Cities Reducing Poverty: When Mayors Lead

The time to act on poverty reduction is here.

The momentum builds this month, as Tamarack Institute, Vibrant Communities Canada and the City of Edmonton come together to organize a milestone gathering to deepen our understanding of poverty as a human rights issue that impacts everyone in our communities.

From April 5-7, mayors from across Canada, representing communities of all sizes, are gathering at Cities Reducing Poverty: When Mayors Lead in Edmonton, Alberta. They are joined by city councillors; provincial and territorial representatives; sector leaders and practitioners from across the country; and people with lived experience of poverty. Together, the collective wisdom of over 350 attendees will convene a learning community designed to expand our knowledge; grow our toolbox for change; and, leverage our collaborative efforts.

Without a doubt, this is a unique time in the history of Canada. Across the country, every provincial and territorial government has or is considering a poverty reduction strategy - just two months ago we featured two examples of strategies laid out for Edmonton and Toronto. At the community level, most communities are enacting poverty reduction strategies focused on reducing the number of Canadians experiencing poverty. What's more, we have a new and energized federal government.

Mayor Don Iveson, City of Edmonton and one of the keynote speakers at the Cities Reducing Poverty gathering affirms this momentum when he says, "Ending poverty is not science fiction anymore, it's happening in a community near you and it's thrilling!"

Highlights of the Cities Reducing Poverty learning community and gathering include:

• Over 350 attendees, including: 19 mayors; 8 city councillors; sector leaders and practitioners from over 150 organizations and collaboratives; and, over 30 participants with lived experience sponsored or subsidized by the City of Edmonton; Tamarack; partners; and, communities.
  
  
• A panel discussion on ideas to end poverty through the lenses of local and federal governments, and the business community with Mayor Naheed Nenshi, Senator Art Eggleton and Ruth Kelly

• Dr. Cindy Blackstock, First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada, speaks about ending poverty for Aboriginal children
  
  
• Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson, Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman and Hamilton Mayor Fred Eisenberger, among others, will present successful approaches to poverty reduction in their cities, focusing on bold initiatives, human rights efforts, health and well-being, and more
  
  
• 23 workshops delivered by civic, Aboriginal and community leaders, going deeper in areas such as fundraising, rights-based poverty reduction, shared measurement and collective impact

A gathering of this magnitude could not be made possible without the support of many. Tamarack would like to thank the following organizers, partners and sponsors for their commitment to this work: City of Edmonton, Anglican Diocese of Edmonton, Edmonton Community Foundation, The Federation of Canadian Municipalities, The J.W. McConnell Family Foundation, Maytree, Momentum, Ontario Trillium Foundation, United Way Alberta Capital Region and United Way Centraide Canada.

Learn More

• Follow the event live from Twitter via #MayorsPovertySummit
• View the full Conference Agenda
• Watch Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson's 2015 Keynote Address
• Become a member of Vibrant Communities Canada! Learn more at www.vibrantcommunities.ca