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Introduction

PROJECT

From 2021-2024, Campaign 2000, Citizens for Public Justice and Canada Without Poverty co-led a national community-based research project that engaged communities experiencing poverty to recommend indicators measuring progress towards eradicating poverty and achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

This project, Localizing Canada’s Commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals,builds on Campaign 2000’s ongoing monitoring of government progress towards ending child and family poverty, aiming to address the limitations of the Canadian Indicator Framework for tracking progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically SDG 1: No Poverty.

Through the project, the research team held 17 community conversations with 227 people affected by poverty and intersecting forms of marginalization in every province and territory. The project website hosts summaries of each community conversation.

This local framework is based on the knowledge and experiences shared by participants in the Toronto community conversation, co-hosted by Family Service Toronto – Violence Against Women Program on June 19, 2023.

FINDINGS

Measurement of progress towards poverty eradication in Canada should reflect the lived realities of people experiencing poverty. The indicators used in the Canadian Indicator Framework for measuring progress towards SDG 1: No Poverty are the Market Basket Measure (MBM) and the prevalence of asset resilience.[i] Campaign 2000 report cards and early research from this project highlighted the limitations of these two indicators to track progress towards SDG 1.[ii] [iii]

The project set out to address these gaps with an emphasis on localizing measures of poverty reduction and centring the knowledge and experience of lived experts. Local visions of communities free from poverty emerged. The frameworks drawn from this research reflect participants’ subjective, multidimensional experience of poverty, which is wide-ranging, affects every aspect of life, and differs place to place and community to community. The frameworks also reflect poverty as a violation of human rights resulting in short- and long- term physical, mental, spiritual, and social harm.

These findings highlight the importance of community-based, culturally relevant, localized measures and indicators for ending poverty and the need to urgently recognize and address the systemic intersecting power structures that create and deepen inequities and experiences of poverty.

In addition to the 17 local frameworks, the findings are illustrated in a National Community-Based Indicator Framework, intended to supplement the Canadian Indicator Framework. It outlines dimensions, measures, indicators, and data sources for poverty eradication (including recommendations and gaps, where no indicators exist) that reflect the knowledge and experiences of lived experts and community organizations across the country.

While the findings depict a broad range of expertise from across the country, they remain a snapshot of 227 people, in 17 places, at one moment in time, and further engagement and community-based research is required to continue to centre lived experts in the work of poverty eradication and achieving the 2030 Agenda.

UNDERSTANDING THE FRAMEWORK

The entire framework falls under Sustainable Development Goal 1: End Poverty in All its Forms Everywhere.

The framework is organized by 12 interdependent dimensions of communities with no poverty. These dimensions are interconnected and non-hierarchical – all connect and contribute to the multifaceted way that people experience poverty in Canada. Many of the indicators could fall under multiple dimensions, but for the sake of length, they are each only shown under one.

Dimensions:

In each dimension, measures refer to qualities of communities with no poverty.

Indicators are statistical definitions of the measures.

As living documents, the local frameworks offer Example Indicators and Data Sources. The local frameworks are intended to complement the National Framework, highlight local priorities, and demonstrate opportunities for continued work in localizing measurement towards ending poverty in Canada. They are accompanied by living action recommendation documents.

fst campaign icons harmony and connection

fst campaign icons harmony and connectionSocial inclusion and community connection

Community members feel valued and connected, have opportunities to participate in society and culture, care for and support each other, and live in harmony.

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Being able to participate in society and access services in the language of your choice or with adequate translation supports  
Feeling valued as a person  
Community members support and value each otherProportion of the population by frequency with which they have people they can depend on to help them when they need itCanada Quality of Life Framework, Canadian Social Survey, General Social Survey, Canadian Community Health Survey
Having people who lift you up and encourage you  
Children learn Tamil and learn about their culture  
Communities have festivals and gatherings  
Children have toys and games  
fst campaign icons social justice

Equality, justice, and freedom

Everyone’s human rights are upheld. Communities are free from systemic inequality and injustice, discrimination, oppression, violence, and trauma, and the harms of colonization.

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Gender equality is achieved  
Women experiencing poverty are free from exploitation or coercion  
Freedom from discrimination against Tamil women  
Senior Tamil women are supported  
Freedom from sexual abuse  
Freedom from child marriage  
Freedom from wealth inequality  
Freedom from judgment of material possessions and wealth  
fst campaign icons hope for the future

Joy, happiness and hope for the future

Everyone is able to be happy, feel ease, and have the time and freedom to enjoy life. People have hope, can imagine the future, and don’t feel trapped in cycles of poverty and isolation.

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Everyone is happy  
Freedom from hopelessness and depression  
Freedom from suffering  
Being able to enjoy time off from work  
Being able to enjoy the summer  
Being able to live how you want to  
Having faith  
fst campaign icons economic stability

Income and material security

Incomes reflect the cost of living. People have the ability to pay all their bills, meet all their basic needs, have some flexibility to not live paycheque to paycheque, and are able to thrive.

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Freedom from scarcity  
Everyone can meet their basic needsLow Income Measure, disaggregatedStatistics Canada, Census of Population
Ability to meet basic needs is not tied to employment  
Being able to buy clothing  
Being able to meet your children’s needs and wants  
Being able to pay a translator if you need to  
Everyone can pay all of their bills  
Being able to pay all bills and have some money left over  
Being able to save money  
Freedom from loans and debt  
Incomes reflect the cost of living and increase with inflation  
Social assistance reflects the cost of living  
Pensions reflect the cost of living, including seniors’ residences  
Disability assistance reflects the cost of living, including for families with children  
Jobs pay a living wage  
Cost of living is equitable and reasonable  
Everyone receives an income regardless of employment status  
Having the financial ability to pay for parents’ care and assisted living  
Ability to have a credit card  
fst campaign icons work fulfillment

Decent work

People can work in jobs with a living wage, safe work conditions, opportunities for growth, and job training. Work is fulfilling and allows people to use their skills.

