Social Research in Other Countries - Governments

La recherche sociale ailleurs dans le monde - Les gouvernements

Updated August 14, 2010
Page révisée le 14 août 2010

From the Council for Employment, Income and Social Cohesion - Paris
Conseil de l'emploi, des revenus et de la cohésion sociale - CERC [version française]

Selected content from CERC Bulletin N°211 (August 9, 2010)
(Click on this link to see the complete list of studies in that issue...)
TIP : for similar research, click the links below to the source organizations, then find the links to "Reports" or "Publications"]

Poverty and the life cycle in 20th century Ireland :
Changing experiences of childhood, education and the transition to adulthood (PDF - 241K, 59 pages)
May 2010
By J. Gray
Source:
Combat Poverty Agency, Dublin

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[Eastern Europe]
The Poverty reduction capacity of private and public transfers in transition (PDF - 798K, 41 pages)
File dated July 2010
By P. Verme
Source:
Dipartimento di Economia "S. Cognetti de Martiis", Torino

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[United States]
Young disadvantaged men : Fathers, families, poverty and policy
An introduction to the issues (PDF - 641K, 28 pages)
June 2010
By T. M. Smeeding et al.
Source:
Institute for Research on Poverty, Madison
Summary : This paper introduces the major themes associated with young disadvantaged men, including low educational achievement, joblessness, out-of-wedlock childbearing, and incarceration. By age 30, between 68 percent and 75 percent of young men with a high school degree or less are fathers. Half of them are married when their first child is born and far fewer continue their education post-high school. The paper briefly reviews four major forces that help shape social and economic outcomes for young men who are fathers and for their partners and children: employment and earnings prospects; multiple-partner fertility; incarceration; and finally public policy, especially as it is reflected in the income support system and the child support system. The paper ends with an exploration of policy solutions to the many challenges facing young disadvantaged men.

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[International comparisons]
Labor market policy :
A comparative view on the costs and benefits of labor market flexibility (PDF - 238K, 36 pages)
July 2010
By L. M. Kahn
Source:
Institute for the Study of Labor, Bonn

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Concepts of social justice in the welfare state
Great Britain and Germany since 1945 (PDF - 126K, 27 pages)
July 2010
By C. Torp
Source:
European University Institute, San Domenico di Fiesole
Summary : Concepts of social justice are at the very heart of the welfare state. From the perspective of the history of institutions, the article reconstructs the principles of justice which underlie the architecture of the social security systems in Great Britain and Germany and analyses how they have changed since 1945. It turns out that in general both welfare states are based on mixtures of different concepts of justice...

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More studies like this (this link takes you to the table of contents for Bulletin #211)

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CERC Bulletin - links to all CERC semi-monthly bulletins

Online Information Service
Information and online resources organized under five themes:
* Poverty *Means-tested benefits * In-work benefits * Minimum wage * Unemployment and return to work .
- includes links and resources for Canada...
HINT: click on the links in the right-hand margin of each theme page for more content

CERC Bulletins/Reports/Studies/Working papers
- Click on the links in the left margin of the CERC website home page for access to a large collection of online resources

Scroll down this page for more content from CERC bulletins.

Hong Kong passes first-ever minimum wage law
Rate could be at least $3 (U.S.) an hour in rare departure from financial hub’s free-market philosophy
July 17, 2010
Hong Kong passed its first-ever minimum-wage law Saturday, a rare departure from the wealthy Chinese financial hub's free-market philosophy. The move was hailed by union workers as a victory for the territory's underpaid working class.No rate has yet been set, but it appears employers will be required to pay at least $3 (U.S.) an hour — well short of the rates in the West and low for one of the most expensive cities in the world. Thousands of foreign live-in domestic workers also will be excluded from the deal. But legislator and union organizer Lee Cheuk-yan said it was symbolic, showing that the city was saying “goodbye to shameful wages and embraced social justice for workers."

Source:
The Globe and Mail

From the Council for Employment, Income and Social Cohesion - Paris
Conseil de l'emploi, des revenus et de la cohésion sociale - CERC [version française]

Selected content from CERC Bulletin N°209 (July 12, 2010)
(Click this link to see the complete list of studies in that issue...)
TIP : for similar research, click the links below to the
Source organizations, then find the links to "Reports" or "Publications"]

* Credit and debt in low-income families (PDF - 441K, 53 pages) - United Kingdom
June 2010
By C. Dearden et al
Source:
Joseph Rowntree Foundation

* Older Americans in poverty : A snapshot (PDF - 2.9MB, 76 pages) - United States
April 2010
By E. O'Brien et al
Source:
AARP Public Policy Institute, Washington

* Fair and unfair income inequalities in Europe (PDF - 450K, 39 pages)
June 2010
By D. Checchi et al
Source:
Ecineq, Palma de Mallorca
This paper analyses the extent of income inequality and opportunity inequality in 25 European countries. The present work contributes to understanding the origin of standard income inequality, helping to identify potential institutional setups that are associated to opportunity inequality.

* The gender wage gaps, "sticky floors" and "glass ceilings" of the European Union (PDF - 473K, 36 pages)
July 2010
By A. N. Christofides et al
Source:
Institute for the Study of Labor, Bonn
Examination of the gender wage gap across 24 EU member states, all of which share the objective of gender equality, using 2007 data from the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions.

* A minimum income standard for the UK in 2010, (PDF - 355K, 27 pages)
July 2010
By A. Davis et al
Source:
Joseph Rowntree Foundation

* Review of international pension reform, (PDF - 471K, 131 pages)
June 2010
By S. Collard and N. Moore
Source:
Department for Work and Pensions, London, Research report, n° 663, June, 131 p., (2010).
The eight case study countries selected for inclusion in this review were:
Australia, Canada, Denmark, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Uruguay
Excerpt (p.15):
The key implementation challenges faced by some of the case study countries were the protracted length of the legislative process, opposition from stakeholders and the logistics of setting up and running a new or reformed pension system. Three main conclusions seem to flow from the experience of case study countries with regard to pension reform implementation: First, pension arrangements are both complex and critical for individuals and society as a whole. Changes ideally need to be debated thoroughly with the stakeholders involved, such as employees, employers and the pension industry. This takes time, but the benefits of building a consensus around the proposed changes are considerable. Secondly, unless existing systems can be used, it takes time to establish appropriate and robust administrative systems. The more complex the system and the greater the volume of business, the longer is the time required. Finally, three quite different sets of stakeholders need to be managed: individuals, both potential contributors and those who will be excluded from the scheme; employers; and the providers of pensions.

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More studies like this (this link takes you to the table of contents for Bulletin #209)
Keep scrolling down the page you're now reading for more links from earlier CERC Bulletins

New from the
UK Department for Work and Pensions:

Iain Duncan Smith: reforms will tackle poverty and get Britain working again
Press Release
27 May 2010
A radical welfare reform programme designed to tackle entrenched poverty and end the curse of intergenerational worklessness is set out today by new Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Iain Duncan Smith. Calling for an end to a culture of welfare dependency by bringing the welfare system into the 21st century, Iain Duncan Smith set out the critical need to make work pay and end the absurd situation where some of the poorest face huge penalties for trying to get off benefits and into work.

The report:

State of the nation report:
poverty, worklessness and welfare dependency in the UK (PDF - 1MB, 65 pages)
Income inequality is at its highest since records began; millions of people are simply parked on benefits with little hope of ever progressing into work; there are 800,000 more workingage adults in poverty than in 1998/99; and high levels of family breakdown, educational failure, addiction and health inequality are having a severe impact on outcomes for both adults and children. [Excerpt from the Foreword]

Table of contents:
Executive summary
Chapter 1 - Income poverty, inequality and social immobility
Chapter 2 - Worklessness: unemployment and inactivity
Chapter 3 - Welfare dependency
Chapter 4 - Poor health and educational disadvantage
Chapter 5 - Families and communities
Chapter 6 - Multiple disadvantage
[Click the PDF link above to the report to access this content.]

Source:
State of the Nation Report (Cabinet Office website)
[ Department for Work and Pensions ]
See also:
Cabinet Office

Related link:

Government vows to 'make work pay'
May 27, 2010
A grim picture of the level of poverty in the UK was painted by the coalition Government today as it unveiled plans to radically change the system to "make work pay". Ministers complained that entire communities were existing at the "margins" of society, trapped in dependency and leaving disadvantaged children to become disadvantaged adults. Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said sanctions will be used against benefit claimants who refuse to take up jobs, while all those on incapacity benefit will now be reassessed. Charity groups said root and branch reform of the benefits system was "long overdue", but union leaders said the Government should be reducing unemployment by creating jobs, not driving people off welfare and "further into poverty".
(...)
A report published by the Work and Pensions Department today revealed that income inequality in the UK was now at its highest level since comparable statistics began in 1961.
Source:
The Independent (UK)

Council for Employment, Income and Social Cohesion (CERC, Paris) Bulletin - selected content

Selected content from CERC Bulletin N°204 (May 3, 2010)
(Click on this link to see the complete list of studies in that issue...)
TIP : for similar research, click the links below to the authoring organizations, then find the links to "Reports" or "Publications"]

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Do highly exclusive social welfare programs increase political inequality?
A comparative analysis of the 50 US states (PDF - 100K, 28 pages)
March 2010
By E. Plutzer
Social Science Research Center
Berlin
Summary:
In this paper, I empirically test the notion that the degree of inclusion/exclusion of social welfare policies can have important feedback effects on political participation of poor citizens. I conduct a comparative analysis of the 50 US states, using the uptake (or coverage rate) of the Food Stamp program as an indicator of relative inclusiveness. If the inclusiveness of the program “sends a message” to potential recipients about their worth in the community, these messages may encourage or discourage participation.
Geographical area : United States

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A modern framework for measuring poverty and basic economic security (PDF - 662K, 66 pages)
April 2010
By S. Fremstad
Center for Economic and Policy Research
Washington
Summary:
This report details how the dominant framework for understanding and measuring poverty in the United States has become a conservative one. The current U.S. approach to measuring poverty views poverty only in terms of having an extremely low level of annual income, and utilizes poverty thresholds that are adjusted only for inflation rather than for changes in overall living standards. As a result, the official poverty measure has effectively defined deprivation down over the last four decades, moving it further and further away from mainstream living standards over time, as well as from majority public opinion of the minimum amount needed to “get along” at a basic level. A new Supplemental Income Poverty Measure (SIPM) proposed by the Obama administration makes some important improvements to the current poverty measure. However, the SIPM remains a conservative approach (...)
Geographical area : United States

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Neighbourhood child poverty in Sweden (PDF - 274K, 27 pages)
April 2010
By B. Gustafsson and T. Osterberg
Institute for the Study of Labor
Bonn
Summary : This paper takes a fresh look at child poverty at the neighbourhood level in the three metropolitan regions of Sweden using unique data for 1990, 1996 and 2002. We find that the number of neighbourhoods with high child poverty rates is much larger in 2002 than in 1990, but also that most poor children in the three regions live outside poor neighbourhoods.
Geographical area : Sweden

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Women, poverty and social policy regimes : A cross-national analysis (PDF - 342K, 40 pages)
April 2010
By J. C. Gornick and M. Jäntti
Luxembourg Income Study
Luxembourg
Summary:
This paper assesses women’s poverty in 26 diverse LIS countries – five Anglophone countries (INCLUDING CANADA), six Continental European countries, four Nordic countries, two Eastern European countries, three Southern European countries, and six Latin American countries.
Our analyses are organized around four questions:
(1) What is the probability that prime-age women, compared to their male counterparts, live in poor households?
(2) How does the overall pattern differ when we consider pre-transfer as well as post-transfer income, and when we consider absolute as well as relative poverty?
(3) How do women’s poverty rates, compared to men’s, vary by family type, by educational attainment, and by labour market status?
(4) How does our cross-national portrait of gender and poverty shift when we consider person-level income as well as household-level income?

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Five years after the reform of the social and unemployment benefits in Germany (PDF - 473K, 11 pages)
April 2010
By K. Brenke, DIW, Berlin
Geographical area : Germany

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Labour markets and the crisis, (PDF - 370K, 30 pages)
April 2010
OECD
[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]
Paris
Summary:
The deep recession has led to a marked deterioration in labour market conditions in the OECD area. This paper, which draws heavily on other ongoing analytical work at the OECD, takes stock of recent labour market developments, highlights some of the key uncertainties in the early stages of the upturn, and discusses the policy options available to damp any further, structural deterioration in labour markets andfacilitate an eventual, sustained, job-rich recovery.
Geographical area : OECD countries

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The gender wage gap by occupation (PDF - 228K, 9 pages)
Updated April 2010
By A. Hegewisch and H. Liepmann
Institute for Women's Policy Research
Washington
Geographical area : United States

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Rising wage inequality, the decline of collective bargaining and the gender wage gap (PSF - 773K, 54 pages)
April 2010
By D. Antonczyk, B. Fitzenberger and K. Sommerfeld
Institute for the Study of Labor
Bonn
Summary:
This paper investigates the increase in wage inequality, the decline in collective bargaining, and the development of the gender wage gap in West Germany between 2001 and 2006.
Geographical area : Germany

Informal carers : Who takes care of them ?, (PDF - 636K, 17 pages)
April 2010
By F. Hoffmann and R. Rodrigues
European Centre
Vienna
Geographical area : Europe

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More studies like this (this link takes you to the table of contents for Bulletin #204)

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CERC Bulletin - links to all CERC semi-monthly bulletins <===links to 75+ bulletins!

Online Information Service
Information and online resources organized under five themes:
* Poverty * Social minima * In-work benefits * Minimum wage * Unemployment and return to work .
- includes links and resources for Canada...
HINT: click on the links in the right-hand margin of each theme page for more content

CERC Bulletins/Reports/Studies/Working papers
- Click on the links in the left margin of the CERC website home page for access to a large collection of online resources

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Keep scrolling down the page you're now reading for more links to CERC Bulletins...

New from The World Bank:

World Bank Frees Up Development Data
April 20, 2010—The World Bank Group said today it will offer free access to more than 2,000 financial, business, health, economic and human development statistics that had mostly been available only to paying subscribers. An initial 330 indicators are available in French, Spanish and Arabic. The decision - part of a larger effort to increase access to information at the World Bank - means that researchers, journalists, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), entrepreneurs and school children alike will be able to tap into the World Bank's databases via a new website. Experts say open access policy will foster innovation, support evidence-based policymaking.

World Bank Data
The World at a Glance : Key development indicators from the World Bank

* Countries
- Afghanistan to Zimbabwe (yes, including Canada)

* Topics
- Agriculture & Rural Development - Infrastructure - Aid Effectiveness - Labor & Social Protection - Economic Policy and External Debt - Poverty - Education - Private Sector - Energy & Mining - Public Sector - Environment - Science & Technology Financial sector - Social Development - Health - Urban Development

* Indicators
- 331 indicators from the World Development Indicators (WDI) covering 209 countries from 1960 to 2008 translated into Spanish, French and Arabic.

* Data Catalog
The data catalog is a listing of available World Bank data sources, including databases, pre-formatted tables and reports. Each of the listings includes a description of the data source and a direct link to that source. Where possible, the databases are linked directly to a selection screen to allow users to select the countries, indicators, and years they would like to search. Those search results can be exported in different formats. Users can also choose to download the entire database directly from the catalog.

Related link:

World Bank Reform
The World Bank Group is advancing multiple reforms to promote inclusiveness, innovation, efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability. It is expanding cooperation with the UN, the IMF, other multilateral development banks, donors, civil society, and foundations. But the effort must go further to realize a World Bank Group that represents the international economic realities of the 21st Century, recognizes the role and responsibility of growing stakeholders, and provides a larger voice for developing countries.

Source:
The World Bank
The World Bank is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. Our mission is to fight poverty with passion and professionalism for lasting results and to help people help themselves and their environment by providing resources, sharing knowledge, building capacity and forging partnerships in the public and private sectors.
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NOTE: The World Bank is not without its detractors.
See the "Criticism" section of this Wikipedia article on The World Bank.

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Also from
The World Bank:

World Development Indicators (WDI) 2010 released
News Release
WASHINGTON, April 20, 2010 — The World Development Indicators (WDI) 2010, released today, gives a statistical progress toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The WDI database includes more than 900 indicators documenting the state of all the world’s economies. The WDI covers education, health, poverty, environment, economy, trade, and much more. (...) This year’s WDI focuses on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), now in their 10th year.

World Development Indicators (WDI) 2010 - main page
April 2010
The World Development Indicators (WDI) 2010 is a comprehensive overview of development. It is the statistical benchmark that helps measure the progress of development. The 2010 WDI includes more than 900 indicators and they are available through data.worldbank.org, in print, or on CD-ROM. The print edition has more than 90 tables organized in 6 sections: World View, People, Environment, Economy, States and Markets, and Global Links.

Download the complete report in a single file by clicking the link below, or click the main page link above for a table of contents
and links to individual files for each of the following sections:
* Preface, Acknowledgments, Table of Contents, Partners, Users Guide (1.27 mb pdf)
* World View (3.14 mb pdf)
* People (3.03 mb pdf)
* Environment (2.52 mb pdf)
* Economy (3.69mb pdf)
* States and Markets (2.35mb pdf)
* Global Links (2.84mb pdf)
* Primary Data Documentation, Statistical Methods, Credits, Bibliography, Index of Indicators (521k pdf)

Complete report (PDF - 18MB, 489 pages)

Source:
The World Bank

Comparison of welfare
programs in OECD countries

MINIMUM-INCOME BENEFITS IN OECD COUNTRIES:
POLICY DESIGN, EFFECTIVENESS AND CHALLENGES (PDF - 840K, 54 pages)
OECD SOCIAL, EMPLOYMENT AND MIGRATION WORKING PAPERS N°100
January 2010
By Herwig Immervoll
- includes Canada

Abstract:
Almost all OECD countries operate comprehensive minimum-income programmes for working-age individuals, either as last-resort safety nets alongside primary income replacement benefits, or as the principal instrument for delivering social protection. Such safety-net benefits aim primarily at providing an acceptable standard of living for families unable to earn sufficient incomes from other sources. This paper provides an overview of social assistance and other minimum-income programmes in OECD countries, summarises their main features, and highlights a number of current policy challenges.

Excerpt:
The current economic downturn is putting pressures on governments to strengthen income support measures. While buoyant labour markets in many OECD countries have helped to restrain recipiency numbers since the mid-late nineties, the current rapid decline in economic activity can be expected to be a powerful driver of the demand for minimum safety-nets. In addition to the expected lengthening of average unemployment spells, and the resulting rising number of people running out of unemployment benefit entitlements, those with temporary jobs or other forms of non-standard employment are often not entitled to unemployment benefits in the first place. For these individuals, employment durations are shorter, transitions into and out of work more frequent and coverage by social insurance benefits can be less universal as a result. [page 48]

Source:
Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers<=== click for links to 100+ studies!
[ Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) ]

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NOTE:
Social program historians may wish to compare this report with a
1996 OECD study of social assistance in two dozen countries (also including Canada).
See:
http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/welfare.htm#1994
(See esp. Vol. I: The Synthesis Report, 1996)

OECD Factblog
https://community.oecd.org/community/factblog?view=overview
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is well known for their vast store of research papers and related items, but they are now entering the blogosphere, albeit in their own erudite fashion. Their "Factblog" brings together graphs, charts, and videos to offer insightful commentary on pressing policy issues and global transformations. Visitors can glance over recent posts, which as of late, have included discussions of China's share of the global economy and the social and economic status of women. With each post, visitors will also find links to other related material from the OECD and other international organizations. Also, visitors can browse through their archive of posts back to July 2008 and, of course, they can subscribe to the RSS feed.
Reviewed by:
The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2010.

