New Tool Kit: Poverty Elimination Strategies that Work

We are proud to announce the release of the Poverty Elimination Strategies that Work. The report, which highlights programs that work to reduce poverty in transportation, housing, health care, food and nutrition, affordable child care, sustainable work, and income supports was written with two goals in mind.

One goal is to detail how each of the eight areas mentioned can specifically impede an individual experiencing extreme poverty. Poverty is an all-encompassing word that can take on many different meanings for different people. The report details how poverty can impact these eight different issues of a person’s life, providing a more holistic view of how local programs address extreme poverty.

The second goal is to provide a resource guide for policymakers, community groups, foundations, service providers, advocates, and faith-based agencies who want to address poverty within their neighborhoods. By separating the programs into these eight categories, individuals can easily pick and choose which programs can best address poverty in their own community. All of the programs highlighted in the report are not only proven effective, but replicable as well. Each program should be seen as a reasonable blueprint for implementing programs within your own community.

Here at the From Poverty to Opportunity Campaign we spend a lot of time discussing poverty. We write about its root causes, its detriment to society and how it should be addressed. Unfortunately, given the rising poverty rates all across the country, this discussion tends to be prescriptive rather than descriptive. It is easier to point the finger and bemoan the failures of others rather than offering alternative solutions. This is not to say that being a skeptical critic is not important. The threat of criticism keeps everybody honest. It pushes us to be better. Yet criticism that is not balanced with the offer of effective, alternative solutions is akin to a spinning wheel that does not move. It was with this sentiment in mind that we framed the report.

So please take some time to read the report, and ask yourself: what are the biggest obstacles that those experiencing extreme poverty face in MY community? Once that question is answered, this report may prove very useful in alleviating these barriers.