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Jobs pay a living wage  
Employment rates are high  
Everyone has equitable access to employment opportunities  
Being able to get a job regardless of the language you speak  
Being able to work if you want to  
Immigrants can work in the field they are trained in  
Feeling happy about your job  
Being able to work in a field you enjoy  
Freedom from having to work multiple jobs  
Jobs have accommodations for mental illness  
Freedom from exploitation at work  
Freedom from working long hours  
Work hours are reasonable and equitable  
Having opportunities for free job training and certification  
Immigrants have access to training in the Canadian context of their field of work  
Having training opportunities that lead to job opportunities  
Access to supports for self-employment  
Communities have good awareness of job training and volunteering programs available  
Work is not tied to survival  
fst campaign icons equal education

Education for all

Everyone has equitable access to affordable, quality education, training, and learning supports.

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Everyone has access to good quality education  
Tamil children have equitable access to education  
Women have access to good quality education  
Schools provide accommodations for language barriers  
Children and youth are taught financial literacy and budgeting in school  
Access to English language classes in your neighbourhood  
fst campaign icons community housing

Right to housing is realized

Everyone has a home. There is adequate, affordable secure housing for all, free from discrimination, and reflecting the needs of communities and neighbourhoods.

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Housing prices are affordable  
Low income families are housed  
Single mothers with children can afford housing  
Housing is in good repair  
Rental housing is regulated and affordable  
Ability to pay rent and pay other bills  
Ability to pay rent and save money  
Ability to pay rent and buy food  
Ability to afford a whole rental unit as a single person  
Landlords are accountable to tenants  
Everyone has access to affordable or subsidized housing who needs it  
No wait list for affordable housing  
Housing supply reflects needs of community  
New housing being built reflects needs of existing community  
Ability to scale up or down with housing without financial repercussions  
Mortgage rates are affordable  
Freedom from stress and suffering about housing  
fst campaign icons secure nutrition

Food sovereignty and security

Everyone has access to nutritious, affordable, culturally appropriate food; the ability to hunt, harvest, grow, and share food according to cultural values; and the freedom to choose what they want to eat.

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Everyone has enough food  
Being able to afford food  
Freedom from having to go to a food bank  
Being able to afford food you like and that your children like  
Being able to afford nutritious food  
Children can eat nutritious food  
Being able to eat a varied diet  
Being able to access a food bank when you need to  
fst campaign icons healthcare access

Health and mental health

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Having good health and wellbeing  
Everyone is mentally healthy  
Freedom from the physical and mental harms of poverty  
Everyone has access to health care  
Everyone has access to free mental health care  
Everyone has access to free pharmacare  
Ability to have a full night’s sleep  
Houses are well-ventilated  
Freedom from suicide  
fst campaign icons service accessibility

Equitable access to services, programs, and supports

Services and supports are accessible and coordinated, with no arbitrary bureaucratic barriers or discrimination. Community organizations are resourced and are by communities, for communities.

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Equal access to services for all racialized and immigrant communities  
Services and supports are well-communicated and coordinated  
Organizations are low-barrier and supportive  
Having access to organizations that offer services in Tamil  
Everyone has access to affordable translation services when needed  
Everyone has access to affordable public transit  
Senior Tamil women have support with transportation and errands  
Seniors have affordable access to at-home support workers  
Single mothers have equitable access to services, programs, and supports  
Equitable access to amenities, like ATMs and grocery checkouts  
fst campaign icons family time

Connected and supported families and children

Families are supported to stay together and spend time together. The child welfare system is equitable, trauma-informed, and reflects needs of children and families. Everyone has access to affordable childcare. 

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Being able to raise children how you want to  
Families spend time together and share meals together  
Children see their parents on a regular basis  
Everyone has access to affordable childcare  
Children have equitable access to items and opportunities  
Single mothers can afford to care for their children how they wish to  
Single mothers support each other to provide for their children  
Single mothers are supported and recognized for their strengths  
fst campaign icons government accountability

Accountable and engaged governments and institutions

Governments are accountable to communities. Policy-making is community-engaged, trauma-informed, responsive, and based on local needs and values.

MeasureIndicatorData Source, Proxy Data Source, or Gap
Governments recognize the housing crisis and address affordability  

[i] Statistics Canada. (2021). The Canadian Indicator Framework for the Sustainable Development Goals. Statistics Canada. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/11-26-0004/112600042021001-eng.htm

[ii] Campaign 2000. Pandemic Lessons: Ending Child and Family Poverty is Possible. February 14, 2023. https://campaign2000.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/English-Pandemic-Lessons_Ending-Child-and-Family-Poverty-is-Possible_2022-National-Report-Card-on-Child-and-Family-Poverty.pdf

[iii] Barrie, H., & Sarangi, L. (2022). Literature Review: Localizing Canada’s Commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals. Campaign 2000: End Child and Family Poverty. https://sdg.campaign2000.ca/wp-content/uploads/Campaign-2000-Localizing-SDGs-Project-Literature-Review-May-2022.pdf