Canadian Social Research Newsletter
April 5, 2009

Welcome to the weekly Canadian Social Research Newsletter,
a listing of the new links added to the Canadian Social Research Links website in the past week.

The e-mail version of this week's issue of the newsletter is going out to 1999 subscribers.

IN THIS ISSUE:

Canadian content

1. Nova Scotia Poverty Reduction Strategy (Nova Scotia Government) - April 3
2. Child Poverty in British Columbia (CTV British Columbia) - March/April 2009
3. Video slideshows from the BC Office of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives - March 27
--- The Time is Now : A Poverty Reduction Plan for BC
--- Poverty Amid Pleny : A Slideshow about Welfare in BC
4. Canada Child Tax Benefit (CCTB) payment amounts, tax years 1999 to 2008 (Canada Revenue Agency)
5. What's new from the Caledon Institute of Social Policy:
--- Newfoundland and Labrador: Innovative Strategies in Government-Community Collaboration - April 2009
--- Paved with Good Intentions: The Failure of Passive Disability Policy in Canada - April 2009
--- Budgets for Bad Times - April 2009
--- Comprehensive Strategies for Deep and Durable Outcomes - April 2009
--- Gender aspects of Employment Insurance - March 2009
--- “Around the Block”: A Citizen-Generated Community Newspaper in Saint John - March 2009
--- Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction: Setting the Table for Change - March 2009
--- The federal role in poverty reduction - March 10
6. Minister of Finance Tables Annual Reports on Canada's Participation in World Bank, IMF and EBRD (Finance Canada) - March 31
7. Fifth Report Card on Ending Homelessness in Ottawa, Jan–Dec 2008 (Alliance to End Homelessness in Ottawa) - March 31
8. National Child Benefit - site re-launched, links changed, content trimmed
9. What's new in The Daily (Statistics Canada):
--- Payroll employment, earnings and hours, January 2009 - March 31
10. What's new from the Childcare Resource and Research Unit (Toronto) - April 1

International  content

11. Poverty Dispatch: U.S. media coverage of social issues and programs (Institute for Research on Poverty - University of Wisconsin-Madison)
12. U.S. to Join U.N. Human Rights Council, Reversing Bush Policy (Washington Post) - March 31
13. [U.S.] Final Report of the Legislative Commission to End Poverty in Minnesota by 2020 - January 2009
14. [U.S.] Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity : Poor Measurement Series - March 2009
--- Measuring Poverty in New York City
--- A Truly New Approach to Measuring Economic Inclusion
--- Revisiting the Federal Poverty Measure
15. [U.S.] Asset Poverty + Policy Proposals to Reduce Poverty (Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity) - February 2009
16. Australian Policy Online Weekly Briefing - selected recent content
17. CRINMAIL (April 2009) - (Child Rights Information Network - CRIN)

Gilles

************************
Gilles Séguin
Canadian Social Research Links
http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net

Nova Scotia Poverty Reduction Strategy - April 2009
The Nova Scotia government released its Poverty Reduction Strategy on April 3, 2009.
The strategy provides a framework for addressing the needs of those most vulnerable and those at risk of falling into poverty, while promoting the prosperity necessary for Nova Scotia to grow. The vision for 2020: to break the cycle of poverty by creating opportunities for all Nova Scotians to participate in the prosperity of the province and enjoy a better standard of living.

The three main goals of the strategy are:
1. Enable and reward work
2. Improve supports for those in need
3. Focus on our children
4. Collaborate and coordinate

Poverty Reduction Strategy Released
News release
April 3, 2009
Training low-skilled workers, increasing affordable housing and improving benefits for low-income families are the focus of Nova Scotia's $155 million Poverty Reduction Strategy. Community Services Minister Chris d'Entremont and Labour and Workforce Development Minister Mark Parent introduced the strategy today, April 3, in Kentville. It responds to a series of recommendations from the Poverty Reduction Working Group, which was mandated through legislation supported by all three parties.