Related link:
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

State of Australian Cities 2010
Infrastructure Australia
08 March, 2010 | This report draws together existing data and information across a range of economic, social and environmental parameters to provide a national snapshot of the 17 Australian cities with populations over 100,000 at the 2006 Census

From the Council for Employment, Income and Social Cohesion - Paris
Conseil de l'emploi, des revenus et de la cohésion sociale - CERC [version française]

Selected reports from
CERC Bulletin N°200 (March 8, 2010)
(Click the link to see the complete list of studies in that issue...)

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. 17 % of European Union citizens were at-risk-of-poverty in 2008 (PDF - 8 pages)
By P. Wolff
Eurostat
2010

. Child poverty and child well-being in Italy (PDF - 16 pages)
By D. Del Boca
Dipartimento di Economia "S. Cognetti de Martiis"
Torino
2010

. [United States] Low income and impoverished families pay more disproportionately for child care (PDF - 4 pages)
By K. Smith and K. Gozjolko
Carsey Institute
University of New Hampshire
Durham
Winter 2010

. [United Kingdom] Protect, support, provide : Examining the role of grandparents in families at risk of poverty (PDF - 76 pages)
By J. Griggs,
Equality and Human Rights Commission London, and
Department for Social Policy and Social Work, Oxford
March 2010

. Global wage inequality and the international flow of migrants (PDF - 32 pages)
By M. R. Rosenzweig,
Yale University
Economic Growth Center
New Haven
January 2010

. [The Netherlands] Child care subsidies revisited (PDF - 68 pages)
By E. L. W. Jongen,
CPB Netherlands
Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis
The Hague
January 2010

. Fiscal and pension sustainability : Present and future issues in EU countries (PDF - 7 pages)
By A. Zaidi,
European Centre
Vienna
February 2010

. [United States] Supporting parents of young children in the child welfare system (PDF - 24 pages)
By K. A. Beckmann and alii,
National Center
for Children in Poverty
New York
February 2010

. The gender inequalities index (GII) as a new way to measure gender inequalities in developing countries (PDF - 44 pages)
By G. Ferrant,
Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne
Paris
February 2010

. The gender pay gap in the United Kingdom, 1995 -2007
Part I (PDF - 127 pages)
Part II (PDF - 57 pages)
By W. Olsen and alii,
Government Equalities Office
London
February 2010

. [United States] The gender wage gap : 2009 (PDF - 4 pages)
From the Institute for Women's Policy Research
Washington
March 2010

. [Europe] Report on equality between women and men : 2010 (PDF - 56 pages)
From the European Commission:
Directorate-General Employment,
Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities
Brussels
2010

. [Europe] Revisiting poverty measures towards individualisation (PDF - 43 pages)
By D. Meulders and S. O'Dorchai
Dulbea
Bruxelles
February 2010

. [United States] The unemployment gender gap during the 2007 recession (PDF - 7 pages)
By A. Sahin, J. Song and B. Hobijn
Federal Reserve
Bank of New York
New York
February 2010

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More studies like this
- this link takes you to the table of contents for Bulletin #200.
- Bulletin #200 contains links to over 30 studies, only 14 of which appear above.

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CERC Bulletin - links to all CERC semi-monthly bulletins
Subscribe - To be informed of CERC activities and to receive the bulletin

Online Information Service
Information and online resources organized under five themes: Poverty * Social minima * In-work benefits * Minimum wage * Unemployment and return to work .
- includes links and resources for Canada...
HINT: click on the links in the right-hand margin of each theme page for more content

CERC Bulletins/Reports/Studies/Working papers
- Click on the links in the left margin of the CERC website home page for access to a large collection of online resources

World Bank PovertyNet Newsletter #132
February 2010
This newsletter provides an update of new resources about understanding and alleviating poverty available from PovertyNet, http://www.worldbank.org/poverty, and other websites.

In this issue:

1. Global Economic Prospects 2010: Crisis, Finance, and Growth
2. World Bank Group Launches Online Consultations on Future Energy Strategy
3. "Measuring Inequality of Opportunity with Imperfect Data: The Case of Turkey," by Francisco H. G. Ferreira, Jérémie Gignoux, and Meltem Aran
4. "To What Extent are Bangladesh's Recent Gains in Poverty Reduction Different from the Past?" by Aphichoke Kotikula, Ambar Narayan and Hassan Zaman
5. "The Short-Term Impact of Higher Food Prices on Poverty in Uganda," by Kenneth Simler
6. Food Price Watch (February 2010)
7. "The Impact of Economic Shocks on Global Undernourishment," by Sailesh Tiwari and Hassan Zaman
8. "The Impact of Roads on Poverty Reduction: A Case Study of Cameroon," by Marie Gachassin, Boris Najman and Gaël Raballand
9. Has South Asia Escaped the Worst Effects of the Global Economic Crisis?
10. Exciting New Impact Study on Rwanda's Pay for Performance in Health
11. World Bank President Says African Poor Still Vulnerable to Crisis, Important to Create Basis for Future Growth

[Subscribe to receive this newsletter by email.]

[ earlier issues of this newsletter ]

Source:
PovertyNet (World Bank)

A stronger, fairer Australia (PDF - 3.7MB, 92 pages)
19 February 2010
Launched on 28 January 2010, A Stronger, Fairer Australia sets out the Australian Government’s vision and strategy for social inclusion, now and into the future. Social Inclusion means ensuring no Australian is left behind by giving all the opportunities, resources, capabilities and responsibilities to learn, work, connect with others and have a say in community life. The statement sets out a new approach to break down the barriers that stand between the most disadvantaged Australians and participation. Despite a strong economy in recent years, disadvantage still prevents many Australians from getting a fair go.
Source:
Social Inclusion
[ Australian Government ]

Who Are America's Poor Children?
The Official Story
By Vanessa R. Wight, Michelle Chau, and Yumiko Aratani
January 2010
HTML version
PDF version (463K, 8 pages)
More than 13 million American children live in families with incomes below the federal poverty level, which is $22,050 a year for a family of four. The number of children living in poverty increased by 21 percent between 2000 and 2008. There are 2.5 million more children living in poverty today than in 2000. Not only are these numbers troubling, the official poverty measure tells only part of the story. Research consistently shows that, on average, families need an income of about twice the federal poverty level to make ends meet. Children living in families with incomes below this level – for 2009, $44,100 for a family of four – are referred to as low income. Forty-one percent of the nation’s children – more than 29 million in 2008 – live in low-income families. Nonetheless, eligibility for many public benefits is based on the official poverty measure. This fact sheet – the first in a series focusing on economic and material hardship – details some of the characteristics of American children who are considered poor by the official standard.
Source:
National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP)
NCCP is the nation’s leading public policy center dedicated to promoting the economic security, health, and well-being of America’s low-income families and children. NCCP uses research to inform policy and practice with the goal of ensuring positive outcomes for the next generation. We promote family-oriented solutions at the state and national levels.

Related NCCP links:

Low-income Children in the United States
National and State Trend Data, 1998-2008 (PDF - 930K, 60 pages)
By Michelle Chau
November 2009
After nearly a decade of decline, the number of children living in low-income families has increased significantly since 2000. This data book provides national and 50-state trend data on the characteristics of low-income children over the past decade: parental education, parental employment, marital status, family structure, race and ethnicity, age distribution, parental nativity, home ownership, residential mobility, type of residential area, and region of residence.

The most current year of data can also be accessed at www.nccp.org—see NCCP’s 50-State Demographic Profiles or build custom tables using NCCP’s 50-State Demographics Wizard. For a discussion of these data and selected policy implications, see NCCP’s fact sheets on low-income children, which are updated annually.

More NCCP resources on the topic of poverty

Ten Important Questions About Child Poverty and Family Economic Hardship

NCCP Fact Sheets

The welfare effects of social mobility
28 October 2009
By Justina A.V. Fischer
The question whether a socially mobile society is conducive to subjective well-being has rarely been investigated. This paper fills this gap by analyzing the wellbeing effects of intergenerational earnings mobility and equality in education at the societal level. Using socio-demographic information on 44,000 individuals in 30 OECD countries obtained from the World Values Survey, this study shows that living in a socially mobile society is conducive to individual life satisfaction.

Abstract (HTML)
- from Australian Policy Online

Complete report (PDF - 490K, 56 pages)
OECD Paper date: 16 September 2009

Source:
Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs
[ Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) ]

World Bank PovertyNet Newsletter #130, October 2009
This newsletter provides an update of new resources about understanding and alleviating poverty available from PovertyNet, http://www.worldbank.org/poverty, and other websites.
In this issue:
1. Economic Crisis Roundup: Recovery Emerging, But Not Yet for All
2. Crisis Impact: Fragile and Conflict-Affected Countries Face Greater Risks
3. "Moving Out of Poverty: The Promise of Empowerment and Democracy in India," edited by Deepa Narayan
4. "The Pattern of Growth and Poverty Reduction in China," by Jose G. Montalvo and Martin Ravallion
5. "A Comparative Perspective on Poverty Reduction in Brazil, China and India," by Martin Ravallion
6. "What Explains the Cost of Remittances? An Examination across 119 Country Corridors," by Thorsten Beck and María Soledad Martínez Pería
7. "Distributional Impact Analysis of Past Climate Variability in Rural Indonesia," by Outi Korkeala, David Newhouse and Mafalda Duarte
8. World Bank Group Launches Environment Strategy Consultations
9. Agricultural Adaptation to Climate Change in the Developing World: What will it Cost?
10. "The Unheard Truth: Poverty and Human Rights," by Irene Khan
11. To Receive this Newsletter
Source:
Poverty Net Newsletter
- incl. links to earlier issues of the newsletter and a Quick Subscribe feature if you wish to receive the newsletter by email.
[ PovertyNet ]
[ World Bank ]

Subscribe to receive
World Bank newsletters - links to over 30 newsletters (all including archives)

Some key international websites:

From Canada's International Gateway:

Permanent Delegation of Canada to the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Canada is one of the 19 founding members of the OECD. Just as Canada was committed to strengthening the economic cooperation of the Marshall Plan, Canada contributed to the creation of the OECD with the goal of promoting economic growth as a path to stability.Canada views the OECD as a key forum to discuss international and domestic economic and social issues. OECD Peer reviews on Canada assess Canadian policies and provide useful recommendations to improve performance in a wide range of areas.
[ Excerpt from Canada and the OECD ]

Selected recent peer reviews:
* Early Childhood Education and Care
("OECD urges Canadian governments to increase funding for childcare")
* The Canadian Economy
* Development Co-operation Policies

Canada OECD Info
This monthly newsletter prepared by the Canadian Delegation provides updates on OECD publications and events. It is read by over 500 Canadian government officials active in OECD Work. To subscribe, please contact poecd@international.gc.ca
Latest issue of the newsletter:
Canada OECD Info - March-April 2009 - In this issue: Interim Economic Outlook; 2008 DAC Aid Statistics; Progress toward meeting OECD tax standard; OECD Factbook 2009; Freedom of Investment; Globalisation and Emerging Economies.

Canada - Country Web Pages
www.oecd.org/canada is a one-stop-shop for OECD reports and statistics on Canada. Browse the documents in chronological order or by topic (e.g. economy, trade, development, environment, energy, social issues).

PovertyNet Newsletter #123, February 2009
In this issue:
1) Crisis Reveals Growing Finance Gaps for Developing Countries
2) Financial Crisis Highlights Need for More Social Safety Nets, Especially Conditional Cash Transfers
3) International Women's Day 2009
4) Blog on World Bank's World Development Report on Climate Change
5) Jobs for a Globalizing World: World Bank Labor Market Policy Core Course
6) Help Us!
7) To Receive this Newsletter

Subscribe to other newsletters of the World Bank - 30+ newsletters

Poverty Reduction Strategies
Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) are one of the most tangible outcomes of the new approach to development defined in the Bank's Comprehensive Development Framework. Under the PRSP process, low-income countries write their own plans for reducing poverty. Since July 2002, the World Bank has based its Country Assistance Strategies, its plans for assistance to low-income countries, on PRSPs

[ World Bank ]
The World Bank consists of two unique development institutions owned by 185 member countries—the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). Each institution plays a different but supportive role in our mission of global poverty reduction and the improvement of living standards. The IBRD focuses on middle income and creditworthy poor countries, while IDA focuses on the poorest countries in the world. Together we provide low-interest loans, interest-free credit and grants to developing countries for education, health, infrastructure, communications and many other purposes.

Australian Government launches 12 year plan to reduce homelessness in Australia
Media Release
21 December 2008
The White Paper on Homelessness, The Road Home, was launched today by the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, and the Minister for Housing, Tanya Plibersek. The White Paper outlines a plan for reducing homelessness in Australia by 2020, with specific goals to:
* Halve overall homelessness; and
* Provide accommodation to all rough sleepers who seek it.
There are currently 105,000 homeless people in Australia, of whom around 16,000 sleep rough.

The Australian Government's White Paper on Homelessness
On 21 December 2008, the Prime Minister, the Hon Kevin Rudd MP and Minister for Housing, Tanya Plibersek MP, released the Government's White Paper on Homelessness: The Road Home.
- incl. links to the full paper and executive summary, along with some background information on the development of the paper and a few links to more contextual material.

Complete paper:

The Road Home : Homelessness White Paper
Contents:
* Foreword
* Background
* Executive Summary
* Chapter One: Scoping the Problem
* Chapter Two: The White Paper vision
* Chapter Three: Turning Off the tap
* Chapter Four: Improving and expanding services to end homelessness
* Chapter Five: Breaking the cycle
* Chapter Six: Research
* Chapter Seven: Implementation and governance
* Glossary
* End Notes

Source:
Prime Minister of Australia

Related link:

Australia releases ambitious plan to cut homelessness in half
December 22, 2008
By Michael Shapcott
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd introduced yesterday (Sunday) an ambitious plan to half the overall number of people who are homeless, and ensure that everyone who is sleeping outside has shelter. The plan, set out in a white paper called "The Road Home", includes $1.2 billion over four years in new spending - and is part of the Australian government's economic stimulus package that is designed to help people in that country weather the global economic crisis.
Source:
Wellesley Institute Blog
[ Wellesley Institute ]

- Go to the Homelessness and Housing Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/homeless.htm

From the Council for Employment, Income and Social Cohesion - Paris
Conseil de l'emploi, des revenus et de la cohésion sociale - CERC [version française]

CERC Bulletin - links to all CERC semi-monthly bulletins
Subscribe - To be informed of CERC activities and to receive the bulletin

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Selected content from recent CERC Bulletins:

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Selected content from CERC Bulletin N°188 - September 21, 2009
(Click on this link to see the complete list of studies in that issue...)

Measuring the size and impact of public cash support for children in cross-national perspective, (PDF _ 164K, 25 pages)
August 2009
By F. Figari, A. Paulus and H. Sutherland
Institute for Social and Economic Research Colchester
Summary : We suggest a new comprehensive measure of support given through tax-benefit systems to families with children. Using microsimulation techniques, this accounts for all provisions contingent on the presence of children, while usually only gross child/family benefits are considered. We use EUROMOD, the European Union tax-benefit microsimulation model, to quantify the support for children and analyse its impact on household incomes and child poverty for 19 countries.
NOTE: Does not include Canada or the U.S.

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Poverty, inequality and human rights, (PDF - 1.3MB, 61 pages)
September 2009
By A. Donald and E. Mottershaw
Joseph Rowntree Foundation, London
Human rights have been used to shape new conceptions of poverty and new approaches to tackling it, in both the developed and developing worlds. There is potential to replicate and develop this work in the UK. However, there is a need to build the evidence base to demonstrate the pragmatic value of using human rights in combating poverty.

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The welfare effects of social mobility [Europe] (PDF - 487K, 55 pages)
September 2009
By J. A. V. Fischer,
Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), Paris
- incl. Canada & U.S.
Summary : The question whether a socially mobile society is conducive to subjective well-being (SWB) has rarely been investigated. This paper fills this gap by analyzing the SWB effects of intergenerational earnings mobility and equality in education at the societal level. Using socio-demographic information on 44 000 individuals in 30 OECD countries obtained from the World Values Survey, this study shows that living in a socially mobile society is conducive to individual life satisfaction.

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Early childhood education and care : Key lessons from research for policy makers, (PDF - 549K, 72 pages)
June 2009
Nesse network
European Commission, Brussels
This report is a review of the international evidence about the social benefits of early childhood education and care (ECEC). It provides an analytic overview of the various rationales that drive the development of ECEC services. It summarizes existing knowledge from research and highlights policy lessons and measures that are shown to contribute to successful ECEC policy development and implementation.

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More studies like this (this link takes you to the table of contents for Bulletin #188)
HINT: scroll to the bottom of Bulletin #188 for links to reports on Education in Europe
(key statistics for 2007 and education expenditures for 2006)
from Eurostat, the European counterpart to Statistics Canada.

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An exploratory analysis of financial difficulties among those living below the poverty line in Ireland (PDF - 632K, 92 pages)
July 2009
By S. Stamp
Combat Poverty Agency, Dublin
Geographical area : Ireland

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A path-dependent poverty measure
[Click "Download PDF paper" - 229K, 27 pages]
July 2009
By L. Ceriani,
Centre for Research on the Public Sector
Econpubblica, Milano
Summary : The paper provides the axiomatic characterization of a new poverty measure, the path-dependent poverty index. This is a two period index taking into account not only individuals current and past deprivation levels, but also the relative position with respect to their previous income status. Given two populations with the same distribution of incomes, path-dependent poverty is higher for the population where all individuals experienced an income fall. Not only they are poor, they also feel the pain for their loss. The new index is illustrated with an application to EU countries.
Geographical area : Europe

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A portrait of the youth labor market in 13 countries : 1980-2007, (PDF - 316K, 19 pages)
July 2009
By G. Martin, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Washington, Monthly Labor Review, July, 18 p., (2009).
Zone géographique / Geographical area : Données internationales / International data
- includes data for Canada and the U.S.

