Wellesley Institute works in research and policy to improve health and health equity in the GTA through action on the social determinants of health.
This fall, some of Toronto’s youngest residents started school for the first time. But were they ready? Evidence shows that not all children are, and that some children – particularly those from low-income families – are significantly less likely to enter school ready to learn when compared to their classmates. Fortunately, there is a way […]
Continue ReadingChild Care – A powerful intervention for low income children and families
Today marks an important step in the health of all Canadians. The Advisory Council to Implement National Pharmacare released their report recommending a universal single-payer national pharmacare plan to cover every Canadian. Wellesley Institute’s Senior Fellow Camille Orridge was appointed to the Advisory Council and over the past year has spoken to health care […]
Continue ReadingA universal single-payer national pharmacare plan will cover every Canadian
Recently, there has been talk of possible policy changes that could affect tenant protections in Ontario. These include shortening eviction timelines, allowing private bailiffs to enforce evictions, and perhaps removing Landlord Tenant Board hearings altogether for certain evictions. While up-to-date information on evictions – both formal and informal – are difficult to acquire, we know […]
Continue ReadingCutting tenant protections will harm our health
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 18, 2019 OTTAWA, ON — Finding solutions to housing challenges such as affordability, social inclusion, Northern and remote supports, Indigenous housing provision, and environmental sustainability is key to ensuring that more Canadians have access housing that meets their needs and that they can afford. Today, the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of […]
At the first #WellesleyTalks panel event, A.I. and Health Equity: Opportunities and challenges for ethics and policy, held on April 3, 2019, a panel of thought leaders explored the role and implications of artificial intelligence on health equity issues of the day. We expanded the conversation by asking our in-house and digital audience to pose […]
Social assistance is a lifeline for Ontarians living in poverty and without it, many people would be destitute. The new plan to reform social assistance announced by the Ontario government cuts rate increases in half, leaving some of those in most need with less money to live on. The new plan also penalizes people who […]
18-year-old Stephen Lawrence was waiting for a bus in South London, England in 1993. Racist thugs attacked him, beat him and he died from his injuries. Everyone knew who did it, but the police bungled the investigation so they walked free. Stephen’s parents and the community pressed the UK government for a public inquiry. When […]
Continue ReadingInstitutional racism: what we can learn from London
The federal government has spoken out against the “politics of cruelty” of the Ontario government’s reduction of workers’ rights. For Canadians and Ontarians who are tired of bickering politicians, this might just feel like another political fistfight. However, moving beyond the distraction of pre-election politics, we shouldn’t forget that protecting basic workers’ rights is a […]
Continue Reading(Not) Playing Politics: Workers’ Rights Matter for Health
The TTC has committed to making transit more efficient. But making public transit better is about more than just quicker service – it’s about protecting our health. We need a public transit system that works for public health. For the TTC to build an equitable and healthy transit system, it should begin by: Putting riders […]
This month, Toronto Life published its list of the top neighbourhoods in Toronto, ranking every neighbourhood in the city from ‘best’ to ‘worst.’ Lists and rankings have become a mainstay of how we entertain ourselves, and are often harmless fun, but this ranking at best plays up already entrenched perceptions, and at worst will aid […]
Continue Reading(Postal) Coded Meanings: Toronto Life’s Neighbourhood Rankings and Rising Inequality
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We would like to acknowledge this sacred land on which the Wellesley Institute operates. It has been a site of human activity for 15,000 years. This land is the territory of the Huron-Wendat and Petun First Nations, the Seneca, and most recently, the Mississaugas of the Credit River. The territory was the subject of the Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, an agreement between the Iroquois Confederacy and Confederacy of the Ojibwe and allied nations to peaceably share and care for the resources around the Great Lakes.
Today, the meeting place of Toronto is still the home to many Indigenous people from across Turtle Island and we are grateful to have the opportunity to work in the community, on this territory.
Revised by the Elders Circle (Council of Aboriginal Initiatives) on November 6, 2014
In the spirit of equity and inclusion, if we can improve on this statement, please contact us. Thank you.