Nova Scotia’s Poverty Reduction Strategy:
Preventing Poverty, Promoting Prosperity (PDF - 1.4MB, 45 pages)
- April 2009

Background Information
- includes a brief overview of the 16-month process that preceded the release of the Poverty Reduction Strategy in April 2009, along with links to the Poverty Reduction Working Group Report, the Poverty questionnaire results and a news release on the Working Group's recommendations.

Quotes, quick facts and summary of investments
- includes links (down the right-hand margin of the page) to audio commentary on the Poverty Reduction Strategy by both ministers responsible.

Source:
Community Services
Labour and Workforce Development

Related link:

N.S. anti-poverty plan focuses on housing, retraining
April 3, 2009
The Nova Scotia government is promising to spend millions of dollars on new housing and retraining as part of a multi-year strategy to reduce poverty. Community Services Minister Chris d'Entremont said the idea is to help low-income Nova Scotians by giving them proper shelter and a chance to get a job. Under the $155-million plan, people on income assistance only get a modest increase to offset the cost of living.
Source:
CBC Nova Scotia

- Go to the Anti-poverty Strategies and Campaigns page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/antipoverty.htm
- Go to the Nova Scotia Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/nsbkmrk.htm

Child Poverty in British Columbia
March/April 2009
"Our province has the highest child poverty rate in Canada.
It's a damning statistic that advocates are calling B.C.'s Shame."

Clicking the link above opens the main page of this four-part series from CTV-BC, where you'll find links to articles and videos on the following topics:
* BC - The highest child poverty rate in Canada
* One woman's struggle to provide
* Food banks jammed with kids
* Poverty's dangerous consequences
Source:
CTV British Columbia

- Go to the Non-Governmental Sites in British Columbia (A-C) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/bcbkmrk2.htm
- Go to the Children, Families and Youth Links (NGO) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/chnngo.htm

Recently posted on the website of the
BC Office of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives:

The Time is Now
A Poverty Reduction Plan for BC (video slideshow)
by Goh Iromoto, Shannon Daub & Seth Klein
March 27, 2009

Poverty Amid Plenty:
A Slideshow About Welfare in BC (video slideshow)
by Goh Iromoto, Shannon Daub & Seth Klein
March 27, 2009

Source:
BC Office of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (BC-CCPA)
[ CCPA National Office ]

- Go to the Anti-poverty Strategies and Campaigns page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/antipoverty.htm
- Go to the Non-Governmental Sites in British Columbia (A-C) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/bcbkmrk2.htm

Canada Child Tax Benefit (CCTB) payment amounts, tax years 1999 to 2008

- incl. basic benefit - supplement for 3rd and following child(ren) - supplement for children under age seven - base threshold - benefit reduction rates, one child - benefit reduction rates, two or more children - NCBS amount for first child - NCBS amount for second child - NCBS amount for each additional child - NCBS threshold - NCBS phase-out rate, one child - NCBS phase-out rate, two children - NCBS phase-out rate, three or more children - Child Disability Amount (CDB) - CDB base threshold, one child - CDB phase-out rate, one child - CDB phase-out rate, two children - CDB phase-out rate, three or more children

* Tax Years 1999 to 2003
* Tax Years 2004 to 2008

Source:
Canada Child Tax Benefit
[ Child and Family Benefits - includes links to : * Canada Child Tax Benefit * Universal Child Care Benefit * GST/HST credit * Working Income Tax Benefit * Provincial and territorial programs ]

The Canada Child Tax Benefit may include:

* the National Child Benefit Supplement
* the Child Disability Benefit

Provincial and territorial child benefit and credit programs
that are related to the Canada Child Tax Benefit:
* Alberta Family Employment Tax Credit * BC Family Bonus (and British Columbia Earned Income Benefit) * New Brunswick Child Tax Benefit * Nova Scotia Child Benefit * Newfoundland and Labrador Child Benefit (and Mother Baby Nutrition Supplement) * Northwest Territories Child Benefit * Nunavut Child Benefit * Ontario Child Benefit * Yukon Child Benefit
[NOTE: residents of Québec must apply to the Régie des rentes for the child assistance payment.]