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An exploratory analysis of financial difficulties among those living below the poverty line in Ireland (PDF - 632K, 92 pages)
July 2009
By S. Stamp
Combat Poverty Agency, Dublin
Geographical area : Ireland

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A path-dependent poverty measure
[Click "Download PDF paper" - 229K, 27 pages]
July 2009
By L. Ceriani,
Centre for Research on the Public Sector
Econpubblica, Milano
Summary : The paper provides the axiomatic characterization of a new poverty measure, the path-dependent poverty index. This is a two period index taking into account not only individuals current and past deprivation levels, but also the relative position with respect to their previous income status. Given two populations with the same distribution of incomes, path-dependent poverty is higher for the population where all individuals experienced an income fall. Not only they are poor, they also feel the pain for their loss. The new index is illustrated with an application to EU countries.
Geographical area : Europe
Source:
Bulletin N°186 (August 24, 2009)
Council for Employment, Income and Social Cohesion - Paris
[ Conseil de l'emploi, des revenus et de la cohésion sociale (CERC) - version française]

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A portrait of the youth labor market in 13 countries : 1980-2007, (PDF - 316K, 19 pages)
July 2009
By G. Martin, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Washington, Monthly Labor Review, July, 18 p., (2009).
Zone géographique / Geographical area : Données internationales / International data
- includes data for Canada and the U.S.

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U.S. Health Care Reform
NOTE : Click the above link and then scroll to the bottom portion of CERC Bulletin #186 for links to 11 articles and studies from a variety of sources.

President Obama and antipoverty policy : What does the stimulus bill do to fight poverty, educate citizens and improve public health ?, (PDF - 239K, 3 pages)
By T. Smeeding
March 2009
Source:
Institute for Research on Poverty (Madison, Wisconsin)

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Unemployment compensation in a worldwide recession (PDF - 80K, 13 pages)
By W. Vroman and V. Brusentsev
June 2009
(International data)
Source:
The Urban Institute, Washington

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A minimum income standard for Britain in 2009 (PDF - 401K, 34 pages)
By D. Hirsch, A. Davis and N. Smith
April 2009
Source:
Joseph Rowntree Foundation, London

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The dynamics of child poverty in Sweden (PDF - 192K, 41 pages)
October 2008
By M. J. Lindquist and G. Sjögren Lindquist,
Swedish Institute for Social Research, Stockholm
Summary:
The purpose of this paper is to study (empirically) the dynamics of child poverty in Sweden, the quintessential welfare state. We find that 1 out of every 5 children is disposable income poor at least once during his or her childhood, while only 2 percent of all children are chronically poor. We also document a strong life-cycle profile for child poverty. Approximately 8.6 percent of all children are born into poverty. The average poverty rate then drops to about 7.5 percent among 1- year old children. After which, it declines (monotonically) to about 3.8 percent among 17-year olds. Children in Sweden are largely protected (economically) from a number of quite serious events, such as parental unemployment, sickness and death. Family dissolution and long-term unemployment, however, do push children into poverty. But for most of these children, poverty is only temporary. Single mothers, for example, are overrepresented among the poor, but not among the chronically poor. Children with immigrant parents are strongly overrepresented among the chronically poor; as are children whose parents have unusually low educations. We argue that information about the dynamics of child poverty may help policy makers to construct more salient policies for fighting child poverty.
Geographical area : Sweden

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. Low-income children in the United States : National and state trend data, 1997-2007 (PDF - 943K, 59 pages)
November 2008
By M. Chau and A. Douglas Hall
National Center for Children in Poverty, New York
Geographical area : United States

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. Monitoring poverty and social exclusion 2008 (PDF - 3MB, 116 pages)
December 2008
Joseph Rowntree Foundation, London
Geographical area : United Kingdom

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. The working poor in Europe (PDF - 236K, 17 pages)
2008
By H. Lohmann
Dipartimento di Studi Sociali e Politici Milano
Geographical area : Europe

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. Welfare and employment : A European dilemma? (PDF - 381K, 36 pages)
December 2008
By W. Eichhorst and A. Hemerijck
Institute for the Study of Labor, Bonn

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. Fiscal effects of minimum wages : An analysis for Germany (PDF - 1MB, 32 pages)
November 2008
By T. K Bauer and alii,
RWI, Essen

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. Minimum wages and their alternatives : A critical assessment (PDF - 356K, 31 pages)
December 2008
BY A. Knabe and R. Schöb,
CESifo, Munich

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Links to all bulletins

Subscribe to CERC Bulletin - receive email notification when the bi-monthly bulletin is released.

NOTE: Keep scrolling down this page for more CERC bulletins...

Income inequality and poverty rising in most OECD countries
News Release
October 21, 2008
The gap between rich and poor has grown in more than three-quarters of OECD countries over the past two decades, according to a new OECD report. OECD’s Growing Unequal? finds that the economic growth of recent decades has benefitted the rich more than the poor. In some countries, such as Canada, Finland, Germany, Italy, Norway and the United States, the gap also increased between the rich and the middle-class.

Growing Unequal report main page
- includes links to:
* News release and press material * Country notes * Messages, figures and data * Multilingual summaries * How to Obtain this Publication
[ NOTE : I don't generally link to reports that aren't freely available on the Web, but there are enough "freebies" on the report's main page (see below) to interest researchers who'd like to see a sample of the complete report's content before, or in lieu of, forking over the $108 for the paper copy or $75 for the PDF.]

Are we growing unequal?
New evidence on changes in poverty and incomes over the past 20 years (PDF - 279K, 8 pages)
Media Brief
October 2008

Interview with co-author
Mark Pearson on key findings (video)

Canada Country Note (PDF - 248K, 2 pages)
"(...) After 20 years of continuous decline, both inequality and poverty rates have increased rapidly in the past 10 years, now reaching levels above the OECD average.(...) Canada spends less on cash benefits such as unemployment benefits and family benefits than most OECD countries."
Source:
Country Notes
- other countries include:
* Australia * France (en Français) * Germany (in German) * Italy (in Italian) * Japan (in Japanese) * Mexico (in Spanish) * New Zealand * United Kingdom * United States)

OECD Links to Social Policy Related Websites

Source:
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (Paris)

Related links:

Income gap widens between Canada's rich and poor, OECD study says
October 21, 2008
By Michelle Mcquigge And Eric Shackleton
TORONTO - The gap between the haves and the have-nots in Canada has widened significantly over the last few years according to a global report, and the slowdown in the economy is going to hit both rich and poor alike with more job losses and reduced incomes going ahead, say the experts.
Source:
Yahoo Canada News

Inequalities rise, society not breaking down: OECD
October 21, 2008
PARIS (Reuters) - The gap between the rich and poor has grown in most wealthy nations, but not as quickly as many people believe and not enough to raise fears of social upheaval, the OECD said in a report released Tuesday. The 30-nation Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development said governments were off-setting widening disparities by increasing taxes and boosting welfare spending.
Source:
Washington Post

Policy Hub Bulletin - September 2008
--- the content of this link changes each month

News Archive - view the contents of previous Bulletins back to September 2002 (200+ links)
Subscribe to this Bulletin - free, by email

From the Policy Hub home page (recent release):

Child poverty in the UK
On 30 September 2008, the Campaign to End Child Poverty published new figures which reveal that 174 parliamentary constituencies in Britain have 50% or more children living in or on the brink of poverty. Official measures of child poverty are based on a national survey of family income, highlighting poverty at a national and regional level but not in more local areas. In contrast, the figures supplied by the Campaign to End Child Poverty use tax credit data to determine the percentage of children in families with low incomes in local authorities and constituencies across the UK. Child poverty data for the UK is presented as a series of maps and tables.

Sample content from the latest issue of the Bulletin :
Click the "Content" link to access all of the items below:
--- and be sure to visit the Policy Hub Home page for news items added since the release of this bulletin.

Content of the
September 2008 Policy Hub Bulletin:
(Click the link above to access any of the studies below - only the last two items below have hyperlinks that you can click.)
* Tackling Canada's social housing challenge - CPRN report
* Measuring equality at a local level - IDeA report
* Thinking about rural transport - CRC report
* Pathways for youth to the labour market - CPRN report
* Evidence & policy (Volume 4, number 3) - Policy Press
* Homebuilding in the UK - OFT report
* Well disposed: responding to the waste challenge - Audit Commission report
* Making progress: the health, development and wellbeing of Australia's children and young people - AIHW report
* Youth mentoring: a good thing? – CPS report
* Survey of users of mental health services 2008 - Healthcare Commission report
* Education at a glance - OECD report
* NHS spending: local variations in priorities - King’s Fund report
* Care contradictions: putting people first? - Counsel and Care report
* The lawful society - Reform report
* Health is global: a UK government strategy - UK Government report
* Child poverty in the UK - Campaign to End Child Poverty survey
* Review of urgent and emergency care services 2007/2008 - Healthcare Commission report
* Our lives, our choices - LGA report
* The media, poverty and public opinion in the UK - JRF report
* Making the NHS the best insurance policy in the world - Reform report
* The flexible new deal: making it work - SMF report

Website of the month
- archive of links to websites that are featured in the monthly bulletin, going back to 2003
- Recommended!

Evidence Hotlinks
This area of Policy Hub provides access to a wide range of organisations and resources that will help you find evidence on social and economic issues in the United Kingdom and Internationally.
* United Kingdom Evidence * International Evidence - including Country Resources - including Canada * Using Evidence
===> recommended reading - excellent collection of U.K. and international resources!

Source:
Policy Hub (U. K.)
"... a web-site developed by the Government Social Research Unit, which aims to improve the way public policy is shaped and delivered."
[ Government Social Research ]
[ HM Treasury website ]

Reforming retirement-income systems : Lessons from recent experiences of OECD countries (PDF - 336K, 27 pages) J. P. Martin and E. Whitehouse, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, Paris, OECD social, employment and migration working papers, n° 66, June 2008 (INCLUDES CANADA)
Summary:
Reforming pensions looms large over the policy agenda of OECD countries. This is hardly surprising since public spending on pensions accounted on average for 7 per cent of OECD GDP in 2005; and this pension spending effort is set to increase significantly over the coming decades in response to population ageing. Pension policy is indeed challenging and controversial because it involves long-term decisions in the face of numerous short-term political pressures. However, the status quo does not always win out so far as pension reform in concerned: public finance crises and the looming threat of ageing populations have proved effective spurs for reform. As a result, much has been done since the early 1990s to make pension systems fit for the future. Nearly all the 30 OECD countries have made at least some changes to their pension systems in that period. In 16 of them, there have been major reforms that will significantly affect future benefits. However, the status quo does not always win out so far as pension reform in concerned: public finance crises and the looming threat of ageing populations have proved effective spurs for reform. As a result, much has been done since the early 1990s to make pension systems fit for the future. Nearly all the 30 OECD countries have made at least some changes to their pension systems in that period. In 16 of them, there have been major reforms that will significantly affect future benefits.
Found in:
CERC Bulletin N°158 - July 21, 2008
[NOTE: click the bulletin link to access more studies and reports]

CERC Bulletin - links to all CERC semi-monthly bulletins
Subscribe - To be informed of CERC activities and to receive the bulletin

Online Information Service
Information and online resources organized under five themes: Poverty * Social minima * In-work benefits * Minimum wage * Unemployment and return to work .
- includes links and resources for Canada...
HINT: click on the links in the right-hand margin of each theme page for more content

CERC Bulletins/Reports/Studies/Working papers
- Click on the links in the left margin of the CERC website home page for access to a large collection of online resources

From the Council for Employment, Income and Social Cohesion - Paris
Conseil de l'emploi, des revenus et de la cohésion sociale - CERC [version française]

World Bank PovertyNet Newsletter #116
July 2008
In this issue:
1) Family Planning Still a Challenge for Many Poor Women
2) World Bank Group's New Deal on Global Food Policy
3) Poverty Reduction in the New Asia and Pacific: key challenges of inclusive growth for the Asian Development Bank
4) 2008 CGAP Microfinance Photo Contest: Innovators and Entrepreneurs
5) Help Us!
6) To Receive this Newsletter

Source:
Poverty Net Newsletter <=== incl. links to five earlier newsletters and a subscription form
The PovertyNet Newsletter is a monthly newsletter that contains updates on new information and resources available on the PovertyNet web site, covering:
* poverty reduction strategies
* the World Bank's World Development Report (WDR) on poverty and development
* poverty monitoring and evaluation
* the impact of growth and inequality on poverty
* the role of human capital development in the fight against poverty
* safety nets
* social capital.

Subscribe to World Bank newsletters - links to subscribe to 30+ newsletters

Poverty Reduction Strategies
Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP) describe a country's macroeconomic, structural and social policies and programs to promote growth and reduce poverty, as well as associated external financing needs. PRSPs are prepared by governments through a participatory process involving civil society and development partners, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Source:
World Bank
The World Bank consists of two unique development institutions owned by 185 member countries—the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). Each institution plays a different but supportive role in our mission of global poverty reduction and the improvement of living standards. The IBRD focuses on middle income and creditworthy poor countries, while IDA focuses on the poorest countries in the world. Together we provide low-interest loans, interest-free credit and grants to developing countries for education, health, infrastructure, communications and many other purposes

United Kingdom

No one written off: reforming welfare to reward responsibility
“No one written off: reforming welfare to reward responsibility” is a wide ranging consultation on the future of welfare. The Green Paper sets out plans for improving support and work incentives to create a system that rewards responsibility. The majority of people of working age – who can work now or at some point in the future – and their families will no longer be on benefits for life. There will also be greater choice and control over the support that is provided.
Source:
Welfare Reform
[ U.K. Department of Work and Pensions ]

From the Council for Employment, Income and Social Cohesion - Paris
Conseil de l'emploi, des revenus et de la cohésion sociale - CERC [version française]

Selected content from CERC Bulletin #153 ( May 13, 2008):
(click on the bulletin link above to access the studies mentioned below and more...)

. Change of norm? In-work poverty in a comparative perspective (PDF - 800K, 137 pages)
2008
I. Airio
Kela, Helsinki, Studies in social security and health
Geographical area : International comparisons

. The circumstances of persistently poor families with children : Evidence from the Families and Children Study (FACS) (PDF - 2.4MB, 100 pages)
May 2008
M. Barnes, A. Conolly and W. Tomaszewski
Department for Work and Pensions, London.
Geographical area : United Kingdom

. On public support for working parents (Word - 170K, 17 pages)
May 2008
Z. Kravchenko
Luxembourg Income Study, Luxembourg
Geographical area : Russia

. Poverty facts : 2004 (PDF - 108K, 15 pages)
2008
The Urban Institute, Washington
Geographical area : United States

. A quarter century of economic inequality in Canada : 1981-2006, (PDF - 996K, 46 pages)
April 2008
L. Osberg
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Toronto
Geographical area : Canada

. Social protection in the European Union, (PDF - 332K, 12 pages)
2008
A. Petrasova
Eurostat, Luxembourg
Geographical area : Europe

Source:
CERC Bulletin #153 --- much more...

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CERC Bulletin - links to all CERC semi-monthly bulletins
Subscribe - To be informed of CERC activities and to receive the bulletin

Online Information Service
Information and online resources organized under five themes: Poverty * Social minima * In-work benefits * Minimum wage * Unemployment and return to work .
- includes links and resources for Canada...
HINT: click on the links in the right-hand margin of each theme page for more content

CERC Bulletins/Reports/Studies/Working papers
- Click on the links in the left margin of the CERC website home page for access to a large collection of online resources

From Europa - Gateway of the European Union:

Joint Report on Social Protection and Social Inclusion 2008
Press Release
Brussels, 25 February 2008
The report examines the Member States' integrated national strategies on social inclusion, pensions, healthcare and long-term care. It reviews the main trends across the EU and at national level. The 2008 report focuses on child poverty, older workers, private pension provision, health inequalities and long-term care.

Complete report (PDF - 144K, 14 pages)
On 29 February 2008 the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council and the Commission jointly adopted the 2008 Joint Report on Social Protection and Social Inclusion.
This fourth Report examines more in depth a set of themes identified in last year's edition:
* child poverty,
* health inequalities, access to health care and evolving long-term care needs,
* longer working lives and privately managed pensions.
The report also outlines envisaged improvements of the working methods of the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) on social protection and social inclusion which should further reinforce the efficiency of the process.

Accompanying document to the
Proposal for the Joint Report on Social Protection and Social Inclusion 2008 (PDF - 748K, 109 pages)
Commission Staff working Paper
Brussels, 30 January .2008
This supporting document complements the 2008 Joint Report on Social Protection and Social Inclusion with a more detailed account of the work carried out in the framework of the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) on Social Protection and Social Inclusion in 2007.

Source:
Mutual Information System on Social Protection
The Mutual Information System on Social Protection (MISSOC) was established in 1990 by the European Commission as an instrument to serve the continuous and comprehensive exchange of information on social protection between the EU Member States. MISSOC has since been further developed and has become an important central source of information on social protection in all Member States of the European Union. Today, the information system includes the 27 Member States, the three countries of the European Economic Area – Iceland, Liechtens tein, Norway– and Switzerland.

See also:
Joint reports
- Joint Reports assess progress made in the implementation of the OMC, set key priorities and identify good practice and innovative approaches of common interest to the Member States.
[ Europa - Gateway of the European Union ]

Also from Europa:

Comparative Tables on Social Protection in the 27 Member States
of the European Union, in the European Economic Area and in Switzerland:
Situation on 1 January 2007
This report is divided into a number of files, each containing the following info for 3-4 countries:
* Financing * Health care * Sickness * Cash benefits * Maternity/Paternity * Invalidity * Old-Age * Survivors * Employment injuries and occupational diseases * Family benefits * Unemployment * Guaranteeing of sufficient resources (welfare) * Long-term care

Related links:

Organisation of social protection on 1 January 2007 - Charts and descriptions (PDF - 1.4MB, 73 pages)
- includes a one-page description of how the various programs fit together in each of the member states along with an org chart showing how these programs are organized within the government structure

Source:
Europa - Gateway of the European Union
EUROPA is the portal site of the European Union. It provides up-to-date coverage of European Union affairs and essential information on European integration. Users can also consult all legislation currently in force or under discussion, access the websites of each of the EU institutions and find out about the policies administered by the European Union under the powers devolved to it by the Treaties. (About Europa)

World Bank PovertyNet Newsletter # 113, April 2008
In this issue:
1) IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings 2008
2) Global Monitoring Report 2008
3) The World Bank Establishes a New Database on Grants Supported by the Post-Conflict Fund and the LICUS Trust Fund
4) Assessing the Redistributive Effects of Fiscal Policy
5) The Persistence of Poverty: Why the Economics of the Well-Off Can't Help the Poor
Source:
Poverty Net Newsletter <=== incl. links to five earlier newsletters
The PovertyNet Newsletter is a monthly newsletter that contains updates on new information and resources available on the PovertyNet web site, covering:
* poverty reduction strategies
* the World Bank's World Development Report (WDR) on poverty and development
* poverty monitoring and evaluation
* the impact of growth and inequality on poverty
* the role of human capital development in the fight against poverty
* safety nets
* social capital.

Subscribe to World Bank newsletters - links to subscribe to 30+ newsletters

Poverty Reduction Strategies
Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) are one of the most tangible outcomes of the new approach to development defined in the Bank's Comprehensive Development Framework. Under the PRSP process, low-income countries write their own plans for reducing poverty. Since July 2002, the World Bank has based its Country Assistance Strategies, its plans for assistance to low-income countries, on PRSPs

[ World Bank ]
The World Bank consists of two unique development institutions owned by 185 member countries—the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). Each institution plays a different but supportive role in our mission of global poverty reduction and the improvement of living standards. The IBRD focuses on middle income and creditworthy poor countries, while IDA focuses on the poorest countries in the world. Together we provide low-interest loans, interest-free credit and grants to developing countries for education, health, infrastructure, communications and many other purposes.

