Canada is a prosperous country, yet in 2015 roughly 1 in 8 Canadians lived in poverty. The vision of Opportunity for All – Canada's First Poverty Reduction Strategy is a Canada without poverty, because we all suffer when our fellow citizens are left behind. We are all in this together, from...

Canada’s National Advisory Council on Poverty’s second Annual Report, Understanding Systems, is the first report to provide a glimpse into poverty since COVID-19. Based on community engagements with Canadians and provinces/territories over the last year, the Council has recommended five...

In this video presentation Katherine Scott from the Canadian Council on Social Development (CCSD) shares the new Neighbourhood Financial Health Index, a mapping tool which uses composite data about income, assets, debt, and poverty to show levels of financial health at the neighbourhood...

Canada ranks consistently as one of the best places to live in the world and one of the wealthiest. When it comes to looking at the financial health of Canadian households, however, we are often forced to rely on incomplete measures, like income alone, or aggregate national statistics that tell...

Canada ranks consistently as one of the best places to live in the world and one of the wealthiest. When it comes to looking at the financial health of Canadian households, however, we are often forced to rely on incomplete measures, like income alone, or aggregate national statistics that tell us...

This report examines the financial health and vulnerability of households in Canada’s 35 largest cities, using a new composite index of household financial health at the neighbourhood level, the Neighbourhood Financial Health Index or NFHI. The NFHI is designed to shine a light on the dynamics...

This toolkit contains resources and information which may offer support to organizations, agencies, or frontline staff supporting individuals, during a challenging time. This toolkit was developed in response to the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic and more resources will be added as they become...

The research and policy symposium on income volatility was held on March 9, 2018, in Toronto, Ontario. Speakers from Canada and the United States present on key research findings on the nature of income and expense volatility in the early 21st Century. Speakers also suggest policy solutions to...

On September 9 and 10, 2008, Reaching Higher: Canadian Conference on Financial Literacy was held in Montréal to highlight the effectiveness of current Canadian financial literacy efforts and to examine international strategies. The hosts of the conference were the Financial Consumer Agency of...

This is a submission paper by SEDI to the Ontario Ministry of Child and Youth Services. Social and Enterprise Development Innovations (SEDI) is a national charity dedicated to expanding economic opportunity for Canadians living in poverty through program and policy innovation. We are pleased to...

This brief is the joint submission of the Canadian Literacy and Learning Network (CLLN), Momentum Calgary, SEED Winnipeg, Social and Enterprise Development Innovations (SEDI), and St. Christopher House in Toronto – five non-profit organizations working to strengthen the financial inclusion and...

In August 2018, the Government of Canada announced Opportunity for All – Canada's First Poverty Reduction Strategy. The Strategy included a commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goal's target of reducing poverty by 20% by 2020 and 50% by 2030. Opportunity for All included the adoption...

In June 2005, Social and Enterprise Development Innovations (SEDI), the Policy Research Initiative (PRI), and the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) organized Canadians and Their Money: A National Symposium on Financial Capability. The conference stemmed from an initial examination by SEDI...

The Policy Research Initiative of the federal government organized an extremely interesting and well-attended conference on “Asset-Based Social Policies” on December 8-9, 2003. There is quite a buzz around this broad theme in Canadian social policy circles these days, and some community-level...

This paper explores the relationship between financial capability, literacy, and a series of rich indicators of socio-demographics, psychosocial outcomes and well-being. The analysis conducted in this report builds on an existing large scale research project, UPSKILL, a pan-Canadian research and...

This National Indigenous Economic Strategy for Canada is the blueprint to achieve the meaningful engagement and inclusion of Indigenous Peoples in the Canadian economy. It has been initiated and developed by a coalition of national Indigenous organizations and experts in the field of economic...

Nonprofit organizations in Canada were significantly impacted by COVID-19, including lost revenue and needing to adjust the program delivery. The lack of technology capacity in the nonprofit sector is a key barrier for many nonprofit organizations to adapt to delivering programs online. Momentum, a...

Technology can play a key role in addressing some of the financial challenges that Canadians face on a day-to-day basis. Over the last five to ten years we have seen a growing number of companies, called fintechs, that primarily use technology to change and enhance the way we do banking or access...

This report describes the rationale and design of a project that will carefully implement and evaluate an innovative program — called Learn$ave — that aims to help low-income Canadians build savings for use in enhancing their labour market skills through adult education and micro-enterprise...

Poverty is costing us too much. The National Council of Welfare provided examples in its 2002 report on the Cost of Poverty. In 2006, in Solving Poverty: Four Cornerstones of a Workable National Strategy for Canada, we outlined a governance model based on long-term vision, plans and budgets,...

The Dimensions of Poverty Hub, sponsored by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), enables Canadians to track progress on poverty reduction. The updates as of September 2020 include poverty statistics based upon the new 2018-base Market Basket Measure...

All Canadians aspire to a quality of life that provides access to opportunity for themselves and their families. We at SEDI know that there are basic requirements, which form the underpinnings of achieving this goal. They are education, health care, employment and income security, wealth...

Financial empowerment consists of five complementary strategies including financial literacy and coaching; taxes and access to benefits; safe financial products; savings and asset building; and consumer protection. Empower U serves primarily as a financial literacy and coaching and savings and...

The charitable sector is a major social and economic force, offering vital services to Canadians and people around the world. The Canada Revenue Agency's Charities Directorate employs an education-first approach and client-centric philosophy. It aims to promote compliance with the charity-related...

Benefits and credits provide income and financial support for many individuals. This toolkit contains information on common tax credits and benefits, benefits for specific populations, and practitioner resources including case studies and information on identification documentation for accessing...