Source:
Canada Revenue Agency

- Go to the Children, Families and Youth Links (Government) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/chnbkmrk.htm

What's new from the Caledon Institute of Social Policy:

Newfoundland and Labrador: Innovative Strategies in Government-Community Collaboration (PDF - 85K, 9 pages)
By Fran Locke, Penelope Rowe and Anne Makhoul
April 2009
An ambitious experiment, Newfoundland and Labrador’s Strategic Social Plan (SSP) – unveiled in 1998 – called for involvement of the voluntary, community-based sector and citizens in policy formulation. Dismantled in 2004, it also provided the foundation for Newfoundland and Labrador’s current Rural Secretariat and its celebrated Community Accounts database.

Paved with Good Intentions:
The Failure of Passive Disability Policy in Canada (PDF - 112K, 31 pages)
By Rick August
April 2009
One-size-fits-all benefits, passive income strategies and over-simplified disability concepts have failed, in Canada and across the developed world, to achieve real economic integration of adult citizens with disabilities. Alternative strategies can improve economic inclusion while avoiding the perverse incentives and dependency traps associated with most current disability programs. Solving problems in disability policy may also help governments address adequacy and incentive issues in broader income support programs, and may point to alternatives to the largely self-defeating Canadian welfare system.

Budgets for Bad Times (PDF - 37K, 3 pages)
By Michael Mendelson
April 2009
Michael Mendelson was Ontario ’s Assistant Deputy Minister of Finance from 1989 to 1990 and Deputy Secretary of the Cabinet from 1990 to 1995. He is now Senior Scholar at the Caledon Institute of Social Policy. In this commentary, he compares the experience of Bob Rae’s government in the recession of the early 1990s to that facing the McGuinty government in the recession of 2009. A shorter version of this commentary appeared in the Toronto Star on March 22, 2009.

Comprehensive Strategies for Deep and Durable Outcomes (PDF - 87K, 20 pages)
By Eric Leviten-Reid
April 2009
This paper is part of Vibrant Communities’ continuing effort to strengthen the knowledge and practice of comprehensive, multisectoral approaches to poverty reduction. It explores the idea of ‘comprehensiveness’ in order to clarify some of the conceptual and practical issues it involves. What are the different ways to pursue comprehensive approaches to poverty reduction? What are the strengths and limitations of such approaches in achieving deep and durable outcomes? More than a discussion paper, this publication helps set the stage for a series of case studies to be undertaken with local partners in Vibrant Communities.

Gender aspects of Employment Insurance (PDF - 81K, 20 pages)
By Ken Battle
March 2009
Ken Battle appeared before the Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women. His presentation discusses gender aspects of the Employment Insurance program.

“Around the Block”: A Citizen-Generated Community Newspaper in Saint John (PDF - 84K, 3 pages)
By Anne Makhoul
March 2009
Recent layoffs and closures in mainstream broadcast and newspaper outlets make it more difficult for people to get local news. Community newspapers – particularly when written by residents – can help fill the gap and provide new avenues for skills development and community cohesion.

Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction: Setting the Table for Change (PDF - 215K, 11 pages)
Liz Weaver and Anne Makhoul
March 2009
The Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction’s work to make a serious dent in poverty began in 2006. Its record of success is now inspiring communities across Ontario to consider similar action. Find out how this organization is influencing policy makers and bringing out the best in its citizens.

The federal role in poverty reduction (PDF - 78K, 19 pages)
Presentation to the Standing Committee on Human Resources,
Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities
by Ken Battle and Sherri Torjman
March 10, 2009
"(...)This morning, we will briefly discuss some examples of federal programs that can help reduce poverty, and offer some suggestions for improving their poverty reduction capacity [bolding added]. We distinguish between incremental improvements to existing programs and deeper changes to the architecture of social policy. Although the federal role in poverty reduction takes mainly the form of income security programs, it also has roles to play in financially supporting services provided by provinces and territories."
- incl. proposals to improve/support:
* Seniors’ benefits * Child benefits * Help for the working poor * Employment Insurance
* Disability income * Early learning and child care * Social housing * Social infrastructure * Enabling environment

