on the cutting edge of a movement focused on empowering and equipping local leaders, agencies…
The rise in economic inequality is one of the most potent 21st century memes. You could even call it pervasive. It dominates the debate in the Democratic presidential contest and has a material echo in our current federal election. The rich – particularly the notorious one per cent – must be made to “pay their…
It’s right for Canadians to value a just society that leaves no one behind. But relying on ever-increasing spending to do so is driving us toward bankruptcy
I know what it means to live in poverty. I grew up in a large family in a small village in Cape Breton, the fourth of eight children. My father was a wonderful man who struggled with alcoholism his whole life. We had no running water and only a coal stove to heat the house.…
When a dollar earned triggers higher taxes and simultaneously reduces benefits, what’s left to spend or save?
A look at effective tax rates across provinces shows that many low-income families in Canada take home 40 cents or less on the additional dollars they earn. The marginal effective tax rate – which accounts for how much you pay in additional income taxes and lose in federal and provincial transfer benefits when you earn…
The Lax Kw’alaams and Metlakatla need to put the Ridley Terminal money to work on things that will lead to future returns for their people
If there are any special Canadian values, fairness is surely one of them. We want and expect our laws and courts to be fair. Our economy, too, should give everyone an opportunity to do well. The resulting income streams should not excessively reward the rich nor should our taxes penalize the poor. The United States,…
U.S. households not only live with higher income inequality than in Canada but more than half are worse off in terms of purchasing power
Regardless of whether America is great, or about to be great again, a new analysis shows that Canadians outrank Americans on household income. The Economist magazine recently devoted a long section to a profile of Canada with frequent comparisons to the United States. Among the statistics highlighted were that Canadians’ life expectancy was three years…
Apparently, as you get older you get happier. Sclerotic, arthritic, calcified, deaf, blind, stupid and poor equals happy? Where do I sign up?
In a few years, people my age will get back pain, clogged arteries, brittle bones, hearing loss, cataracts, arthritis, heart disease, dementia and schizophrenia. What they won’t get, apparently, is unhappy about it. Citing a recent national survey, Canadian Press reports that older people in this country are generally more buoyant than younger ones. In…