Poverty Reduction Strategies in the United Kingdom and Ireland
By Chantal Collin (Political and Social Affairs Division)
2 November 2007
HTML version
PDF version (98 Kb, 15 pages)
[ version française ]
Table of Contents:
* Introduction
The United Kingdom’s Strategy to Reduce Poverty and Social Exclusion
* A. A Multi-pronged Approach
* B. Key Objectives and Measures
* C. Measuring Success
* D. Key Challenges
* E. What’s Next? Reaching Out
Ireland’s National Anti-Poverty Strategy
* A. Multi-dimensional Approach
* B. Key Targets
* C. Measuring Success
* D. What’s Next? National Action Plan for Social Inclusion
* Summary
From the Parliamentary Research Library:
(Government of Canada)

From the Council for Employment, Income and Social Cohesion - Paris
Conseil de l'emploi, des revenus et de la cohésion sociale - CERC [version française]

Selected content from Bulletin N°149 (March 17, 2008):
(click on the bulletin link above to access the studies mentioned below and more...)

Adequacy of social minimums:
Workfare, gender and poverty alleviation in welfare democracies (PDF file - 120K, 28 pages)
February, 28, 2008
K. Nelson
Luxembourg Income Study
Summary : In the Western countries poverty has increased along with the resurgence of low-income targeting and the increased conditionality of social assistance. This paper provides new evidence on the relationship between social minimums and income adequacy by examining the extent to which social benefits distribute income at levels necessary to escape poverty. The empirical analyzes combine macro-level institutional data and micro-level income data for 17 industrialized welfare democracies. It is shown that the period 1990-1995 is characterized primarily by stagnation, whereas social assistance adequacy declined in the latter half of the nineties. In most countries, social assistance fails to provide income above the poverty threshold, something that makes it difficult to conceive benefits as just redistributive instruments.
Geographical area : Europe

Beyond the breadline : a poverty threshold based on a general budget approach (PDF file - 323K, 26 pages)
A. Soede and C. Vrooman
February 28, 2008
Netherlands Institute for Social Research (The Hague)
Geographical area : The Netherlands

U.S. - From work to retirement : Tracking changes in women's poverty status (PDF file - 739K, 44 pages)
2008
S. Lee and L. Shaw
Institute for Women's Policy Research, Washington
Geographical area : United States

U.S. - A new war on poverty ? Is it time for a new war on poverty? (PDF file - 3.7MB, 34 pages)
Winter 2008
The presidential candidates and top commentators weigh in, Stanford Center for the Study of Poverty and Inequality, Stanford, Pathways
Geographical area : United States

Global Employment Trends for Women (PDF file - 387K, 36 pages)
March 2008
International Labour organization, Geneva
Geographical area : International

National minimum wage : report 2008 (PDF file - 1.5MB, 209 pages)
March 2008
Low Pay Commission, London
Geographical area : United Kingdom

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Selected content from Bulletin N°148 - March 03, 2008
Click on the bulletin link above to access the studies mentioned below and more (many of which are available in French only).

Child poverty and well-being in the European Union : Current status and way forward (PDF file - 2MB, 252 pages)
January 2008
Source:
Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, Brussels

A social portrait of people of working age in Ireland (PDf file - 6.5MB, 86 pages)
February 2008
Source:
Office for Social Inclusion, Dublin

Does informal care from children to their elderly parents substitute for formal care in Europe? (PDF file - 122K, 40 pages)
January 2008
Source:
Center of Research in Public Economics and Population Economics, Liège
Summary : This paper analyzes the impact of informal care by adult children on the use of long-term care among the elderly in Europe and the effect of the level of the parent’s disability on this relationship. We focus on two types of formal home care that are the most likely to interact with informal care: paid domestic help and nursing care.

Movin' on up : Reforming America's social contract to provide a bridge to the middle class (PDF file - 616K, 17 pages)
February 2008
Source:
Center for Economic and Policy Analysis, Washington

--------------------

CERC Bulletin - links to all CERC semi-monthly bulletins
Subscribe - To be informed of CERC activities and to receive the bulletin

Online Information Service
Information and online resources organized under five themes: Poverty * Social minima * In-work benefits * Minimum wage * Unemployment and return to work .
- includes links and resources for Canada...
HINT: click on the links in the right-hand margin of each theme page for more content

CERC Bulletins/Reports/Studies/Working papers
- Click on the links in the left margin of the CERC website home page for access to a large collection of online resources

More CERC bulletin content - this link takes you to a separate page of the Canadian Social Research Links website,
where you can find links to over 100 studies in earlier issues of the CERC Bulletin.

Europa - Gateway to the European Union
EUROPA is the portal site of the European Union. It provides up-to-date coverage of European Union affairs and essential information on European integration. Users can also consult all legislation currently in force or under discussion, access the websites of each of the EU institutions and find out about the policies administered by the European Union under the powers devolved to it by the Treaties. (About Europa)

EUROPA: Key facts and figures about Europe and the Europeans
Which countries are in the European Union? What goods do countries in the European Union produce? Is Andorra a member of the European Union? These questions (and many more) are all answered in this interactive and lively site created by the European Union (EU). The site is set up to provide access to key facts and figures about Europe and Europeans in general, and visitors can click on one of nine playful graphic icons to learn about topics like quality of life, transport, and economic activity and trade. After looking through some of these fact-filled areas, visitors can also browse around in the "What's New?" area. Here they can read newly added reports and fact sheets that address food safety, biofuels standards, and the EU's efforts to combat gender stereotypes.
Reviewed by:
The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008.

Government Social Research Bulletin (United Kingdom)
The GSR News Bulletin contains the latest GSR news, updates on continuing professional development, forthcoming research, research methods and research funding, GSR research outputs and other research outputs, and a website of the month feature.
- incl. links to the latest issue of the Bulletin and the bulletin archive (back to 2002), along with a link if you wish to subscribe to receive an alert by email whenever the bulletin is updated

Policy Hub Bulletin ===> the content of this link changes each month
News Archive - view the contents of previous Bulletins back to September 2002
Subscribe to this Bulletin - free, by email

Sample content from the latest issue of the Bulletin :
Click the link above to access all of the items below - and be sure to visit the Home page for news items added since the release of this bulletin.

Content of the
January 2008 Policy Hub Bulletin:
(Click the link above to access any of the studies below - only the last two items below have hyperlinks that you can click.)
* Technology-enabled crime: future directions
* Stern Review: assessment of methodology - Productivity Commission report
* Evidence of accelerated climate change - Climate Institute report
* Primary education aims and values - Primary Review reports
* Evidence & policy (Volume 3, number 4) - Policy Press
* Pro-environmental behaviours framework
* Low-paid and 'working poor' - IPPR report
* Digital divide: social inclusion and social capital policy
* International trends in housing and policy responses
* Children's centres and extended schools
* National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence
* Transport schemes evaluation
* Criminal justice: drug and drug-related offending
* Sexual abuse of boys
* Dementia services and support
* Crime quarterly update
* Care coordination and health system performance
* Crime and public perceptions
* Life chances of families at risk
* Prevention of violence against women
* School leadership and pupil outcomes
* Low-paid and 'working poor' - January 2008 report from the Institute for Public Policy Research
* British social attitudes: the 24th report - from the U.K. National Centre for Social Research
On 23 January 2008, the National Centre for Social Research published a report (British Social Attitudes: the 24th Report), which describes the state of public attitudes towards relationships and parenting; cohabitation; gender roles; national identity; working in the public sector; prejudice; car use and the environment; newspapers; political participation; party policies; and poverty
Press summary (PDF file - 190K, 13 pages)
Order the complete report (£50.00) - not available online for free

Website of the month
- archive of links to websites that are featured in the monthly bulletin, going back to 2003

Evidence Hotlinks
This area of Policy Hub provides access to a wide range of organisations and resources that will help you find evidence on social and economic issues in the United Kingdom and Internationally.
* United Kingdom Evidence * International Evidence - including Country Resources - including Canada * Using Evidence
===> recommended reading - excellent collection of U.K. and international resources!

Source:
Policy Hub (U. K.)
"... a web-site developed by the Government Social Research Unit, which aims to improve the way public policy is shaped and delivered."
[ Government Social Research ]
[ HM Treasury website ]

Content from the earlier issues of the Government Social Research Bulletin:

Combating child poverty in Wales: are effective education strategies in place? (December 2007)
- argues that innovative education policies in Wales aim to combat the effects of child poverty on educational achievement but need to do more to overcome this relationship

Monitoring poverty and social exclusion 2007 (December 2007)
- the annual report on the state of poverty and social exclusion in the United Kingdom covers low income, work, education, health, housing, disadvantaged children and exclusion from services. Provides a comprehensive analysis of trends and differences between groups; examines the progress being made on reducing poverty and social exclusion, in light of the Government's ambitious target to halve child poverty by 2010.
Complete report (PDF file - 480K, 140 pages)
Key Points (Selected findings):
* Half of children in poverty are still in working families.
* Overall poverty levels in 2006 were the same as in 2002.
* Child poverty in 2006 was still 500,000 higher than the target set for 2005.
* Overall earnings inequalities are widening.
* Disability rather than lone parenthood is the factor most likely to lead to worklessness

The source for both of these reports is
the Joseph Roundtree Foundation
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation is one of the largest social policy research and development charities in the UK. We spend over £10 million a year on our research and development programme. For over one hundred years we have been searching out the causes of social problems, investigating solutions and seeking to influence those who can make changes.

News items, for all with an interest in Government Social Research, will continue to be added to
the homepage at http://www.gsr.gov.uk/ and to the Research news page at
http://www.gsr.gov.uk/new_research/index.asp

Subscribe to the Bulletin alert:
http://www.gsr.gov.uk/new_research/email_updates.asp

Current Research News - continuously updated
[archive - back to 2004]

Source:
U.K. Government Social Research
[ HM Treasury website ]

European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research
The European Centre is a UN-affiliated intergovernmental organization concerned with all aspects of social welfare policy and research. All governments of States that are members of the United Nations, in particular those of countries of the UN-European Region, are invited to participate in and contribute to the activities of the European Centre. This results in a geographical domain of potential Member Countries of more than fifty European nations as well as the United States of America, Canada and Israel. [ About Us ]

Recent releases:

Tax Credit Policy in the UK and its Lessons for Austria (PDF file - 188K, 13 pages)
Policy Brief by Asghar Zaidi
January 2008
This Policy Brief summarises the policy experience of the tax credit system in the United Kingdom, with the aim to understand better the challenges underlying the tax credit policy to be initiated in Austria. Perhaps the strongest message for Austria is: "keep it simple", as the benefit simplicity will help to effectively implement, monitor and evaluate the experience of the tax credit policy. It is also imperative that a good and tested IT system is put in place before introducing the scheme. The success of the tax credit policy in Austria will also depend on the contextual factors, such as the interplay with other tax and benefit and labour market policies, wage setting arrangements, etc, and more background research on the effect of these factors will be useful. A pragmatic approach would be to introduce, in the first instance, a tax credit scheme for specific subgroups, such as lone parent families and working age persons with disabilities.

Time Poverty or Time Welfare in Austrian Families?
Impact of family factors on children’s school achievements (PDF file - 255K, 9 pages)
Policy Brief by Renate Kränzl-Nagl, Martina Beham
December 2007
Vienna
This Policy Brief illustrates main findings of two European Centre's studies on whether today's parents have enough time for their children and/or provide sufficient support (for their children's achievements in school) focusing on: 1) the time spent by parents with their children of compulsory school age and 2) the links between family factors and school achievements. The authors are presenting main findings of an analysis of national and international data as well as the results of a survey carried out among Austrian parents and their children of compulsory school age (9 - 14). This policy brief is rounded off by conclusions and recommendations.

Research Areas
The European Centre provides expertise in the fields of welfare and social policy development in a broad sense - in particular in areas where multi-or interdisciplinary approaches, integrated policies and inter-sectoral action are called for.

Selected research areas:
(Click the link above to access the whole list)
[each research area includes links to events, projects, publications and a few websites.]

Ageing & Generations

Childhood, Youth & Families

Health and Disability Policy

Incomes, Poverty & Social Inclusion

Labour Market & Social Policy

Pensions & Social Security

Welfare Society

PovertyNet Newsletter (from the World Bank)
The PovertyNet Newsletter is a monthly newsletter that contains updates on new information and resources available on the PovertyNet web site, covering:
* Poverty Reduction Strategies
* Pro-Poor Growth and Inequality
* Poverty Analysis
* Poverty Monitoring
* Impact Evaluation
* Poverty and Social Impact Analysis (PSIA)
* Empowerment

Latest newsletter content:

World Bank PovertyNet Newsletter # 108, November 2007
In this issue:
1. U.N. Human Development Report 2007/2008: Fighting Climate Change: Human Solidarity in a Divided World
2. Africa World Development Indicators
3. Brazil Bolsa Familia Program
4. New book! Analyzing Health Equity Using Household Survey Data: A Guide to Techniques and Their Implementation
5. Upcoming Conference: “Making Smart Policy: Using Impact Evaluation for Policy Making”
6. "Moving Out of Poverty" Book Launch
7. Help Us!
8. To Receive this Newsletter

Source:
PovertyNet Newsletter ===> the content of this link changes each month
The PovertyNet Newsletter is a monthly newsletter containing updates on new information and resources available on the PovertyNet web site, covering:
* Poverty Reduction Strategies * Pro-Poor Growth and Inequality * Poverty Analysis * Poverty Monitoring * Impact Evaluation * Poverty and Social Impact Analysis (PSIA) * Empowerment
- includes links to earlier issues
Source:
The World Bank

Sweden

Homelessness - multiple faces, multiple responsibilities (PDF file - 1.3MB, 16 pages)
01 November 2007
The Government has presented a strategy to combat homelessness and exclusion from the housing market Homelessness - multiple faces, multiple responsibilities. The strategy covers 2007-2009. Its purpose is to establish a structure that clarifies that multiple actors at national, regional and also local level have a responsibility and a role to play in work to address homelessness and exclusion from the housing market. By specifying a clear direction for action, a broad approach and clear joint work, the strategy represents a higher level of ambition.
Source:
Ministry of Health and Social Affairs
[ Government of Sweden ]

Human Rights (U.K.)
"800 years of human rights in the United Kingdom explored using original documents from The National Archives"
The idea of "human rights" is a relatively new development in history, but as this website from Britain’s National Archives notes in its discussion of the long trajectory of struggles for equality and so forth, "We could do worse than characterizing this history as the struggle for human rights." This visually compelling online exhibit uses original documents from The National Archives to take a long view of these struggles and movements. Visitors can start their journey through the site by picking a time period, and then reading an introductory essay on the period. Each time period includes a timeline and links to digitized version of relevant documents, such as The Poor Act of 1601 and a poster for a Staffordshire coal miners’ union public meeting from 1831. The site is rounded out by a thorough glossary and a document index.
Source:
National Archives
(Government of the United Kingdom)
Reviewed by:
The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2007.

Related links:

Go to the Human Rights Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/rights.htm

Costs of children (Australia)
Paul Henman, Richard Percival and Ann Harding, Matthew Gray
Posted July 31, 2007
Commissioned by the Ministerial Taskforce on Child Support, this is a collection of three reports on the costs of children in Australian families: 'The estimated costs of children in Australian families in 2005–06'; 'Updated costs of children using Australian budget standards; and 'Costs of children and equivalence scales: a review of methodological issues and Australian estimates'.

Complete report:
HTML
PDF (753K, 122 pages)

Related link:

Ministerial Taskforce on Child Support

Source:
Occasional Paper Series <=== links to 18 papers
[ Department of Families,
Community Services and Indigenous Affairs - Australia ]

Find more from Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs
Find more articles on the topic Families and households
Find more articles on the topic Income, poverty and wealth
Browse the complete departmental publications list

Government Social Research Bulletin (United Kingdom)
The GSR News Bulletin contains the latest GSR news, updates on continuing professional development, forthcoming research, research methods and research funding, GSR research outputs and other research outputs, and a website of the month feature.
- incl. links to the latest issue of the Bulletin and the bulletin archive (back to 2002), along with a link if you wish to subscribe to receive an alert by email whenever the bulletin is updated

Selected content from
the latest Government Social Research Bulletin published/posted on July 19:

United Kingdom : Evidence base review on mobility: Choices and barriers for different social groups
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/scienceresearch/social/evidence_base_review_on_mobility
Source: U.K. Department for Transport

A review of databases and other statistical sources reporting ethnic group and their potential to enhance the evidence base on health promotion
http://new.wales.gov.uk/topics/health/ocmo/research/asert/?lang=en
Source: Welsh Assembly Government

Report of the Multidisciplinary Workshop on the influences on children's and young people's food choice within the family setting, held on 9 March 2007
http://www.food.gov.uk/science/research/researchinfo/nutritionresearch/foodchoice/multiworkfoodchoicefamchil/
Source: U.K. Food Standards Agency

The bulletin also features other reports like:

Poverty, wealth and place in Britain 1968 to 2005
http://www.jrf.org.uk/bookshop/details.asp?pubID=905
("A look at how the geographical distribution of poor and wealthy people in Britain has changed in the last 40 years.")
Source: Joseph Rowntree Foundation

and

Education and youth transitions in England, Wales and Scotland 1984-2002
http://www.esrcsocietytoday.ac.uk/ESRCInfoCentre/ViewAwardPage.aspx?AwardNumber=R000239852
Source: Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)

News items, for all with an interest in Government Social Research, will continue to be added to
the homepage at http://www.gsr.gov.uk/ and to the Research news page at
http://www.gsr.gov.uk/new_research/index.asp

Subscribe to the Bulletin alert:
http://www.gsr.gov.uk/new_research/email_updates.asp

Current Research News - continuously updated
[archive - back to 2004]

Source:
U.K. Government Social Research
[ HM Treasury website ]

Policy Hub Bulletin ===> the content of this link changes each month
News Archive - view the contents of previous Bulletins back to September 2002
Subscribe to this Bulletin - free, by email

Evidence Hotlinks
This area of Policy Hub provides access to a wide range of organisations and resources that will help you find evidence on social and economic issues in the United Kingdom and Internationally.
* United Kingdom Evidence * International Evidence - including Country Resources - including Canada * Using Evidence
===> recommended reading - excellent collection of U.K. and international resources!

Source:
Policy Hub (U. K.)
"... a web-site developed by the Government Social Research Unit, which aims to improve the way public policy is shaped and delivered."
[ Government Social Research ]
[ HM Treasury website ]

--------------------------------------------------

News items, for all with an interest in Government Social Research, will continue to be added to
the homepage at http://www.gsr.gov.uk/ and to the Research news page at
http://www.gsr.gov.uk/new_research/index.asp

Subscribe to the Bulletin alert:
http://www.gsr.gov.uk/new_research/email_updates.asp

Current Research News - continuously updated
[archive - back to 2004]

Source:
U.K. Government Social Research
[ HM Treasury website ]

Worldmapper
"the world as you've never seen it before"
- interesting visual representations of the distribution of imprisonment, violent deaths, self-inflicted deaths, child poverty and social inequalities etc.