Related link:

Standing Committee on Human Resources,
Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities
(40th Parliament, 2nd Session : January 26, 2009 - Present)

Source:
Caledon Institute of Social Policy

- Go to the Anti-poverty Strategies and Campaigns page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/antipoverty.htm

Minister of Finance Tables Annual Reports on Canada's Participation in World Bank, IMF and EBRD
News Release
March 31, 2009
The Honourable Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance, today tabled in Parliament two annual reports detailing Canada's leadership role and ongoing priorities in vital international financial institutions: Canada at the IMF and World Bank—Report on Operations Under the Bretton Woods and Related Agreements Act and Canada at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development—Report on Operations Under the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Agreement Act.
Related documents:
* Canada at the IMF and World Bank 2008—Report on Operations Under the Bretton Woods and Related Agreements Act
* Canada at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development—Report on Operations Under the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Agreement Act
(Click the news release link to access these two documents)
Source:
Department of Finance Canada

- Go to the Globalization Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/global.htm

Fifth Report Card on Ending Homelessness in Ottawa, Jan–Dec 2008
Billions for banks while Ottawa shelters overflow : Children and youth hardest hit (PDF - 40K, 2 pages)
March 30, 2009
Media Release
- evaluates the city’s progress in combating the crisis of homelessness by comparing 2008 with 2007 to provide grades in four areas: housing, income, homelessness and length of shelter stay.
"The 2008 Report Card will report that the total number of men, women, youth and children using shelters shot up over the year. Families alone increased by 15.2%. There were 747 homeless families with 1,179 children under 16 years old in 2008. Perry Rowe, Chair of the Alliance to End Homelessness in Ottawa, is particularly concerned that not only were more people homeless but they stayed in shelters an average of 51 days in 2008, five days longer than in 2007. The average length of stay in an Ottawa shelter has been increasing since 2006.Since mid-2008, the demand for shelter beds has been surging and Ottawa emergency shelters have been running out of beds every night."

Complete report:

Experiencing Homelessness
Report Card on ENDING Homelessness in Ottawa (PDF - 2.6MB, 16 pages)
March 2009
Annual report card of the Alliance to End Homelessness to track the Ottawa community’s progress in ending homelessness.
[ version française (PDF - 2,6Mo., 16 pages)]

Highlights (PDF - 23K, 1 page)

[ Past report cards - 2004 to 2007 ]

Source:
Alliance to End Homelessness in Ottawa
The Alliance to End Homelessness is a non-partisan coalition of community stakeholders committed to working collaboratively to end homelessness by gaining and promoting a better understanding of homelessness and advocating for strategies to end it.

- Go to the Homelessness and Housing Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/homeless.htm
- Go to the Ontario Municipal and Non-Governmental Sites (A-C) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/onbkmrk2.htm

Thanks to the implementation of the Government of Canada Common Look and Feel Standards for the Internet (CLF 2.0) early in 2009, several thousand links to federal government website content on the Canadian Social Research Links website are now dead, and I expect that more will suffer the same fate in the coming months as straggler departments finally get around to changing their sites to comply with this Treasury Board directive. I'm still royally ticked at the whole notion of Common Look and Feel --- at the rate government websites are currently updated, I'll bet that CLF 2.0 won't even be fully implemented across all federal government websites before CLF 3.0 is rolled out and everything goes wonky again...
<Argh.>

But soldier on we must, and I decided to update a few links to the National Child Benefit website as a first modest step towards fixing broken links to federal government website content. (I know that the NCB site is a federal-provincial government website, so it shouldn't fall under the federal CLF standards, so why was it changed? Evidently to thin out the older reports --- see "Earlier reports" below.

Behold the New and (debatably-) Improved
National Child Benefit website!

---

National Child Benefit
The National Child Benefit (NCB) initiative is a partnership among the federal, provincial and territorial governments1 and First Nations that aims to help prevent and reduce the depth of child poverty, support parents as they move into the labour market and reduce overlap and duplication of government programs.

