Wellesley Institute works in research and policy to improve health and health equity in the GTA through action on the social determinants of health.
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
With advance polls opening for the Toronto municipal elections this week, and election day only two weeks away, the Wellesley Institute’s Healthy Budget Builder lets the user ask the question: what would you do if you had control of the $11 billion annual city operating budget? The results have been coming in strong and here’s […]
Continue ReadingTorontonians divided on spending $11 billion annual City of Toronto budget
Last month, Wellesley Institute released our Healthy Budget Builder Toronto simulation. It allows users to create their own fully-funded City of Toronto budget, and make decisions over which city services to fund and how to pay for them. Since then over 800 people have used the website, and many chose to submit their balanced budgets. […]
Tomorrow, hundreds of refugee claimants who sought safety in Toronto must leave the dorms they have been temporarily housed in to make way for returning students. In recent months, there has been much debate around Ontario’s ability to house refugees. And while the recent influx of asylum seekers may have sparked the current debate, Toronto’s […]
Continue ReadingWhere is the refuge for refugee claimants in Toronto?
For many, retirement is a time to pick up a hobby, travel the world, and spend time with family. Unfortunately for some Ontarians, the dream of “the golden years” will be just that – a dream. For Mary Hynes, a retired teacher living in the GTA, living paycheque-to-paycheque has meant having to compromise certain areas […]
Continue ReadingThe either/or of retirement: What does it really cost to thrive?
By Nazeefah Laher and Anjana Aery In a competitive rental market, there are barriers that go beyond high housing costs and limited supply. People in racialized groups, with disabilities, or on social assistance are particularly vulnerable to discrimination. The Ontario Human Rights Code provides legal protection for people seeking housing, protecting people on 14 identified […]
Continue ReadingTight rental markets in the GTA and low incomes set people up for discrimination
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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.