Government Social Research Bulletin: March 2007
The links below are just a sample of the content of the latest issue of this monthly research bulletin.

* Community engagement: practical lessons from a pilot project (Development and Practice Report 48 ) (PDF)

* The abuse of research - article in The Guardian 13 February 2007, says that the funding and political agendas of think tanks mean their reports need to be treated with care and that the politicisation of research can lead to serious distortions in debates on policy issues.

* Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Festival of Social Science 9-18 March 2007 - the festival will celebrate some of the very best British social science research, highlighting the ways in which it makes a difference to our lives.

* National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) publish Community cohesion for children, young people and their families - highlights research, best practice, current initiatives and identifies gaps in knowledge. Based on systematic searches of 61 websites, at least 120 website areas, 8 databases, plus requests for information via networks. In total 175 documents, press notices and other pieces of information were consulted.

* Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) launch Britain Today: the state of the nation - showcases the diversity of ESRC-funded research around the state of the nation in 2007. It offers a concise analysis of research and topical issues concerning Britain today.Contents include: What makes a good childhood?; Can parents ensure their children enjoy growing up?; Unequal employment: is disadvantage caused by discrimination?; Britons' changing identities: changing social attitudes in Britain; Learning to live: how best to teach essential life skills to the 14-19 age group.

Mathematica publish semimonthly update - Contents include: Making health care a reality for low-Income kids and families; New citizenship requirements cause confusion for children's health programs; Early Childhood experts presenting at SRCD in March.

Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) publish Gender Equality Network Newsletter (PDF) - Contents include: Why are policies that would give fathers a real choice to do unpaid care-work largely overlooked in the UK?; Does men's contribution to domestic labour act as a buffer against divorce?; Should work-life policies focus more specifically on reducing stress and pressure at work?

- incl. basic organizational information on approximately 500 institutions from 100 countries.

For all with an interest in Government Social Research, News items will continue to be added to the homepage at http://www.gsr.gov.uk/
and to the Research news page at http://www.gsr.gov.uk/new_research/index.asp

Bulletin Archive - links to almost three dozen issues (as at May 27/07) of the Bulletin back to 2002

Source:
U.K. Government Social Research
[ HM Treasury website ]

What Works Best in Reducing Child Poverty:
A Benefit or Work Strategy? (PDF file - 450K, 54 pages)
Working Paper No. 51
March 5, 2007
By Peter Whiteford and Willem Adema
Table of contents:
- Introduction
- Data and methods
Family and child poverty – trends, risks and composition
- Trends in household composition
- The income position of different types of households
- Child poverty trends
- Poverty risks by household composition
Tax and benefit policies and their effect on poverty and employment
- Assistance for families – levels and distribution
- Adequacy of benefits and other support for families
The effect of “benefit” and/or “work” strategies
- The strategy of redistribution
- Does a “work-strategy” work?
- How much work to get out of poverty and financial incentives to work more
Conclusions

Source:
OECD Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers
[ Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs ]
[ Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ]

Also from the OECD:

OECD work on gender
A new one-stop shop for OECD work on gender
08-Mar-2007
The new OECD website on gender presents recent and ongoing projects aimed at improving gender policy across a wide variety of areas in OECD countries and beyond. It also features "Women and Men in OECD Countries", a brochure presenting interesting facts and figures on gender issues.

Policy Hub Bulletin: February 2007
Click the link above to access any of the content appearing in the table of contents below.

- Government response to Scientific advice, risk and evidence-based policy
- Electoral participation of South Asian communities - JRF report
- Equality for disabled people - ODI consultation
- Childhood in industrialised countries - UNICEF report
- Politicisation of research - Guardian article
- Young people and drugs - HO reports
- Climate change 2007: physical science - IPCC report
- 15 year olds in transition - BSL report
- Australian welfare reform - BSL report
- Policy for middle childhood - CPRN presentation
- Restorative Justice: the evidence - Smith Institute
- Is the Law Working? - Law Commission forum
- Mental health interventions - NICE report
- Prescribed medicines and health outcomes - ANZHP paper
- Department for Transport annual report - Select Committee report
- Local authority youth services 2005/06 - Ofsted Report
- Hard to reach - ISR report
- more...

Source:
Policy Hub (U. K.)
"... a web-site developed by the Government Social Research Unit, which aims to improve the way public policy is shaped and delivered."
[ Government Social Research ]
[ HM Treasury website ]

For all with an interest in Government Social Research, News items will continue to be added to the homepage at http://www.gsr.gov.uk/
and to the Research news page at http://www.gsr.gov.uk/new_research/index.asp

Government Social Research Bulletin (U.K)

Today we publish the latest Government Social Research Bulletin at
http://www.gsr.gov.uk/new_research/bulletin/2007/0702.asp

You will find a host of additions to GSRweb in the month up to 13 February, including the latest GSR news, updates on Continuing professional development, Forthcoming research, Research outputs,
plus a Website of the month feature.

As well as news of new research publications from Departments like:
* Home Office publish research on Risk, protective factors and resilience to drug use: identifying resilient young people and learning from their experiences.
* Department of Transport publish Attitudes to transport security after Jul 05 London bombings

...the bulletin also features other reports like:

* GSRU publish Ethics in social research: the view of research participants
* UK Data Archive publish data from the first wave of the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England (LSYPE)
* National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) publish British Social Attitudes 23rd report: perspectives on a changing society

News items, for all with an interest in Government Social Research, will continue to be added to the homepage at http://www.gsr.gov.uk/
and to the Research news page at http://www.gsr.gov.uk/new_research/index.asp

OECD Family database
Following up on the OECD Babies and Bosses reviews on the reconciliation of work and family life in selected Member States, and in view of the strong demand for cross-national indicators on the situation of families and children, the OECD has developed an on-line database on family outcomes and family policies with indicators for all OECD countries. The database brings together information from different OECD databases (for example, the OECD Social Expenditure database, the OECD Benefits and Wages database, or the OECD Education database, and databases maintained by other (international) organisations.

Source:
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development - OECD

Also from the OECD:

Social Assistance Policy Development and the Provision
of a Decent Level of Income in Selected OECD Countries (PDF file - 420K, 33 pages)
01-Aug-2006
By Willem Adema
In many OECD countries, social assistance policy has a focus on promoting independence of claimants through social help and employment support policies. Nevertheless, financial support provided to address the immediate needs of households remains an important plank of social assistance policy. How is the level of such support determined in OECD countries? Do countries use measures reflecting a .basket of goods. that is considered to provide a minimum subsistence level, or a somewhat more generous standard of living? Are benefits increased automatically, along mechanisms triggered automatically by observable changes in price levels, or are benefit payment rates revised regularly in view of (minimum) wage developments, trends in the consumer price index or the changing state of public budgets?
(...) The paper has a focus on [social assistance] rate setting mechanisms in Belgium, Canada [bolding added], the Czech Republic, Germany, Korea, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

Source:
OECD Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers <===links to 45 more papers!
[ Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs ]
[ Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development - OECD ]

Two from the Chronic Poverty Centre (U.K.):

The intergenerational transmission of poverty in industrialized countries (PDF file - 227K, 35 pages)
By S. P. Jenkins and T. Siedler
April 2007
[Excerpt] The general message is that growing up poor has a deleterious impact on later-life chances, and that this impact is not wholly explained by other factors that are themselves correlated with childhood poverty. At the same time, the studies also show that one should be cautious about drawing more specific conclusions.

Social protection transfers for chronically poor people (PDF file - 322K, 6 pages)
February 2007
"(...) 900 million people will still be living on $1 per day even if the Millennium Development Goals are met."
Related link:
Millennium Development Goals

Policy Hub Bulletin: December 2006
- incl. links to the following recent reports:
* Childhood Obesity Database 2005-06 - DH report
* Alcohol strategy and the drinks industry - JRF report
* Christmas and families after divorce - ESRC research
* Gun crime: the market in and use of illegal firearms - HO research
* Poverty and social exclusion - report by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation
* Health inequalities update - DH report
* Crime and anti social behaviour on public transport - DfT report
* Monitoring anti-social behaviour - NAO report
* Social benefits and economic costs of taxation - CCPA report
* Sure Start Children’s Centres - NAO report
* Poverty in the UK - report of the Social Justice Policy Group [About the SJPG]
* Social determinants of health - CPRN report
* Website of the Month:
SPEaR launched its next generation website in November 2006, . The SPEaR website in New Zealand is 'a "virtual community" of social policy researchers and evaluators. The aim is to provide a focused and interactive forum for social policy researchers and evaluators across the sector. The website allows us to support research and evaluation into new areas, and encourages researchers, evaluators, and providers to co-ordinate and publicise their work.' (website)

Source:
Policy Hub - 'the first port of call for improvements in policy making and delivery'
[Policy Hub is part of HM Treasury]

Sign up to receive an e-mail alert when the latest issue of the monthly Bulletin is posted on the Policy Hub website.
You don't actually receive the bulletin content - just the notification that it's available online and the URL to access the page.

News Archive - view the contents of previous Bulletins

Publications - 200+ links
A-Z Key Links - Index of resources featured on Policy Hub

Social Policy, Research and Evaluation (SPRE) Conference 2007
Wellington, New Zealand
3 - 5 April 2007
The SPRE Conference 2007 enables policy makers, researchers and evaluators, students and academics, and social service providers to come together to describe, discuss and debate our key social policy opportunities and challenges. Panels of world-leading social policy experts from New Zealand and abroad will lead our discussion.
Source:
Ministry of Social Development
[New Zealand Government]
- Work and Income - incl. links to : Find a Job - Get Assistance - Employers and Industry - Support for Communities - Publications - About us

Programme at a Glance

Policy Hub Bulletin: November 2006
This bulletin alerts you to selected items added to Policy Hub up to 29 November 2006
Be sure to visit the Bulletin page (the link above) for the complete set of links added up to that date, and
visit the Policy Hub Home page --- http://www.policyhub.gov.uk/index.asp --- for news items added since 29 November.

Families' disposable incomes - CARE report 27 November

Welfare and punishment - CSF report 22 November

Affordable housing in the United Kingdom and Australia - AHURI bulletin 15 November

Young motherhood impacts - SPRC report 15 November

Social democracy in northern Europe - ARPA article 1 November

New direction for disability services - DADH plan 6 November

Website of the Month:
The International Reform Monitor gives a wide range of well-selected information on social policy (health care, pensions provision, family policy, state welfare), labour market policy and industrial relations in 15 OECD-countries: Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom and United States of America. It is part of the "International Reform Monitor" project by the Bertelsmann Foundation. Researchers are also invited to publish their research results here.

Source:
Policy Hub - 'the first port of call for improvements in policy making and delivery'
[Policy Hub is part of HM Treasury]

World Bank Poverty Net Newsletter #96
November 2006
In this issue:
1. Human Development Report 2006: Beyond Scarcity - Power, Poverty and the Global Water Crisis
2. Close to Home: The Development Impact of Remittances in Latin America
3. Regional Brief: East Asia Economic Update
4. Promoting Pro-Poor Growth: Policy Guidance for Donors
5. Book Launch: Efficient Learning for the Poor
6. Help Us!
7. To Receive this Newsletter
Source:
PovertyNet Newsletter
[ World Bank ]

Government Social Research Bulletin
- for the month up to 13 November, including the latest GSR news, updates on Continuing professional development, Forthcoming research, Research outputs, plus a Website of the month feature.
Source:
Research News
[ Government Social Research: Analysis for Policy (U.K.) ]

National Action Plans Against Poverty and Social Exclusion:
National Reports on Strategies for Social Protection and Social Inclusion 2006-2008
- incl. Austria - Belgium - Bulgaria - Cyprus - Czech Republic - Denmark - Estonia - France - Finland - Germany - Greece - Hungary - Ireland - Italy - Latvia - Lithuania - Luxembourg - Malta - Netherlands - Poland - Portugal - Romania - Slovakia - Slovenia - Sweden -United Kingdom
Source:
Reports
[ part of Social Inclusion ]
[ part of Employment and Social Affairs ]
[ part of Europa - Gateway to the European Union ]

Hutton: ‘Second earners key to tackling child poverty’ - U.K.
Press Release
17 October 2006
The latest edition of the annual cross-Government report Opportunity for All is published today to mark the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. This year the document has a special focus on child poverty in the UK bringing together progress so far as well as indicating where the Government has more to do.

Complete report:

Opportunity for all: Eighth Annual Report 2006
Strategy document (PDF file - 2.2MB, 172 pages) - U.K.
Presented to Parliament by the Secretary of State
for Work and Pensions by Command of Her Majesty
October 2006
- in addition to overview information on the full range of programs administered by the Department for Work and Pensions for their clientele (including welfare reform) and an 83-page document on indicators, this report includes a 30-page chapter focusing on child poverty and covering the following topics:
--- What is child poverty and who does it affect? - Measuring child poverty - How many children are poor? - Which children are in poverty? - The importance of reducing child poverty - Tackling child poverty - Increasing parental employment - Lone parent families - Couple families - Making work pay - Financial support for families with children - Child Tax Credit - Child support - Tackling material deprivation - Housing and homelessness - Financial inclusion - Improving life chances for poor children through public services - Early years and childcare -Sure Start - Education - Looked-after children - Disabled children - Parenting - Improving parents’ skills - Health - Teenage pregnancy - Transport - Families at risk, child crime, drugs and anti-social behaviour - Getting involved and extending opportunities - Working together - Meeting our ambition

Government Social Research: Analysis for Policy (Government of the U.K.)
- "Career information, news, training, events and the latest methodological developments for government social researchers
(...) Members of the Government Social Research service (GSR) are based in 20 government departments. The service is led by the Chief Government Social Researcher, Sue Duncan, who is supported by the Government Social Research Unit - GSRU. The team works in partnership with several cross-government committees of social researchers.

Policy Hub Bulletin: February 2007
Click the link above to access any of the content appearing below.

- Government response to Scientific advice, risk and evidence-based policy
- Electoral participation of South Asian communities - JRF report
- Equality for disabled people - ODI consultation
- Childhood in industrialised countries - UNICEF report
- Politicisation of research - Guardian article
- Young people and drugs - HO reports
- Climate change 2007: physical science - IPCC report
- 15 year olds in transition - BSL report
- Australian welfare reform - BSL report
- Policy for middle childhood - CPRN presentation
- Restorative Justice: the evidence - Smith Institute
- Is the Law Working? - Law Commission forum
- Mental health interventions - NICE report
- Prescribed medicines and health outcomes - ANZHP paper
- Department for Transport annual report - Select Committee report
- Local authority youth services 2005/06 - Ofsted Report
- Hard to reach - ISR report
- more...

Source:
Policy Hub (U. K.)
"... a web-site developed by the Government Social Research Unit, which aims to improve the way public policy is shaped and delivered."
[ Government Social Research ]
[ HM Treasury website ]

How the Rich Protect Their Poor: Social Safety Nets in OECD Countries
This five-day course is tailored toward World Bank staff and Government counterparts working on middle-income countries interested in learning about the design and implementation of social safety nets (SSNs) in developed countries.

Social Safety Nets in the United States - Briefing Book (PDF file - 204K, 40 pages)
November 2003
"The focus of the note is on non-contributory social programs for low-income households or other vulnerable groups in OECD countries. These programs, typically referred to as social safety net (SSN) programs in developing countries, are labeled welfare programs in the US and social assistance programs in the European Union. (...)
This note covers 28 countries belonging to the OECD [including Canada], and refers to an in depth review of SSN programs in the US and nine European Union countries prepared for a course on “Social Safety Nets in OECD Countries.”
***Excellent overview of a wide range of initiatives in 28 countries, from guaranteed minimum income (social assistance or welfare) to housing, family benefits, child care and more.
The info is presented mainly in synthesized table form, but you can find related content on this (source) page: Safety Nets and Transfers

Social Safety Nets in the United States - Briefing Book (204K, 40 pages)
March 2006
"The book is arranged into eight chapters.
- The first three chapters cover the nature of the basic programs, the problems—especially poverty—that they are intended to alleviate, and major recent changes.
- The next three chapters focus on program administration, management, and implementation, discussing many of the detailed realities of how programs actually operate: These three chapters blend together facts and tools—what are the tools, how did they evolve, how are they used, what are the challenges, what works and what doesn’t, and under what circumstances. These are the issues which World Bank employees have to deal with regularly as they assist other nations to develop policies and programs.
- The seventh chapter focuses on the role of monitoring, performance measurement, and evaluation in helping to shape and manage programs.
- The last chapter is a chance to discuss the future of the welfare policy in US."
***Highly recommended overview of American social programs, especially welfare (from President Franklin D. Roosevelt's "New Deal" in the 1930s to date)

Safety Nets Primer - dozens of links to resources under the following headings:
Program Interventions – A variety of different programs can be used to provide assistance to households living in poverty and to help them deal with the impact of shocks.#
Themes – Certain issues of program design and implementation are relevant to all types of program interventions.
Country Context – The type of safety net interventions and the mix of programs most appropriate will depend largely on the country specific context.
Special Vulnerable Groups

Source:
Safety Nets and Transfers
Social Safety Nets are non-contributory transfer programs targeted in some manner to the poor or those vulnerable to poverty and shocks. Social Safety Nets play a well-recognized redistributive role which is supported strongly by moral philosophy, expressed in many different ways. They also play a productive role in helping households to manage risk and assist in their own livelihoods, in helping prevent the inter-generational transmission of poverty and in allowing societies to make more efficient choices in macro, trade, labor and many other sectoral policies. Though less well recognized, this productive role is a very important part of the justification for safety nets.

Source:
World Bank

Related links:

World Bank PovertyNet
PovertyNet provides an introduction to key issues as well as in-depth information on poverty measurement, monitoring, analysis, and on poverty reduction strategies for researchers and practitioners.

World Bank Social Protection
The Social Protection Unit, as part of the Human Development Network, supports the World Bank and client countries to assist individuals, households and communities to better manage the income and welfare risks that affect vulnerable groups.

More related links - links to almost 60 sites, including OECD, Microfinance, Food-related Programs, etc.

Government Social Research: Analysis for Policy (Government of the U.K.)
- "Career information, news, training, events and the latest methodological developments for government social researchers
(...) Members of the Government Social Research service (GSR) are based in 20 government departments. The service is led by the Chief Government Social Researcher, Sue Duncan, who is supported by the Government Social Research Unit - GSRU. The team works in partnership with several cross-government committees of social researchers.

GSR Bulletin: October 2006
The October edition of the GSR Bulletin contains the latest GSR news, updates on continuing professional development, research funding, research methods, and research outputs, and a website of the month feature

----------------------------

Policy Hub Bulletin: June 2006 issue
This latest issue of the Policy Hub Bulletin includes recent additions with relevance for Better policy making, Improving delivery, and Evaluating policy, plus a Website of the month feature.
Follow the link above to this month's online bulletin, which includes the following items of possible interest (among others):
Healthy choices for Canada's children and youth (Health Council of Canada) - People in low-paid informal work + Child poverty in large families (UK, Joseph Rowntree Foundation) - Education, training and employment, 16-18 year olds (DfES data) - Political economy and population health in Australia (ANZHP) report - Integrated foundations for early childhood (Canada, CRRU report) - The Social Fund: current role and future direction (JRF report) - Sheltering women leaving violence (YWCA Canada) - much more...