---

The National Child Benefit Progress Report: 2006
Dated January 2008
Posted online: June 13, 2008
- HTML version
- PDF version (3.3MB, 105 pages)

Table of Contents:
* Message from Federal/Provincial/Territorial Ministers Responsible for Social Services
*Executive Summary
* Chapter 1 The National Child Benefit Supplement
* Chapter 2 National Child Benefit Programs and Services for Low-income Families with Children
* Chapter 3 The First Nations National Child Benefit Reinvestment Initiative
* Chapter 4 Monitoring Progress – Societal Level Indicators
* Chapter 5 Assessing the Direct Impact of the National Child Benefit Initiative
* Chapter 6 The Way Ahead
Appendix 1 : Glossary
Appendix 2 : Provincial, Territorial and First Nations National Child Benefit Reinvestments and Investments
NOTE: Appendix 2 is a detailed account of the new and enhanced initiatives made possible by the National Child Benefit for each province and territory
Appendix 3 Results of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) Analysis
Appendix 4 Additional Statistical Information

Pamphlet : The NCB Progress Report: 2006
- HTML version
- PDF version (232K, 1 page)

Report shows that the National Child Benefit is improving the situation of families with children living in low income
News Release
June 13, 2008
Federal, Provincial and Territorial Ministers Responsible for Social Services are pleased to release to Canadians the eighth report on the progress of the National Child Benefit (NCB).1 The National Child Benefit Progress Report: 2006 shows that the NCB is improving the economic well-being of families with children living in low income.

Earlier reports in this series - for 2004 and 2005 only
Source:
National Child Benefit website
GOVERNMENT TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY, MY ARSE.
Since the NCB website was re-launched at some point during 2008 or early 2009, the "Earlier reports" page contains links to annual progress reports for 2004 and 2005 only, compared with the old version of the same page, where you could find links to annual reports going back to the first full year (1999) of operation of the NCB, along with news releases, backgrounders and more. It doesn't cost more than a few cents to create a permanent archive of ALL of the NCB progress reports, but when the government arbitrarily decides to dump the older reports, it's nothing less than a slap in the face of government accountability and transparency. There should really be some entity in government (maybe the Auditor-General) who could say "Hey, federal government : deleting historical reports from your websites is not transparent, and it's not accountable!"

HOWEVER:

Internet Archive to the Rescue!
This page is a functional snapshot (i.e., with working links) of the reports
available in the NCB website in February of 2008
- on this page, you'll find links to all the earlier reports and news releases and backgrounders that were unceremoniously dropped in the re-launch of the NCB website
Source:
This page, which is a functional snapshot (i.e., with working links) of the home page
of the NCB website in February 2008
-
[ How did I do that? - how the Wayback Machine can help you to avoid 404 Fury... ]

- Go to the Children, Families and Youth Links (Government) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/chnbkmrk.htm

What's New in The Daily [Statistics Canada]:

March 31, 2009
Payroll employment, earnings and hours, January 2009
The average weekly earnings of employees increased 1.1% from December to $823.71 in January.
Since January 2008, average weekly earnings have risen 3.2%.
- includes two tables: Average weekly earnings (including overtime) for all employees and Number of employees

The Daily Archives - select a year and month from the drop-down menu to view releases in chronological order
[ Statistics Canada ]

- Go to the Federal Government Department Links (Fisheries and Oceans to Veterans Affairs) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/fedbkmrk2.htm

Subscribe to the CRRU email announcements list
Sign up to receive email notices of updates and new postings on the CRRU website which will inform you of policy developments in early childhood care and education, new research and resources for policy, newly released CRRU publications, and upcoming events of interest to the child care and broader community.

Links to child care sites in Canada and elsewhere

CRRU Publications - briefing notes, factsheets, occasional papers and other publications
ISSUE files - theme pages, each filled with contextual information and links to further info

Source:
Childcare Resource and Research Unit (CRRU)

- Go to the Non-Governmental Early Learning and Child Care Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/ecd2.htm

Poverty Dispatch (U.S). ===> the content of this link changes twice a week
IRP compiles and distributes Poverty Dispatches twice a week. Each issue of the dispatch provides links to U.S. web-based news items dealing with topics such as poverty, welfare reform, child welfare, education, health, hunger, Medicare and Medicaid, etc.
Each Dispatch lists links to current news in popular print media.

