A new year is often the time when we take stock and commit to changing things or shifting direction. It's that time when we set goals and seek ways to improve ourselves and our communities. As you know, at Tamarack we are committed to eliminating poverty and have been working with cities across Canada for over 14 years to this end. Together, we've accomplished a lot but there is still much to do.
With the new year here, we are pleased to announce Tamarack's 3rd annual poverty reduction summit, Cities Reducing Poverty: When Business is Engaged which will take place April 4-6 in Hamilton, Ontario. This Summit is the largest gathering of people who are working to end poverty in Canada and beyond. It is a forum for learning about solutions and innovations, forming and deepening relationships with one another, and exploring opportunities that will help all of us advance our poverty reduction work.
Last year, Ruth Kelly, President and CEO of Venture Publishing called attention to the fact that the business
sector has been under-represented in poverty reduction initiatives. She challenged us to engage businesses early on in the fight against poverty and engage business leaders in helping to create and sustain communities that are healthy and prosperous [see the video]. When business is involved, we have even more opportunities to develop innovative solutions to end poverty together.
We invite you to be a part of this important discussion. You will be joined by business leaders, mayors and municipal staff, federal and provincial government representatives, Indigenous leaders, funders, policy makers, community organizers, and persons with lived experience. Meet allies, access new tools, share resources, and discover new practices with sector leaders from across the nation.
Join us at Cities Reducing Poverty: When Business is Engaged to:
- Learn about what the federal government is doing to develop a national poverty reduction strategy for Canada and how local poverty reduction efforts are impacting federal efforts;
- Consider key roles that businesses play in poverty reduction as leaders, collaborators, influencers, and funders;
- Learn how mayors and municipalities have been progressing with poverty reduction efforts since the 2016 Cities Reducing Poverty Summit;
- Discover game-changing innovations in poverty reduction work;
- Identify evaluation strategies that help us learn and create accountability in our work; and,
- Explore some of the most promising practices across the country.
I ask that you help us spread the word about Cities Reducing Poverty: When Business is Engaged and join a growing country-wide movement to overcome poverty and replace it with prosperity. This is a time of real hope as citizens, cities, provinces/territories, the federal government and the business sector join together and support one another to significantly reduce poverty in Canada.
We hope you can join us, and we wish you all the best as you start your new year.
Sincerely,
Mark Holmgren Director, Vibrant Communities Tamarack Institute
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