Poverty reduction is complex and requires a whole-of-society approach that includes [federal], provincial, territorial and municipal governments, employers, non-profit and community organizations, and individuals.
– A Time for Urgent Action, the 2024 Annual Report of the National Advisory Council on Poverty
The 2024 Annual Report of the National Advisory Council on Poverty, titled A Time for Urgent Action, gives us an updated picture of the state of poverty in Canada. After a low in 2020, the poverty rate is once again rising, with deep poverty increasing as well as many people struggling to afford their basic needs for the first time.
Income has not kept pace with the rising cost of living and working wages are no longer a reliable strategy to reduce poverty. The chasm between the cost of basic needs and income is leading to more core housing need, food insecurity, barriers to healthcare and transportation – disproportionately affecting marginalized communities such as Indigenous and racialized groups.
The report calls for transformative measures now, including a basic income floor indexed to the cost of living, fixing the social safety net, improving access to affordable housing and reducing food security, addressing structural inequities, and setting an ambitious target of reaching zero poverty in Canada.
Community-based efforts are at the forefront of the impacts of poverty and are essential in this transformation but cannot do it alone.
This webinar will explore what the Council heard from people across Canada in 2024, the federal government’s role in reducing poverty, as well as highlighting how communities – local organizations, collaboratives, associations and individual community members – can action this report.
Speakers
Scott McAfee, Chairperson, National Advisory Council on Poverty
Scott (he/him) is a lifelong learner, a facilitator, a coach and a connector. He spent almost 20 years with the Government of New Brunswick where he worked on poverty reduction through the department of Social Development and the Economic and Social Inclusion Corporation.
Scott has chaired OMISTA Credit Union, Falls Brook Centre, New Brunswick Food Security Action Network and the Fredericton Loyalists Rugby Club. He has also sat on the boards of the Atlantic Summer Institute, the Healthy Eating Physical Activity Coalition and Team Rural NB.
Scott is passionate about community, storytelling, innovation, belonging and supporting others.
Natasha Pei, Associate Director, Communities Ending Poverty, Tamarack Institute
Natasha (she/her) is passionate about justice and equity and has 13 years experience as a community developer in Canada and China. Natasha employs a structural lens to analyze and address social issues and believes in the power of place-based, community-led systems change.
For the last eight years she has supported Tamarack's network of communities seeking to end poverty in Canada, including facilitating shared learning and building momentum around issues such as Living Wage and Basic Income. Natasha now brings a variety of experience to the Learning Centre, having supported members across Canada to use a Collective Impact approach in their planning, to deepen and broaden their engagement with community members, to develop structures and new ways of thinking about collaborative leadership, and to evaluate and communicate the impact of their collaborative.
Natasha is a Registered Social Worker, holding a Master of Social Work and Bachelor of Social Work degree from Carleton University.
Other hats Natasha wears includes volunteer of local dog rescue and events, neighbourhood organizer, and climbing enthusiast.