April 2, 2009
* Safety Net Programs in U.S. States and Europe
* Cost Savings of Housing First and Supportive Housing
* Jobless Claims and Unemployment Rates
* Medicaid Funding - Louisiana
* Treatment Decisions for Medicaid Patients
* Poverty, Stress, and Children's Brain Development
* Tracking Special Education Students after High School - Oregon
* Report: States and the Achievement Gap
* Economic Stimulus Spending on Assistance Programs and Education
* State Health Insurance Plans - Massachusetts, Florida
* Economic Downturn and Libraries
* The G-20 Summit

March 30, 2009
* Economic Stimulus Spending
* Homelessness and Housing
* Unemployment and Child Support
* Unemployment Rates
* State Budgets and Cuts to Social Services
* Teacher Training and Student Achievement
* School Choice Bill - South Carolina
* GAO Report: Enforcement of Wage Theft Complaints
* Tax Refund Anticipation Loans
* European Safety Nets
* Home Foreclosures and Bank Walkaways

Past Poverty Dispatches
- links to two dispatches a week back to June 2006

Search Poverty Dispatches

If you wish to receive Poverty Dispatches by e-mail,
please send a request to rsnell@ssc.wisc.edu

Source:
Institute for Research on Poverty (IRP)
[ University of Wisconsin-Madison ]

- Go to the Links to American Government Social Research page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/us.htm
- Go to the Links to American Non-Governmental Social Research (A-J) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/us2.htm
- Go to the Links to American Non-Governmental Social Research (M-Z) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/us3.htm
- Go to the Poverty Measures - International Resources page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/poverty2.htm

U.S. to Join U.N. Human Rights Council, Reversing Bush Policy
By Colum Lynch
March 31, 2009
UNITED NATIONS, March 31 -- The Obama administration decided Tuesday to seek a seat on the U.N. Human Rights Council, reversing a decision by the Bush administration to shun the United Nations' premier rights body to protest the influence of repressive states. (...) The Geneva-based Human Rights Council was established in March 2006 to replace the 60-year-old Human Rights Commission, which lost international credibility after countries with abysmal rights records, such as Sudan and Zimbabwe, were allowed to join and thwart criticism of their actions. The Bush administration refused to join the new rights body, saying it was not convinced that it represented much of an improvement over its predecessor. (...) The Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the U.N. system made up of 47 elected members whose mission is to strengthen the promotion and protection of human rights globally.
Source:
Washington Post

Related links:

United Nations Human Rights Council
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

- Go to the Human Rights Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/rights.htm

Final Report of the
Legislative Commission to End Poverty in Minnesota by 2020 (PDF - 1MB, 72 pages)
January 2009
The Legislative Commission to End Poverty in Minnesota by 2020 began its work in June 2007 and finalized its recommendations in January 2009. The Commission’s overall mission and vision are captured in both
its name and its guiding principles, which were first articulated in the Minnesota faith community (see below).

Source:
Legislative Commission to End Poverty
in Minnesota by 2020
Mission Statement:
"Develop guidelines to end poverty.
Prepare recommendation on how to end poverty in Minnesota by 2020."

A Minnesota Without Poverty
A Minnesota Without Poverty is a statewide, interfaith movement to end poverty in Minnesota by 2020, and a program of Minnesota Council of Churches. We believe that ending poverty is indeed possible, and people of faith from all over the state—public leaders, business people, educators, ordinary citizens of faith—are coming together to respond to God’s call to make this vision a reality.

