Wellesley Institute works in research and policy to improve health and health equity in the GTA through action on the social determinants of health.
Many factors contribute to keeping Canadians healthy. Just as crucial as access to healthcare, social supports and good working conditions, is housing. Currently, we are facing a housing crisis due to lack of affordability, disrepair, crowding, short supply, and the list goes on. If Canada is going to solve the housing problem, we need to […]
The evidence in Toronto is clear: overcrowded housing is associated with increased COVID-19 infection rate. When people have insufficient space to socially distance or self-isolate if they are sick, it makes people more vulnerable to contracting COVID-19. In the City of Toronto, overcrowded housing conditions have left 12 per cent of private households more vulnerable […]
Continue ReadingCrowded housing and COVID-19: Impacts and solutions
The first wave COVID-19 effort from Government, health, charities, businesses and our population has been extra-ordinary. But with over 8500 deaths, we need to take stock and see if there are ways we can improve for the likely second wave. It has now become clear that the early days of Canada’s pandemic response were characterized […]
Continue ReadingComparative lives lost analysis: A lens on the adequacy of our COVID-19 response
COVID-19 has changed everything. But COVID-19 has changed nothing. It has shown us that the old normal was not working because it made us more susceptible to the pandemic. We were not properly investing in health and social services. We were not looking after the most vulnerable. And, we were creating new vulnerable populations through […]
Continue ReadingThe new normal: moving from surviving to thriving
Like many across Canada, North America and the world, the Board of Directors of the Wellesley Institute is saddened and outraged by the killing of George Floyd, and by the violence and institutional injustice in response to protests against anti-Black racism and police brutality. Members of the Board are also painfully aware that anti-Black racism […]
While many Torontonians are working from home to help fight the spread of COVID-19, essential workers are helping by going to work every day to keep the city safe and functioning. It’s no surprise that since the start of the pandemic, TTC ridership has fallen by 85 per cent. But even though the number of […]
Continue ReadingProtecting public transit to protect public health
From Zoom meetings and Google Classroom lectures, to around-the-clock news updates, COVID-19 has forced Torontonians to rely on digital technologies and highspeed internet now more than ever. For people who are not technologically literate or cannot afford highspeed internet, software or the most current devices, this shift has made it difficult to manage the social […]
Continue ReadingStaying (dis)connected? Toronto’s digital divides under COVID-19
I am told that we are preparing to slowly get back to normal. That fills me with dread. I remember normal. Normal was when Ontario had its highest ever GDP per capita, but at least 350,000 people used food banks and social assistance rates were so low that those considered too sick to work were […]
Across the province, personal support workers (PSWs) have been walking out on their jobs because of unsafe working conditions created by COVID-19. Lack of personal protective equipment (PPE), infrequent COVID-19 testing, and a chronic shortage of staff have put PSWs at greater risk of contracting the virus. These issues coupled with long-standing concerns such as […]
Continue ReadingSupporting support workers: PSWs need increased protections during COVID-19
The Federal Government has released at least 20 different measures to support individuals through the impacts of COVID-19 and the public health response. These have included changes in the rules for existing supports such as EI, increases in programs such as child benefit and new benefits such as the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB). But […]
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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.