- also includes links to "Evidence libraries", including databases of Systematic Reviews, Executive summaries, Review protocols, and Abstracts of reviews of effects as well as resources including reports, articles and recommended links

Sign up to receive an e-mail alert when the latest issue of the monthly Bulletin is posted on the Policy Hub website.
You don't actually receive the bulletin content - just the notification that it's available online and the URL to access the page.

News Archive - view the contents of previous Bulletins

Publications - 200+ links
A-Z Key Links - Index of resources featured on Policy Hub

Policy Hub - 'the first port of call for improvements in policy making and delivery'
Policy Hub is a website, developed by the Government Social Research Unit, which aims to improve the way public policy is shaped and delivered.
It provides:
* tailored access to initiatives, projects and tools that support better policy making and delivery
* extensive guidance on the use of research and evidence in the evaluation of policy
* links to a wide range of research resources and tools from the UK and around the world
The report of the Better Regulation Task Force (Local Delivery of Central Government) published in July 2002 recommended that Policy Hub should be developed as the key gateway for promoting best practice, guidance and case studies to policy makers.

Cabinet Office
The Cabinet Office is at the centre of Government, coordinating policy and strategy across government departments

[Policy Hub is part of HM Treasury]

The View from the Summit – Gleneagles G8 One Year On
News Release
[9 June 2006] – The View from the Summit – Gleneagles G8 One Year On, a new report from international agency Oxfam released on Friday shows that decisions made at last year's G8 in Scotland, following huge pressure from campaigners around the world, have led to real improvement in the lives of some of the world's poorest people. However, Oxfam is concerned that while debt cancellation is starting to be delivered, the growth in aid in key G8 nations is not enough to meet the promises made at the Gleneagles G8.
Source:
Child Rights Information Network

Complete report:

The view from the summit – Gleneagles G8 one year on (PDF file - 193K, 17 pages)
OXFAM Briefing Note
9 June 2006
Source:
OXFAM

See also:

Canada's G8 Website (Govt. of Canada)
G8 Information Centre - at the University of Toronto

SPEaR Bulletin - March 2006 Issue
Social Policy Evaluation and Research Committee - New Zealand Government
The SPEaR Bulletin is a newsletter for all those involved in social policy evaluation and research and is published quarterly by the SPEaR secretariat.The Bulletin is available to view online and also to download in PDF format. If you would like to be notified when the next bulletin is produced, please register for the bulletin
Table of Contents:
Fostering community research * R&E shapes health policy * PHCS evaluation * Family violence in NZ Asian communities * Asian health forum * Chair's comment * Enhancing democracy through ICT *
NZ initiatives lead the way * Australasian housing research links * FRST's request for proposals * People in R&E * Understanding inequality * SPRE Conference 2007 * CDRP allocations * ACCAN Conference

Source:
Social Policy Evaluation and Research Committee
"The Social Policy Evaluation and Research committee or SPEaR, was set up to oversee the Government’s purchase of social policy research to ensure the spending is aligned with the Government’s social policy priorities. (...)Headed by an independent chair, SPEaR has a secretariat based at the Centre for Social Research and Evaluation at the Ministry of Social Development. SPEaR reports to joint ministers (Social Services and Employment; Statistics; and Research, Science and Technology) through the chief executive of MSD"

Making a difference
Tackling poverty – a progress report (PDF file - 639K, 38 pages)
March 2006

Source:
Department for Work and Pensions (U.K.)

Related links:

Principles of Welfare Reform

Welfare Reform Green Paper - U.K. - January 2006
Click on the link above to download the report in separate PDF files, or click the link below to download the entire report in one file.

A new deal for welfare:
Empowering people to work (PDF file - 1.1MB, 112 pages)
Presented to Parliament by
the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
January 2006
"Proposals outlined in this paper are informed by ongoing informal consultation with key stakeholders. Indeed, we have been consulting on incapacity benefits reform since 2002, when we published Pathways to work – Helping people into employment. Proposals for lone parents, Housing Benefit and occupational health are similarly the product of a lengthy process of consultation and evaluation of evidence from existing policies."

"Welfare reform proposals include:
* reforming incapacity benefits;
* a £360 million roll out of Pathways to Work across the country by 2008
* extending support to lone parents and older workers;
* reforming housing benefit;
* transforming support for people living in our cities; and
* delivering support to meet the needs of everyone
It sets out our proposals for achieving an 80% employment rate for people of working age."

Keep scrolling down this page for links to more info about welfare reform in the U.K.

Welfare Reform Green Paper - U.K.
The Government launched a Green Paper "A new deal for welfare: Empowering people to work" on Tuesday 24 January 2006. This is a landmark document for the Department in meeting its objectives of promoting opportunity and independence for all. It contains major new proposals to help individuals achieve their potential through work.

Click on the link above to download the report in separate PDF files, or click the link below to download the entire report in one file.

A new deal for welfare:
Empowering people to work (PDF file - 1.1MB, 112 pages)
Presented to Parliament by
the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
by Command of Her Majesty
January 2006
"Proposals outlined in this paper are informed by ongoing informal consultation with key stakeholders. Indeed, we have been consulting on incapacity benefits reform since 2002, when we published Pathways to work – Helping people into employment. Proposals for lone parents, Housing Benefit and occupational health are similarly the product of a lengthy process of consultation and evaluation of evidence from existing policies."

A new deal for welfare: empowering people to work
Press Release
24 January 2006
The Government today announced a radical reform of the welfare state with the publication of the welfare reform green paper - A new deal for welfare: Empowering people to work. The paper seeks to end the legacy of benefit dependency and deprivation that can damage communities across Britain. Our proposals provide a once in a generation opportunity to transform the welfare state. They build upon our principles for reform; rights and responsibilities providing the individual with the support they need to transform their own life-chances, and those of their family.

They include detailed proposals for:
* reforming incapacity benefits;
* a £360 million roll out of Pathways to Work across the country by 2008
* extending support to lone parents and older workers;
* reforming housing benefit;
* transforming support for people living in our cities; and
* delivering support to meet the needs of everyone
It sets out our proposals for achieving an 80% employment rate for people of working age.

Related Link from DWP:

Principles of Welfare Reform
"...the values and principles which shape the Government’s vision of the future Welfare State. Our values of equality, opportunity, fairness and social justice underpin these principles."

Source:
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)

The UK Commitment: Ending Child Poverty by 2020 (PDF file - 100K, 17 pages)
by Elisa Minoff
January 30, 2006
In 1999, the United Kingdom (UK) announced its pledge to cut child poverty by one-quarter by 2004 and eliminate it by 2020. This paper examines the history of this ambitious commitment, and the progress to date. It also analyzes the components of the national effort—which range from employment supports, asset building initiatives, and child-targeted assistance to tax, welfare, and education policies—and the next steps the UK is considering to meet the goal of eradicating child poverty.
Source:
Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) - U.S.
"...a national, nonprofit organization founded in 1968, conducts research, policy analysis, technical assistance, and advocacy on issues related to economic security for low-income families with children."

Fourth Summit of the Americas
Mar del Plata, ARGENTINA
4 - 5 November, 2005
Theme: Creating Jobs to Fight Poverty and Strengthen Democratic Governance
The IV Summit of the Americas, which will take place in Mar del Plata, Argentina, on November 4-5, 2005, is the highest hemispheric political forum. The 34 Heads of State and Government of the Americas will attend this Summit, whose efforts will be directed at building and implementing a shared agenda on the theme of the IV Summit ?Creating Jobs to Fight Poverty and Strengthen Democratic Governance.?

Source:
Summits of the Americas Information Network

Address by Prime Minister Paul Martin at the Summit of the Americas
November 4

Google Web Search Results : "fourth summit of the americas"
Google News search Results : "fourth summit of the americas "
Source:
Google.ca

Also from the Summits of the Americas Information Network website:

Press Release on the Indigenous Peoples’ Summit
November 3, 2005
The Chair of the IV Summit of the Americas is pleased to inform that, in the framework of its activities, the Second Indigenous Peoples Summit of the Americas took place in Buenos Aires, Argentina, October 27-29, 2005. It was co-organized by the Organización de Naciones y Pueblos Indígenas en Argentina (ONPIA) and the Assembly of First Nations from Canada under the theme of “Determining our future: Guided by our traditional teachings on Mother Earth.”

II Indigenous Peoples Summit of the Americas
The First Indigenous Peoples Summit of the Americas took place in Ottawa, Canada, in 2001. This Summit represented the first step in the creation of an indigenous peoples’ movement that parallels the Summit of the Americas process. The 2005 Indigenous Summit provided a forum whereby more than 500 participants developed the Declaration of the Second Summit of the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas.

Related Links:

Assembly of First Nations
"The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) is the national organization representing First Nations citizens in Canada. The AFN represents all citizens regardless of age, gender or place of residence."
- The Second Indigenous Peoples Summit Of The Americas

Google Web Search Results : "Second Indigenous Peoples Summit Of The Americas"
Google News search Results : "Second Indigenous Peoples Summit Of The Americas"
Source:
Google.ca

What's New from The Daily [Statistics Canada]:

September 13, 2005
OECD Regions at a Glance
In most member nations of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), national growth is strongly concentrated in a few regions. Thus, national growth is largely determined by the performance of only a few regions, according to a new OECD report. The report OECD Regions at a Glance shows that about three-quarters of Canadian job growth was concentrated in 10% of Canada's 288 census divisions between 1996 and 2001.
See also SourceOECD - "The OECD's Online Library of Statistical Databases, Books and Periodicals"

SPEaR Bulletin - July 2005 (New Zealand)
Social Policy Evaluation and Research Committee
Contents of this issue of the SPEAR Bulletin:
- Towards 2020 for the social sciences
- Good practice progress
- Datasaving and sharing update
- Coming of Age feedback sought
- Clearinghouse for information on family violence
- Commission’s project to provide families snapshot
- Blue Skies research
- Social science and the challenges of the 21st century
- Chair’s comment
- Longitudinal study of Pasifika families’ health and wellbeing
- Labour market research trends
- Improving evaluative activities
- Linkages research methodology workshop
- People in R&E
- Diary notes
Source:
Social Policy Evaluation and Research Committee
"The Social Policy Evaluation and Research committee or SPEaR, was set up to oversee the Government’s purchase of social policy research to ensure the spending is aligned with the Government’s social policy priorities. (...)Headed by an independent chair, SPEaR has a secretariat based at the Centre for Social Research and Evaluation at the Ministry of Social Development. SPEaR reports to joint ministers (Social Services and Employment; Statistics; and Research, Science and Technology) through the chief executive of MSD"

Make Poverty History (Canada) [Platform] - "...united by the common belief that poverty can be ended."
Make Poverty History Canada at the G8 Summit - A Make Poverty History (MPH) team is in Scotland at the G8 Summit.

Make Poverty History (International)
Live8 - The Long Walk to Justice

From Google.ca:
News search Results : "Make Poverty History"
Web Search Results : "Make Poverty History"

G8 Gleneagles - the official G8 Summit website
July 6-8, 2005
"Every year since 1975, the heads of state of the major industrial democracies have met to discuss and debate the major policy issues affecting the international community and their own domestic situations. This year this important meeting (referred to as the G8 Summit) was held at the Gleneagles Resort in Scotland. This site is the homepage for the summit, and as such, contains a host of materials on the meeting, including a FAQ section, information about the countries that participated in the G8, and a glossary of relevant terms. Of course, most visitors will want to learn about the main issues that will be dealt with this year, such as countering terrorism and climate change. The "Summit Documents" area is a section that definitely warrants a closer look, as it contains information on previous summits and policy statements that were adopted during these meetings."
Review by The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2005

Signed Version of Gleneagles Communique on
Africa, Climate Change, Energy and Sustainable Development (PDF file - 328K, 32 pages)
July 8

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Make Poverty History's Response to the G8 Communique - July 8

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chair's Summary, Gleneagles Summit
July 8
"(...)We have agreed to double aid for Africa by 2010. Aid for all developing countries will increase, according to the OECD, by around $50bn per year by 2010, of which at least $25bn extra per year for Africa."

Day-by-day guide to G8 events
- includes links to news releases, analysis, background, and more...
Source:
BBC

Canada's G8 Website (Govt. of Canada)
- includes Summit documents from the current and past summits, news releases, ministerials, past and future summits, how the G8 works, G* backgrounders, members, and more...

G8 Information Centre - at the University of Toronto
G8 Alternatives Website

From Google.ca:
News search Results : "G8 Summit, Scotland"
Web Search Results : "G8 Summit, Scotland"

------------------------------------------------------------------

G-8 pledges $40 billion US in debt relief
June 11, 2005
"Finance ministers from the Group of Eight industrialized nations, including Canadian Finance Minister Ralph Goodale, agreed Saturday to a historic deal cancelling at least $40 billion US worth of debt owed by the world's poorest countries."
Source:
Canada.com

Google News search Results : "G-8, debt relief"
Google Web Search Results : "G-8, debt relief"
Source:
Google.ca

From Her Majesty's Treasury (Britain):

Tax credits: reforming financial support for families
The modernisation of Britain’s Tax and Benefit System (PDF file - 501K, 60 pages)
Number Eleven
March 2005
"To deliver the Government’s aims of employment opportunity for all; giving every child the best start in life; and dignity in retirement for all pensioners, the need for fundamental reform of Britain’s tax and benefit system was clear. This paper describes the reforms put in place since 1997 and the principles which underpin them, and sets out the evidence on their impact so far."
- Seven chapters, incl.: Introduction - The labour market and poverty - Modernising the tax and benefit system - Incentives to work - Fairness in financial support - Tackling poverty among vulnerable groups -Looking ahead

See Reports # 1-10 in the same series:
(these were prepared over time, going back to 1997)
Titles:
Employment Opportunity in a Changing Labour Market - Work Incentives: A Report by Martin Taylor - The Working Families Tax Credit and Work Incentives - Tackling Poverty and Extending Opportunity - Supporting Children through the Tax and Benefit System - Tackling Poverty and Making Work Pay - Tax Credits for the 21st Century - Helping people to save - Saving and assets for all - Delivering saving and assets - Child and Working Tax Credits

SPEaR Bulletin - March 2005 Issue
The SPEaR Bulletin is a newsletter for all those involved in social policy evaluation and research and is published quarterly by the SPEaR secretariat.
This issue focuses on ethnic diversity and collaborative evaluation, along with general news and opportunities in the sector.
Table of Contents:
- Advancing refugee research
- Chair’s comment
- Trialling best practice guiding principles
- Understanding refugee life
- Participatory study of Somali
- Responding to ethnic perspectives
- A strategic approach to R&E
- Canadian takes up senior MSD position
- Demography experts in NZ
- Evaluation in Inland Revenue
- Social Investment Research Programme
- Ensuring the wellbeing of Pasifika children
- People in R&E
- Opportunity for All
- Apply now for SPEaR Linkages awards
- Diary notes

Source:
Social Policy Evaluation and Research Committee (SPEaR) (New Zealand)
"The Social Policy Evaluation and Research committee or SPEaR, was set up to oversee the Government’s purchase of social policy research to ensure the spending is aligned with the Government’s social policy priorities. SPEaR provides a focal point for social policy researchers and acts as a vehicle for communicating with the social research sector. (...)SPEaR reports to joint ministers (Social Services and Employment; Statistics; and Research, Science and Technology) through the chief executive of MSD."

Social Policy Journal Of New Zealand
Te Puna Whakaaro
"The Social Policy Journal is published twice yearly by the Ministry of Social Development to contribute to the development of public debate on social policy issues."
- incl. links to the complete text of eight issues from December 2000 to July 2004
Source:
New Zealand Ministry of Social Development

What Works?
The Social Policy, Research and Evaluation Conference 2004 - New Zealand
25-26 November (2004), Wellington Convention Centre
"What Works?" is a fundamental question for both policy and practice. The conference will bring together the policy, provider, research and evaluation communities and emphasise evidence-based policy and practice.
- incl. links to : General Information - Registration - Accommodation - Programme - Papers and Presentations - Speaker Profiles - Poster Competition - Social Programme - Contacts - Conference Partners - News Archive - Call for Abstracts (closed)

Programme
"The conference programme includes a combination of keynote plenary sessions, panel discussions and concurrent sessions. The Advisory Committee reviewed over 150 high quality abstracts submitted by leading New Zealand researchers. Over 100 papers have been included in the concurrent sessions which will provide delegates with a range of New Zealand perspectives on social policy, research and evaluation."
NOTE - one of the keynote addresses is a Canadian presentation: First Nations Peoples in Canada: The best caregivers for First Nations Children and Youth (by Cindy Blackstock, Executive Director, First Nations Child & Family Caring Society of Canada)
Concurrent sessions include : Public Good Research Meets Policy and Practice - Social Capital - Capacity Building and Communities - What Works for Youth - Duncan McLennan on Housing Policy - What Works (Disability)
Incomes - Best Practice Research & Evaluation - Census Data - Improving Educational Outcomes - Primary Health Care - Social Indicators - Promoting Healthier Lifestyles - What Works for Children - Employment - Sustainable - Community Development - Housing Affordability - What Works for Families - Mortality - Migration - Family Violence - Achieving Work / Life Balance - Community, Culture, Housing - Mental Health

Source:
New Zealand Ministry of Social Development

Development Gateway
"An interactive site for information on development and poverty reduction, the Development Gateway portal provides a space for communities [worldwide] to share experiences on development efforts."
Search by keyword or browse by country or topics (aid effectiveness, gender and development, microfinance, water resources, etc.) for knowledge sharing, completed and ongoing projects, and business information.
The Development Gateway is an independent not-for-profit organization.
It was conceived by World Bank President James Wolfensohn and initially developed in the World Bank.

