Research, experience and public debate relevant to poverty have virtually exploded in the past few years—in variety, depth and breadth. New examples from this growing body of knowledge provide important insights that can make a strategy to solve poverty in Canada more affordable than the status quo—and more successful. The extensive bibliography of books, journalarticles, academic papers, seminar presentations, media storiesand commentary that informed this report can be found online.
This report synthesizes the main insights, themes and trends in many fields that the National Council of Welfare is convinced hold the keys to successful and cost-effective solutions. The examples, taken together, have been chosen to illustrate the range of resource material used:
- Approaches and methodologies from dollar calculations of cost to more conceptual studies;
- Economics as well as sociology, psychology, biology, medicine and more;
- Areas linked to poverty such as health, education and housing, and newer studies on business and the private sector;
- Small, precise studies of particular programs to larger studies of national tax systems and reviews of various program interactions;
- Many concerned actors at local, provincial, national and international levels from individuals and communities to academic institutions, research bodies, governments and businesses.