- Go to the Anti-poverty Strategies and Campaigns page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/antipoverty.htm

[U.S.] Poor Measurement Series (undated, circa Feb/March 2009*)
Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity is pleased to announce a series of commentaries entitled “Poor Measurement” to discuss this issue. Spotlight brings together experts, advocates and policy makers to address how and why to update the federal poverty measure. The three links below are from this series.
---
* <Private rant: Why do governments and non-governmental organizations alike persist in omitting the date of their reports on their websites??ARGH.>

(1)

Measuring Poverty in New York City
By Mark Levitan, Ph.D., Director of Poverty Research, New York City Center for Economic Opportunity
How a Local Effort Demonstrates the Need for a New National Standard

(2)

A Truly New Approach to Measuring Economic Inclusion
By Shawn Fremstad, Director of the Bridging the Gaps project at the Center for Economic and Policy Research
- Why and How We Should Change the Current Poverty Measure

(3)

Revisiting the Federal Poverty Measure*
By Rebecca M. Blank, Robert S. Kerr and Mark Greenberg
The federal government bases its poverty measure on a formula that was established in the 1960s and has not been updated since. Many experts and elected officials alike have made repeated calls for the measure to be changed, especially in light of a changed economy that has altered substantially in the nearly half-century that has passed since the federal poverty measure was first set.
---
* For a fuller exposition of the themes in the above piece, please see:
Improving the Measurement of Poverty (PDF - 835K, 39 pages)
December 2008
By Rebecca M. Blank and Mark H. Greenberg
"(...) The authors recommend the adoption of a new poverty measure, along the lines recommended by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), in order to provide a more accurate measure of economic need in the United States. The current poverty measure relies on 1955 data and a methodology developed in the early 1960s. The current measure is not sensitive to changes in tax policy, in-kind benefits, work expenses, or medical payments; all of these have changed substantially over the years and affect the well-being of low-income families."
***
Rebecca M. Blank is the Robert S. Kerr Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, a member of the Spotlight Advisory Council and served on the Council of Economic Advisers from 1997-1999. She was also a member of the 1995 National Academy of Sciences panel referenced in this piece.
Mark H. Greenberg is Executive Director of the Georgetown Center on Poverty, Inequality, and Public Policy, a member of the Spotlight Advisory Council and a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress.
***
Source:
Brookings Institution
---

Source of the
Poor Measurement Series:
Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity
Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity is a foundation-led, non-partisan initiative aimed at ensuring that our political leaders take significant actions to reduce poverty and increase opportunity in the United States.

[ More commentary from Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity <=== links to over two dozen poverty-related commentaries]

- Go to the Poverty Measures - International Resources page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/poverty2.htm
- For related Canadian links, go to the Poverty Measures - Canadian Resources page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/poverty.htm

Also from Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity (U.S.):

Asset Poverty
- incl. links to the following titles (as at April/09):
* Rental Assistance Asset Accounts (January 2009)
* Access to Financial Services, Savings, and Assets Among the Poor - (November 2008)
* Portraits of the Assets and Liabilities of Low-Income Families - (May 2008)
* Return on Investment: Getting more from Federal Asset-Building Policies (2008)
* Improving Opportunities and Incentives for Saving by Middle- and Low-Income Households (April 2006)
* Policy Options to Broaden Savings and Ownership by Low- and Moderate-Income Americans (April 2006)
* Impact of Asset Ownership on Social Inclusion (2005)

Policy Proposals to Reduce Poverty
February 2009
- this five-page document covers a range of asset-building initiatives, along with Community Factors (Reducing Poverty & Recidivism), Education, Family Policy, Health Care, Making Work “Work” and
Strengthening Civil Society.
- includes brief summaries of each proposal, complete white paper policy proposals (PDF links after each section of the white paper), and a press kit.
- recommended reading for all poverty reduction researchers!
Source:
Poverty Forum
The Poverty Forum is made up of 8 teams who, in February 2009, came up with 25 policy proposals addressing domestic poverty.
The Poverty Forum is composed of a select group of leaders and policy experts representing divergent political perspectives but sharing biblical values surrounding God's concern for the poor and a commitment to address poverty.

