Mark Chamberlain Presents his Vision on Poverty Reduction

Edmonton, Alberta – June 14, 2011. Mark Chamberlain, former chair of the Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction, http://www.hamiltonpoverty.ca/ spoke to more than 400 Edmonton business leaders and community and social services sector members at the Shaw Conference Centre today. Mark discussed how Hamilton tackled this issue and how we can all work together in Edmonton to reduce poverty in our community. Mark’s presentation was followed with roundtable discussions by attendees and then a general question and answer period. Mark is President and CEO of Trivaris. http://www.trivaris.com His work related to reducing poverty is widely known and respected across the country.

Mark stressed active participation by the entire community. “The primary focus of the solution actually lies in the core of the stakeholder group. It does not fall to any one group – it is not the responsibility of the government nor is it the responsibility of the business or social services sector. Instead we all have a role, again – it’s about collaboration. Everyone taking their share of the role.” He further emphasized the need for sustainability, “We need to invest in tomorrow and invest in resiliency. Invest in eliminating poverty, invest in sustainability of our communities. Invest, just as we do for our businesses.”

Ron Gilbertson, president and CEO of Edmonton Economic Development Corporation talked about their role in the sponsorship of the Mark Chamberlain event, "We firmly believe that Edmonton has the ability to be in the top five mid-sized cities in the world. And in this modern world, that includes a strong social system. As a city we are starting to put emphasis on quality of life and that quality of life has to extend to everyone, not just people who are fortunate in life but all people."

United Way, Edmonton Economic Development Corporation and the Shaw Conference Centre partnered to present this special one time event.

ABOUT UNITED WAY OF THE ALBERTA CAPITAL REGION

United Way brings together organizations, businesses, governments and community members who care about the issues we face in the Alberta Capital Region. As a leader in community building, we share the vision of what it takes to be the change we all want to see in our community. It’s a vision where everyone lives with financial stability and independence, where all neighbourhoods are safe and residents have a sense of well-being, and where all children are getting the right start in life and have the support they need to get them through the middle years and their high school graduation. Together, we represent one of the most critical and extensive collaborative approaches for change. Change Starts Here.

- 30 -