Family Resources Survey Statistical Report 2002-2003
March 30, 2004
United Kingdom
"The Family Resources Survey collects information on the incomes and circumstances of private households in the United Kingdom. It has been running since October 1992. This site summarises the results of the tenth full survey year, which is the first to include data from Northern Ireland, in which approximately 29,000 households were interviewed.Information is provided on the background and methodological aspects of the survey with tables covering: Household characteristics - Income and state support receipt - Tenure and housing costs - Assets and savings - Carers - Occupation and employment
News Release (PDF file - 23K, 2 pages)
Complete report (PDF file - 607K, 222 pages)
Contents of the report - links to individual sections of the report
Source:
Family Resources Survey
[ Department for Work and Pensions ] - UK Government

Global poverty estimates and the millennium goals:
Towards a Unified Framework
April 2004
"This paper discusses the compatibility of different global poverty estimates under a unified framework, and examines the compatibility of various international poverty lines used in the literature under different purchasing power parity exchange rate estimates. The paper also addresses the issue of compatibility of survey means and national accounts data."
Complete report (PDF file - 2MB, 34 pages)
Source:
International Labour Organization

Child poverty in the UK
Second Report of Session 2003-04, Volume I
April 2004
Selected report highlights:
"... Child poverty is still a major problem: 3.6 million children live in poverty.
... The Government’s target of reducing child poverty by a quarter by 2004 is likely to be met.
... Meeting subsequent targets (reduction of child poverty to a half by 2010 and eradicating it by 2020) will be much more challenging since the achievement of those targets will involve helping those who are most disadvantaged.
... Accessible and affordable childcare available to all by 2010 should be the government’s goal."
Complete report:
PDF version - 1.1MB, 144 pages
HTML version

Related Links:

Work and Pensions - First Report
January 2004
HTML version
PDF version - 137K, 17 pages)

Work and Pensions Committee: Reports and Publications - links to dozens of Work and Pensions Committee reports from 1997 to date

Source:
Work and Pensions Committee
"The Work and Pensions Select Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to 'examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the Department for Work and Pensions and its associated public bodies.'"
[ House of Commons ]
London

Related links: Go to the International Children, Families and Youth Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/chn2.htm

Mexico : Canada's Other NAFTA Partner
(Volume 3)
Report of the Standing Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs
March 2004
"I am perplexed by people who say that we should get out of the Free Trade Agreement. Should we put the tariffs, which ended in 1998, back on? They were not high anyway. The fact is that the world has moved on. Any benefits stemming from the FTA have ended. It is clear to me that we should focus on the multilateral trade negotiations that are taking place under the authority of the World Trade Organization." (from the Foreword by Peter Stollery, Chair)
Complete report:
HTML version
PDF version (703K, 57 pages)

Reports - incl. links to the above report and the first two volumes of this study by the Standing Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs:
- Volume 2: The Rising Dollar: Explanation and Economic Impacts (November 2003)
- Volume 1: Uncertain Access: The Consequences of U.S. Security and Trade Actions for Canadian Trade Policy (June 2003)

Source:
Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs

Tackling Social Exclusion: Taking stock and looking to the future
Emerging Findings (PDF file - 260K, 36 pages)
Discussion Paper
March 2004
- seeking "views and further evidence from a wide range of experts and stakeholders on the material presented, and to stimulate discussion around questions posed within this paper, rather than to set out the way forward at this stage." [NOTE: the final date for input into this consultation was April 18/04]

Source:
Social Exclusion Unit
"The Social Exclusion Unit was set up by the Prime Minister to help improve Government action to reduce social exclusion by producing 'joined-up solutions to joined-up problems'."
- incl. links to : Home • What is the SEU? • SEU's Work • Published Reports • Search SEU • Media • Current Projects • Site Index • Inclusion Newsletter
[ Office of the Deputy Prime Minister ]

SPEaR Bulletin - April 2004
Table of Contents: Sharing research data - Technological changes give data saving new impetus - Window of opportunity for data sharing - Cross-sectoral statistics programme to proceed - Apply now for Linkages Awards - Call for SPRE conference papers - Six Building Research Capability in Social Sciences assessments underway - Focus on youth transition research - Improving the justice system - Wide mandate for housing research centre - Quality relationships for healthy families - Linkages support for equity conference - Linkages round three results - Diary notes
Source:
Social Policy Evaluation and Research (SPEaR) - New Zealand
"The Social Policy Evaluation and Research Committee, or SPEaR, is an interagency committee of New Zealand government agencies with an interest in social policy research and evaluation. Focusing on coordination of agency evaluation and research effort, SPEaR’s key role is to oversee the government’s social policy research purchase."
[more SPEaR links - further down on the page you're reading now ]

Social Security Programs Throughout the World: The Americas, 2003
(released March 2004)
"This publication provides a cross-national comparison of the social security systems in 172 countries.
It summarizes the five main social insurance programs in those countries: old-age, disability, and survivors; sickness and maternity; work injury; unemployment; and family allowances. This report is now published in four regional volumes : Europe, Asia and the Pacific, Africa, and the Americas. The 1999 edition of this report (see the link below) contains all country reports in one volume.
- click the link above for links to reports for 35 countries throughout the Americas, from Antigua and Barbuda to Venezuela
Two country reports of particular interest:
Canada
United States

Source:
Office of Policy
[ Social Security Online - U.S. Government]

Other Editions of Social Security Programs Throughout the World
o Europe, 2002 (released September 2002)
o Asia and the Pacific, 2002 (released March 2003)
o Africa, 2003 (released September 2003)
o Social Security Programs Throughout the World, 1999 (released August 1999)

Mary Coughlan, Minister For Social And Family Affairs, Announces Restrictions On Access To Social Welfare - Ireland
Press Release
March 2, 2004
"Mary Coughlan T.D., Minister for Social and Family Affairs, today announced a series of restrictions aimed at securing and protecting the social welfare system. 'The Government has decided to put in place a number of measures which will restrict access to qualification for certain social welfare payments by introducing a 'habitual residence test' which will act as an additional condition to be satisfied by a person claiming a social assistance payment or Child Benefit,'said Minister Coughlan."
Source:
Department of Social and Family Affairs
[ Government of Ireland ]

["...anyone who wants to claim assistance will now have to prove that they have been resident in the State for at least two years. If they have been resident for less than the 2-year period it shall be presumed that they are not "habitually resident" and the onus will be on them to prove otherwise."]
Source:
Ireland welcomes EU workers but blocks welfare abuse with two-year rule
[European Union Presidency 2004 website ]

Ireland introduces two-year welfare restrictions:
Ireland's move follows that of the UK
March 3, 2004
"Immigrants in Ireland will not be able to claim welfare benefits until they have lived in country for two years under new rules announced yesterday (2 March). The new rules will apply to all EU countries, except the UK, and are being put in place in response to a fear that several citizens from new member states will come to Ireland after enlargement on 1 May."
Source:
EUobserver.com

----------------------------------------

In Canada, the federal government contributes to the cost of provincial-territorial social assistance (welfare) programs through the Canada Social Transfer (CHST) since 1996. The sole criterion pertaining to social assistance under the CHST is that provinces and territories refrain from imposing a period of minimum residency as a condition of eligibility for social assistance.
Follow the CHST link for more info...

Lone parents and employment : International comparisons of what works (PDF file - 1.8MB, 145 pages)
December 2003
Edited by J. Millar and M. Evans
- comparison of lone parenthood, welfare and government employment support programs in the United States, Norway, New Zealand, the Netherlands and United Kingdom (incl. detailed information on the U.K.'s New Deal for Lone Parents going back to 1997)
TIP: in Chapter Four of this report, you'll find 30 pages of detailed information about American welfare and social policy reforms since the mid-1990s, including recent developments (e.g., the welfare reauthorization debate, financial stresses at the state level, etc.), with a special focus on initiatives designed to move single parents from welfare into employment.
Source:
Centre for the Analysis of Social Policy
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) - U.K. Government

World Economic Forum
"The World Economic Forum is an independent international organization committed to improving the state of the world. The Forum provides a collaborative framework for the world's leaders to address global issues, engaging particularly its corporate members in global citizenship. (...) Funded by the membership fees of the 1,000 foremost global companies, the Forum works in partnership with academia, government representatives, international organizations, labour leaders, media, non-governmental organizations and religious leaders."

Related Links:

Notes for an address by Prime Minister Paul Martin on the occasion of
a session of the World Economic Forum"The Future of Global Interdependence"
Davos, Switzerland
January 23, 2004
"The United Nations has to work because it reminds us, like no other institution - that all nations have interests that demand recognition, and all nations have responsibilities towards each other that they cannot shirk. The UN stands at the centre of the global vision - battered but crucial to defend - that says: it either works for all, or it doesn't work at all."
Source:
Government of Canada Newsroom

Prime Minister to attend World Economic Forum in Davos
News Release
January 20, 2004
"Prime Minister Paul Martin today announced that he will attend the 2004 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, from January 21 to 23. Expected to attract more than 2,100 participants from 94 countries, the theme of the 34th annual meeting will be “Partnering for Security and Prosperity.”"
Source:
Office of the Prime Minister

NOTE: for links to info about the World Social Forum (a concurrent annual event), see the Canadian Social Research Links Social Research Links in Other Countries (Non-Government) page

New from Employment and Social Affairs [ European Commission ] [ Europa ]

Commission calls on Member States to keep up the momentum in tackling poverty and social exclusion
Press Release
December 17, 2003
Brussels,
"Tackling poverty and social exclusion is still an urgent political priority for the European Union, says the Commission in a new communication published today."
- incl. links to the draft joint report, the statistical annex, and frequently-asked questions

Joint Report on Social Inclusion (PDF file - 950K, 216 pages)
Brussels
December 12, 2003
"Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of Regions summarising the results of the examination of the National Action Plans for Social Inclusion (2003-2005)"

NOTE: this enormous resource offers an in-depth analysis of efforts in the European Community (sorry, Canada and the U.S. aren't included...) to foster social inclusion and to reduce poverty.
- detailed information on the social policies and strategies of all 15 member states of the European Union, including: Situation and key trends - Progress made 2001-2003 - Strategic approach - Key policy measures - Challenges ahead
- overall analysis of social inclusion initiatives in the EU: Situation and Key Trends - Assessment of Progress made since the 2001 NAP/inclusion - Strategic approach: main objectives and key targets of the 2003 NAP/inclusion - Key policy approaches: strengths and weaknesses - Gender Perspective - Current Issues and Future Challenges

Work, Welfare and Savings : Modernisation of Tax and Benefits (U.K.) - from H.M. Treasury
- also includes info about the U.K.'s child and working credits

Europa
"Europa is the portal site of the European Union. It provides up-to-date coverage of European Union affairs and essential information on European integration. Users can also consult all legislation currently in force or under discussion, access the websites of each of the EU institutions and find out about the policies administered by the European Union under the powers devolved to it by the Treaties."
A-Z Index - good overview of site content
Social Security Webpages - 18 countries
Employment and Social Affairs - incl. links to : Newsletters - Press releases - Speeches - Publications - Legislation - Consultations - Key documents - Calls for Tender - Links - DG Employment and Social Affairs - Commissioner - Priorities and Objectives: The social policy agenda - Employment - European Social Fund - Working conditions and work organisations - Inclusive Society - Gender Equality - Horizontal activities - much more...
Conference on the Mid-term review of the Social Policy Agenda - 19-20 March 2003 (Brussels)
"The Social Policy Agenda has helped modernise the European social model, but more needs to be done, according to the participants at the conference...")
- shift in emphasis "from looking at costs of implementing social policies to a new view of analysing the costs of not implementing them."
- incl. links to 10 recent reports and studies and one memo entitled "The Cost of Non-Social Policy"
Disability Issues (part of Employment and Social Affairs)
- incl. links to : * The European Union Disability Strategy * EU policies * European Day of Disabled People * European Year of People with Disabilities 2003 * News * Publications * Key Documents * Funding Possibilities * Related Links * Contact us
Links to European Research Institutes - Click on the map to access a selection of links to research institutes in each of the 15 European Union countries
- currently contains 190 links to institutions engaging in research on the social situation, demography and family (incl. sociology, economics, policy and psychology).
Introducing the European Union
European Union Statistics - Click on the map to access a selection of links to demographic, soocial and economic statistics in each of the 15 European Union countries
Ageing Policy

New Zealand

Report shows dangers of city life - New Zealand
October 7, 2003
By David Maida
"New Zealand cities could be growing too fast and without the appropriate infrastructure and planning to sustain them, a new report suggests. The government's 2003 Quality of Life Report measured 56 indicators in eight of the largest cities. It found that while the overall quality of life is improving, the urban areas could virtually smother themselves in the coming years."

Eight Cities Quality of Life Survey 2003
"This is the second report on quality of life in large cites of New Zealand. The report has been developed by the councils of North Shore, Waitakere, Auckland, Manukau, Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. The agenda in preparing this report is to advocate for quality of life and sustainable development in the largest metropolitan centres of New Zealand. Matters for advocacy are determined through monitoring social, cultural, environmental and economic conditions. (...) Prompting the first report was concern about the growing pressures on city communities, the impacts of urbanisation, and the effects of this on the wellbeing of residents. Now, two years down the track, those concerns remain and this report – the second edition – has been prepared to assess the current situation."

About the Project

Sitemap - recommended starting point, whether you wish to download the entire report (PDF file - 5.6MB, 172 pages) in a single file, or in smaller files organized under 56 key quality of life indicators categorized as follows: People - Knowledge and Skills - Standard of Living - Economic Development - Housing - Health - Natural Environment - Built Environment - Safety - Social Connectedness - Civil and Political Rights --- also includes a link to the 2001 Report.

Related news article:
http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/AK0310/S00040.htm

Social Policy Evaluation and Research (SPEaR) - New Zealand
"The Social Policy Evaluation and Research Committee, or SPEaR, is an interagency committee of New Zealand government agencies with an interest in social policy research and evaluation. Focusing on coordination of agency evaluation and research effort, SPEaR’s key role is to oversee the government’s social policy research purchase. You can access a wide range of information on this site, including social policy research and evaluation conferences, seminars, research abstracts, publications and papers, who’s who, best practice guidelines and related opportunities."
- incl. links to : About SPEaR - News & Events - Publications & People - Linkages Programme - Scholarships & Opportunities - Best Practice Guidelines

SPEaR Bulletin - November 2003 (PDF file - 1.4MB, 16 pages)
Sample content from this issue:
- Commission refines Building Research Capability in the Social Sciences (BRCSS) criteria
- Census content finalised
- Ministry of Social Development wins innovation award for its Economic Living Standard Index (ELSI)
- Linkages scholarship winner [see the Linkages link below]
- Ageing workshop presents networking opportunities
- Fostering two-way learning : community spotlight on funder’s role
- Australasian Evaluation Association conference sparks dialogue
- Future proofing for work
- Future of Work programme
- Evaluating early childhood education
- From the SPEaR Secretariat (includes a graphic showing SPEaR's key dimensions)
- more....

Earlier SPEaR Bulletins (April/July/September 2003)
"The SPEaR Bulletin, a newsletter for all those involved in social policy evaluation and research, is published quarterly by the SPEaR secretariat."

Linkages Programme - includes links to info about : Postgraduate Scholarships - Research Awards - Research Methods Workshops - Visiting Research Fellowships - Visiting Speaker Awards.
"Applications for the third round of awards should be received by the SPEaR secretariat by May 7, 2004."

GenderNet
"...describes how the World Bank seeks to reduce gender disparities and enhance women's participation in economic development through its programs and projects. It summarizes knowledge and experience, provides gender statistics, and facilitates discussion on gender and development." Includes policy documents, practical examples in topics such as agriculture and infrastructure, and related links.
Source : The World Bank

Fifth WTO Ministerial Conference in Cancun - September 10-14, 2003
"Minister Pettigrew is participating in the Fifth World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference, which is being held from September 10 to14 in Cancun, Mexico."
Related Link:
WTO Latest Updates from DFAIT
Source:
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
Related Links:
World Trade Organization (WTO) website
The Fifth WTO Ministerial Conference website

Counterpoint (from Global Exchange):
Top 10 Reasons to Oppose the World Trade Organization

Related Links - go to the Canadian Social Research Links Globalization page

Progressive Governance Summit Final Communiqué
July 13-14, 2003
"We, the heads of state and government of 14 countries from five continents have met in London to renew our commitment to the principles of progressive governance and to exchange our experiences in applying those principles in practice. We share a belief in freedom; in justice and fairness; and in solidarity and mutual responsibility. We share a conviction - reinforced by history - in the power of collective action to improve people's lives. And we share the experience of having seen our own progressive policies work in practice."
Source : Prime Minister's Website

Immigration and Multiculturalism in Canada
Presented by Jean Chrétien at the Progressive Governance Summit
July 12, 2003
London, United Kingdom
"We believe that our commitment and policies on diversity remain works in progress, requiring ongoing vigilance and reflection. But the Canadian experience is that the benefits are worth the effort."

Progressive Governance Conference Website
London, July 11-13, 2003
"The Network for Progressive Governance is a co-operation between Governments, Heads of State and Government, and their staffs. These are interlinked on various levels and the network provides a meeting place for strategic discussions on the highest political level, as well as an exchange of concrete measures and methods in daily government. (...) Policy Network's objective is to facilitate the exchange of progressive ideas among the centre-left in Europe and the world, working with those who look to forward a progressive agenda through its unique network of organisations and experts"

Low Pay Commission (United Kingdom)
"The Low Pay Commission (LPC) was established as a result of the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 to advise the Government about the National Minimum Wage. On 19 March 2003 the Commission's fourth report was published.

A full copy is available here in PDF format (1.15MB)
The Commission has issued a Press Notice about its recommendations.

National Minimum Wage rates are currently £4.20 per hour for those aged 22 and over (the adult rate) and £3.60 per hour for those aged 18 - 21 (the development Rate). The Development Rate can also apply to workers aged 22 and over during the first six months in a new job with a new employer who are receiving accredited training. The Government has accepted the Commission's recommendation that in October 2003 these rates should be increased to £4.50 and £3.80 respectively. It has also accepted our recommendation that - subject to confirmation in early 2004 - there should be further increases to £4.85 and £4.10 in October 2004."

Related links : Go to the Canadian Social Research Links Minimum Wage Links page - http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/minwage.htm

Sharing the nation's prosperity ? Pensioner poverty in Britain (PDF file - 513K, 61 pages)
March 2003
A. Goodman, M. Myck and A. Shephard
Source: Institute for Fiscal Studies (London)

Child poverty review, HM Treasury, London, July, 97 p., (2004) - U.K.
"In Budget 2003 the Chancellor announced the child poverty review, to examine the welfare reform and public services changes necessary to advance towards the Government’s long-term goal of halving and eradicating child poverty. (...) The review’s findings are published alongside the 2004 Spending Review. "
Spending Review 2004 index

Le devenir des enfants des familles défavorisées en France, Cerc-Cnaf-Dep-Dress, Colloque du jeudi 1er avril, Conseil de l'Emploi, des Revenus et de la Cohésion sociale, Paris, (2004).

Les trajectoires professionnelles des bénéficiaires de minima sociaux (PDF file - 466Ko. , 12 pages) - juin 2004
A. Belleville-Pla, Ministère de l'Emploi, du Travail et de la Cohésion sociale / Ministère de la Santé et de la Protection sociale, Paris, Drees, Etudes et résultats, n° 320

The work, family and equity index : Where does the United States stand globally ? (PDF file - 2MB, 60 pages)
J. Heymann and alii, The Project on Global Working Families, Boston, 60 p., (2004).

Dynamics of economic well-being : Movements in the US income distribution, 1996-1999 (PDF file - 113K, 20 pages) - Ju;y 2004
J.J. Hisnanick and K. G. Walker, US Census Bureau, Washington, Household economic studies

In-work policies in Europe : Killing two birds with one stone, (PDF file - 786K, 53 pages)
O. Bargain and K. Orsini, , Département et Laboratoire d'Economie Théorique et Appliquée [English Home Page], École normale supérieure, Paris, Working paper

Salaires minima, Etats membres de l'UE, pays candidats et Etats-Unis : 2004, (PDF file - 327K, 8 pages) - juillet 2004
A. Paternoster, Eurostat, Luxembourg, Statistiques en bref, population et conditions sociales, n° 10/2004, 8 p., (2004).