- Go to the Asset-Based Social Policies Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/assets.htm
- Go to the Anti-poverty Strategies and Campaigns page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/antipoverty.htm

APO Weekly Briefing
The content of this page changes each week, and it includes links to a few book/report reviews, about two dozen new reports, a few job ads and 60 events (mostly conferences) of interest to social researchers...
Source:
Australian Policy Online (APO) - home page
With nearly 120 member centres and institutes, Australian Policy Online offers easy access to much of the best Australian social, economic, cultural and political research available online.

NOTE: the APO home page includes links to the five most popular reports on the APO website, and this list is updated each week.

APO TOP FIVE 26 March - 1 April 2009
1. Should Anna Bligh be grateful for compulsory voting? / Graeme Orr
2. Child well-being and sole parent family structure in the OECD: an analysis / Simon Chapple
3. Home truths: mental health, housing and homelessness in Australia / Mental Health Council of Australia
4. Climate change in Australia: risks to human wellbeing and health / Anthony McMichael
5. Towards an early years learning framework for Australia / Tim Moore
( Follow the the APO link to access any of these five reports.)

APO Archive
The APO archive is grouped into 23 subject areas, with entries appearing in reverse chronological order.
* Ageing *Asia and the pacific * Citizenship and the law * Disability * Economics and trade * Education * Employment and workplace relations * The environment * Foreign policy and defence * Gender and sexuality * Health * Housing * Families and households * Immigration and refugees * Income, poverty and wealth * Indigenous * Media, communications and cultural policy * Politics and government * Population, multiculturalism and ethnicity * Religion and faith * Rural and regional * Science and technology * Social policy * Urban and regional planning * Youth

- Go to the Social Research Links in Other Countries (Non-Government) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/internatngo.htm

From the Child Rights Information Network (CRIN):

2 April 2009 - CRINMAIL 1072
* MOLDOVA: Corporal punishment banned in all settings [news]
* ANGOLA: Investigation into child abuse [news]
* MALAWI: Madonna's African adoptions part of growing trend [news]
* OPT: Gaza orphans in the spotlight [news]
* TURKEY: 4th UCW Seminar on child labour, education and youth employment
**NEWS IN BRIEF**
**QUIZ**

31 March 2009 - CRINMAIL 1071
* CRIN: Guide to child rights mechanisms - clarification [publication]
* GLOBAL: Native infant mortality rate 'four times non-natives', finds report [news]
* DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Children of illegal immigrants denied nationality [news]
* AFGHANISTAN: 'Worse than the Taliban' - new law rolls back rights for Afghan women and children [news]
* DRC: EU fails to reinstate UN rights expert on Congo [news]
* URUGUAY: Special Rapporteur on torture concludes visit [news]
* AUSTRALIA: Counting Children In! Child Indicators: Research, Theory, Policy and Practice [event]
* UNITED KINGDOM: Easier said than done: 20 years of children's rights between law and practice [event]
**NEWS IN BRIEF**

Earlier issues of CRINMAIL
- links to 300+ earlier weekly issues, many of which are special editions focusing on special themes, such as the 45th Session of the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Source:
CRINMAIL(incl. subscription info)
[ Child Rights Information Network (CRIN) ]

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Gilles

E-MAIL:
gilseg@rogers.com

Top One-Liners: A Baker's Dozen

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1. I have all the money I’ll ever need - if I die by 4:00 p.m. today.

2. I asked God for a bike, but I know God doesn’t work that way. So I stole a bike and asked for forgiveness.

3. Only in America… do banks leave both doors open and then chain the pens to the counters.

4. I saw a woman wearing a sweat shirt with “Guess” on it…so I said “Implants?”

5. Children in the dark make accidents, but accidents in the dark make children.

6. Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

7. Some people are like Slinkies … not really good for anything, but you can’t help smiling when you see one tumble down the stairs.

8.  Campers: Nature’s way of feeding mosquitoes

9.  A bank is a place that will lend you money, if you can prove that you don’t need it.

10. If you think nobody cares if you’re alive, try missing a couple of payments.

11. A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

12. Work harder: GM execs are depending on you. for their bonuses

13. A diplomat is someone who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that you will look forward to the trip.

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And, in closing...