Minimum Wages EU Member States, Candidate Countries and the US 2004 (PDF file - 313K, 8 pages)

The big holes in the net : structural gaps in social protection and guaranteed minimum income systems in 13 EU countries (PDF file - 112K, 22 pages)
April 2004
Source:
Higher Institute for Labour Studies (Catholic University of Leuven)

A fair share of welfare : Public spending on children in England (PDF file - 1.3MB, 83 pages)
May 2004
Source:
Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion (CASE) - London

Helping low-wage Americans : Wage-based tax credits.
A new solution to an age-old problem (PDF file - 570K, 30 pages)
May 2004
Washington
Click on Bulletin N°52 to read a summary of this report by CERC
Source:
Employment Policies Institute
[ BUT see what Disinfopedia has to say about the Employment Policies Institute - the site was created lobbyist for restaurant, hotel, alcoholic beverage and tobacco industries... ]

Life in low income families in Scotland : research report (PDF file, 82 pages)
2003
Source:
Centre for Research on Families and Relationships (Edinburgh).

Measuring child poverty consultation, Final report (PDF file - 166K, 27 pages)
December 2003
Related Documents (background info)
Source:
Department for Work and Pensions, London

Losing out : States are cutting 1.2 to 1.6 million low-income people from Medicaid, SCHIP and other state health insurance programs (PDF file, 22 pages)
Source:
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Washington, December, 22 p., (2003).

Fighting "low equilibria" by doubling the minimum wage ? Hungary’s experiment (PDF file, 44 pages)
December 2003
Institute for the Study of Labor, Bonn

Harmonisation of old-age security within the European Union (PDF file - 29 pages)
December 2003
Source:
Centre for Economic Studies (Munich)

Child Poverty: A Review (PDF file - 503K, 81 pages) - Australia
Commonwealth Department of Family and Community Services
November 2003
This review of child poverty measurement in Australia is written from an economist's perspective, and it contains some valuable information about how Australia defines child poverty,
the policy concerns, the measurement of child poverty, the causes of child poverty and policy strategies that can be used to combat it.
- includes some international comparisons of child poverty measures and actual numbers (including Canada).
Source: Social Policy Research Centre [ University of New South Wales ]

The under-pensioned (PDF file - 40 pages) - U.K.
November 2003
Source: The Pensions Policy Institute

Who benefits from unemployment insurance in Canada : Regions, industries or individual firms?
- The Earnings Supplement Project (PDF file - 34 pages)
November 2003
Social Research and Demonstration Corporation

Work patterns partially explain difference between men's and women's earnings (PDF file - 79 pages) - U.S.
Report to Congressional requesters
October 2003
Source: General Accounting Office - Washington

Unsupervised time : family and child factors associated with self-care (PDF file - 47 pages) - U.S.
November 2003
Source: The Urban Institute

Trends in income inequality, pro-poor income growth and income mobility (PDF file - 550K, 22 pages)
October 2003 [Germany/U.S. comparison]
Source: German Institute for Economic Research (Berlin)

Remain in or withdraw from the labour market ? A comparative study on incentives (PDF file - 347K, 86 pages)
October 2003 (incl. Denmark, Finland, Great Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden)
Source: Directorate-General for Economic and Social Affairs [ European Commission ] (Brussels)

Unemployment in the European Union : Institutions, prices and growth (PDF file - 481K, 38 pages)
October 2003
Source:
Institute for the Study of Labor (Bonn)

Worker advancement in the low-wage labor market : The importance of "good jobs" (PDF file - 106K, 12 pages) --- U.S.
Washington
October 2003
Source:
Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy [ The Brookings Institution ] (Washington)

Can social exclusion provide a new framework for measuring poverty? (PDF file - 355K, 20 pages) - Australia
October 2003
Social Policy Research Centre
"This paper examines how the concept of social exclusion has evolved in the academic and policy debate in Australia in the last five years or so. It does not attempt to do this comprehensively, but illustrates some of the most important developments, in the process reflecting on some of the issues raised in earlier Australian contribution to the social exclusion literature. The paper is organised around three principal themes : concepts; measurement; and policy..."
Source:
Social Policy Research Centre - an independent research centre of the University of New South Wales

Poverty in Britain : The impact of government policy since 1997 (PDF file - 519K, 80 pages)
October 2003
NOTE: Appendix 4 contains a detailed list of all changes in British tax and benefit policy from 1997 to October 2003.
Source:
Joseph Rowntree Foundation

Flexibility and social protection (PDF file - 955K, 136 pages)
Dublin
"The purpose of this report is to present a review of recent literature relating, first, to links between Europe’s social protection systems and, secondly, to the flexible or atypical forms of employment that have emerged over the past twenty years. The aim is to investigate possible approaches to reconciling these two aspects, with a view to safeguarding the security of workers over their entire working lives."
Source:
European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions

Remarks to the Press by Secretary Colin L. Powell and Assistant Secretary Craner, Democracy, Human Rights and Labor
On the release of the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2001
March 4, 2002

Social Report 2002 (New Zealand)
"The Social Report provides information on the social health and well-being of New Zealand society. Indicators are used to measure levels of well-being, to monitor trends over time, and to make comparisons with other countries."
NOTE: this site works better using IE5.5 than Netscape4.7X
Related Link:
The Social Report 2001
Source:
New Zealand Ministry of Social Development
See also:
Work and Income - income support, employment services and NZ Superannuation
Office for Disability Issues

United Kingdom:

The benefits of parenting: government financial support for families with children since 1975 (PDF file - 548K, 74 pages)
November 2002
"The introduction of the child tax credit in April 2003 will be the largest reform to the way the government supports families with children since child benefit replaced family allowance in the 1970s. But how have successive governments used the tax and benefit system to support families with children? This Commentary quantifies the changes in the level and distribution of financial support for children (called ‚child-contingent support™ in this publication) between 1975 and 2003."
Source: Institute for Fiscal Studies (London)

Also from the Institute for Fiscal Studies:

A survey of the UK tax system (PDF file; 485K, 31 pages)
Updated November 2001
"This paper describes the main components of the current UK tax system, the revenue raised from different taxes, and discusses how the tax system has changed over the last twenty years."

A survey of the UK benefit system (PDF file - 1250K, 57 pages)
Updated October 2002
"This paper describes all the main benefits in the UK system, giving details of rates and allowances, as well as numbers and types of claimants and levels of expenditure."

World Economic Forum
"The World Economic Forum is an independent international organization committed to improving the state of the world. The Forum provides a collaborative framework for the world's leaders to address global issues, engaging particularly its corporate members in global citizenship."
Initiatives of the World Economic Forum include : Global Competitiveness Programme - Agricultural Trade - Automotive Industry and Global Climate Change - Bridging Europe - Disaster Response Network - Environmental Sustainability Index - Global Agenda Atelier - Global Competitiveness Programme - Global Corporate Citizenship - Global Digital Divide - Global Governance - Global Health - Pension Reform - Women Leaders

Global Competitiveness Report 2002-2003
"The Global Competitiveness Report 2002-2003, which examines the growth prospects of 80 countries, remains the most up-to-date and comprehensive data source available on the comparative strengths and weaknesses of leading economies of the world."
Executive Summary (PDF file - 10 pages, 121K)
Profiles of the Top Five Countries - separate files for : United States - Finland - Taiwan - Singapore - Sweden
Overall Competitiveness Rankings (go to the main page of the report and scroll down a bit)
Also includes chapters on the Growth Competitiveness Index and the Microeconomic Competitiveness Index.
Note: to see Canada's Competitiveness Profile, go to the main page above and click on "Knowledge Navigator" in the top right-hand corner of that page, then (on the next page) click on "Canada".

Related Links:

Canada slips in competitiveness ranking
November 12, 2002
Globe and Mail
"Canada lost its high ranking in an annual survey of the world's most competitive economies and their potential for growth in 2002, slipping to eighth spot from third. Despite Canada's stellar economic performance this year, the slide was caused by a fall in this country's technology ranking."

2002 World Population Data Sheet
"PRB's 2002 World Population Data Sheet contains the latest population estimates, projections, and other key indicators for 200 countries, including births, deaths, natural increase, infant mortality, total fertility, life expectancy, urban population, HIV/AIDS prevalence, contraceptive use, GNI PPP per capita, land area, and population per square mile."
Highlights
Complete report (PDF file - 472K, 15 pages)
Source : Population Reference Bureau (PRB) (U.S.) - Providing timely and objective population information

CIA World Factbook 2002
"The Factbook is a comprehensive resource of facts and statistics on more than 250 countries and other entities."
- all information is current as of January 2002 and some of that info is updated during 2002...
- includes info, for each country, organized under the following headings : Introduction - Geography - People - Government - Economy - Communications - Transportation - Military - Transnational Issues
Note : "Distribution of family income - Gini index" has been added for all countries
Canada - a sample of the content provided for each individual country
Source : Central Intelligence Agency (U.S.)

The Australian system of social protection—an overview (PDF file - 406K, 110 pages)
Second Edition
June 2002
Peter Whiteford and Gregory Angenent
Department of Family and Community Services
- incl. detailed, current info on income support and social protection in Australia - includes sections on recent changes to the income support system, the Australian taxation system, social spending, tax and transfer system interactions, patterns of pension and benefit receipt, changes in the labour force, unemployment and labour market developments in OECD countries, poverty and income inequality, adequacy of payments, an examination of poverty lines and much more.
Source:
Commonwealth of Australia Department of Family and Community Services
Related links:
Welfare Reform in Australia
International Comparisons and the International Experience with Welfare Reform
National Welfare Rights Network (NWRN) Website
More Australia Links (this link takes you further down on this page)

Johannesburg Summit 2002 - August 26 to September 4, 2002
Official website of the United Nations Secretariat for the Summit
Source :
United Nations Economic and Social Development
United Nations Sustainable Development
"Johannesburg Summit 2002 – the World Summit on Sustainable Development – will bring together tens of thousands of participants, including heads of State and Government, national delegates and leaders from non-governmental organizations (NGOs), businesses and other major groups to focus the world's attention and direct action toward meeting difficult challenges, including improving people's lives and conserving our natural resources in a world that is growing in population, with ever-increasing demands for food, water, shelter, sanitation, energy, health services and economic security."
- incl. links to : Type 2 Initiatives - Summit Side Events - Accreditation and Registration - Media Logistics and Accreditation - National Activities - Johannesburg Summit 2002 brochure - Other News - PrepCom Calendar (all preparatory meetings).

Canada's official WSSD Web site

Canada Releases National Report to the World Summit on Sustainable Development
News Release
August 9, 2002
The Government of Canada today submitted to the United Nations Canada's National Report to the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD). The Summit will take place in Johannesburg, South Africa, from August 26 to September 4, 2002. Sustainable Development: A Canadian Perspective outlines Canadian actions on sustainable development over the past 10 years and highlights remaining challenges and some of the current efforts to meet those challenges.
Sustainable Development: A Canadian Perspective
Complete report (PDF file - 9.4MB)

Johannesburg Summit 2002- International Labour Organization
World Summit on Sustainable Development
Sustainable Development @ Work
"The World Summit for Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa will group leaders of governments, international agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), businesses and civil society groups from August 26 to September 4 to seek new says of improving the livelihoods of people around the world. The ILO believes that sustainable development rests on three pillars: economic, social, and environmental. The social dimension - personal security, more and better jobs and decent work - is vital to the discussions of economic and environmental policy and will be a key element of the ILO participation in the meeting."
- incl. fact sheets on the following topics : Sustainable Development and the Workplace - Agriculture - Safety and Health at Work - HIV/AIDS - Child Labour - Youth Employment - Small-Scale Mining - Hotel, Catering and Tourism - Press releases
Source : International Labour Organization

ILO Director-General addresses Johannesburg Summit August 29, 2002
"This Summit has one simple question to answer: how can we make the next ten years more successful in terms of sustainable development; job creation; the fight against poverty and environmental degradation, than the ten years since Rio?
Source : International Labour Organization
ILO WSSD Website

Sustaining Development; Our Opportunity in Johannesburg
August 23, 2002
"Last spring, the UN summit in Monterrey spurred poor countries to commit to improve their policies and governance in exchange for promises by rich countries to deliver more aid, and open their markets to trade. The World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg next week gives us the chance to put those words into action."
Source : World Bank Group

More WSSD links:

Sustainable Development (International Information Programs) - U.S. Department of State
Article: U.S. Officials Seek Real Development Results at Johannesburg Summit
RICS Foundation / Earth Summit 2002 Conference
United Nations Division for Sustainable Development

From the Canadian International Development Agency:

Poverty Reduction - A Critical Review of the World Development Report 2000/2001: Attacking Poverty
January 29, 2002 - 6 pages
By Else Oyen, Chair of the Comparative Research Programme on Poverty (CROP), Norway
April 5, 2001
"Questioning not just the data and content of the Report, but also the Bank's authority and interests in speaking on poverty..."
Excellent critique - required reading both for devotees and dissenters of the World Bank's World Development Report.

Poverty Reduction - Canadian International Development Agency's Poverty Reduction Network (PRN) Overview and Work Plan, 2001-2002
January 28, 2002 - 6 pages

Poverty Reduction - When the Poor Matter
January 29, 2002 - 4 pages
A presentation by John Stackhouse, award-winning Globe and Mail reporter and author of Out of Poverty and into something more comfortable (March 22, 2001)

CIDA's Social Development Priorities (2000-2005)

CIDA's Sustainable Development Strategy 2001-2003

An Aging World: 2001 (PDF file - 3973K, 190 pages) - U.S.
November 2001
This new 190-page release from the Census Bureau and the National Institute of Aging (NIA) presents comparative data related to aging, including population and projected population internationally, life expectancy, retirement, health information, and social support. The report was, in part, inspired by a review from the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) that argued for an international focus on aging as an aid to policymakers worldwide. The main body of the report is broken into eleven chapters, covering topics ranging from urban versus rural populations to marital status to income security. Appendices include detailed tables, references, an international comparison of urban versus rural definitions, and sources and limitations of the data.
Reviewed by : Scout Report
Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2001
- Go to the National Institute of Aging (NIA)
- Go to the Census Bureau

G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in Ottawa to Discuss Fight Against Terrorism
Ottawa, November 16, 2001
Dept. of Finance News Release
G-20 finance ministers and central bank governors will hold their third annual meeting today in Ottawa to discuss their role in fighting terrorism and making the world less vulnerable to financial crises.

G-20 - Government website
- incl. links to : Who we are, What we do - Event Photographs - Videos - Meetings Information -
News Releases and Publications - including the final release : G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (November 17, 2001)

Social Indicators (U.K.)
PDF file - 769K, 71 pages
The House of Commons Library Research Papers are published for the benefit of Parliament members, but this one should be of interest to both researchers and general readers wanting to learn more about contemporary British social issues. Social Indicators is the first paper in a new series that will be published three times a year. The 71-page paper includes a wide range of topic pages that present social statistics on a variety of issues, from the prison population to defense expenses to agricultural outputs. Each Social Indicator paper will also offer feature articles that give a closer look at specific subjects (in this instance,, election turnout and adult literacy) and an article on statistical sources for a particular issue (in this paper, social security statistics). The last few pages are devoted to a list of important, recent governmental statistical publications
Reviewed by : The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2001

World Health Report 2002 - "Reducing risks, promoting healthy life"
Source : World Health Organization

From the Canadian International Development Agency :

Canadian Action Plan Sets New Course in Child Protection in the Developing World
News Release
June 18, 2001
International Cooperation Minister Maria Minna today released Canada's Child Protection Action Plan, a document that sets the course for Canadian aid programming for the most marginalized children in developing countries. The document, prepared by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) after extensive consultation with civil society partners, places special emphasis on war-affected children and child labour.

Canada's Child Protection Action Plan - CIDA's Action Plan on Child Protection
Promoting the rights of children who need special protection measures
June 2001
PDF version (285 Kb - 52 pages)

Incl. links to :
- The challenges facing children (poverty, exploitation, abuse, and discrimination, examples of child-protection challenges in different regions
- The response of the international community (Canada - CIDA)
- The rights-based approach
- A new direction for CIDA in child protection
- Implementing the new direction
- Conclusion

Virtual Library on International Development
A collection of links to international development resources on the Internet

InfoNation (Part of the CyberSchoolBus)
InfoNation is an easy-to-use, two-step database from the U.N. that allows you to view and compare the most up-to-date statistical data for the Member States of the United Nations.
Pick a country from the list by continent, then select a category -  like Geography, Economy, Population and Social Indicators. Each category includes a number of variables. Here's what you can see under Social Indicators : Life Expectancy (Women/Men) - Illiteracy Rate (Total) - Illiteracy Rate (Female) - Parliamentary Seats (Women/Men) - Spending on Education - School Enrolment - Homicides - Motor Vehicles - Telephones - Newspaper Circulation - Television Receivers - Refugees
- Go to the UN Cyberschoolbus website

Eliminating World Poverty : Making Globalisation Work for the Poor
U.K. Department for International Development
December 2000.
Published in early December by Prime Minister Blair and the British Secretary of State Clare Short, this second White Paper from the UK government on International Development discusses strategies for making the rapid development that has accompanied globalization benefit the world's poor more. The lengthy publication presents information and makes recommendations concerning third world governance and poverty, labour supply and skills development, private finance, trade, the global environment, effective development assistance, and the International System. A short summary of the paper in .pdf format as well as the full text in HTML (with a sidebar table of contents) has been posted. A search engine, extensive glossary, and text-only version are also available
Reviewed by The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2001
Don't miss the Links section - great collection! (The site uses frames so you'll have to find the link yourself...)

UK online

Government Gateway

International Social Science Council

Quality, not quantity improving living conditions in our cities
UN/ECE Ministers of housing and spatial planning meet in Geneva
Geneva, 19 September 2000
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE)
Press Release
Today the Ministers outlined their vision of the city in the 21st century. They also adopted a Declaration and a Strategy to improve the quality of life in human settlements in the 21st century. Their Strategy’s goal is fivefold...more

The Metropolis Project - "An international forum for research and policy on migration and cities"
The International Metropolis Project is a set of co-ordinated activities carried out by a membership of research and policy organizations who share a vision of strengthened immigration policy by means of applied academic research. The Metropolis partnership, now from twenty countries and a number of international research and policy organizations represents a wide range of policy and academic interests.
More about the International Metropolis Project
See the List of Metropolis Project Partner Countries and Organizations - including Metropolis Canada

OECD Online
(Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)
OECD Online is to the world what Statistics Canada is to Canada - the number-crunchers' jackpot, Mother of all statistical agencies!
This is an enormous site containing a wealth of information on myriad subjects in the area of social programs. Plan to explore this site over several visits - it can be overwhelming...
- incl. links to:
* Browse (About OECD - By Topic - By Country - By Department) - From A to Z
* Find (Statistics - Publications & Documents - News Releases)
* Resources for (Journalists - Government Officials - NGOs & Civil Society and Parliamentarians)
* OnLine Services (OnLine Bookshop - OnLine Library - E-mail Alerts - MyOECD) - more...

OECD.Stat Extracts
- incl. links to:
* General Statistics (country statistical profiles for 2008, incl. Canada) * Agriculture and Fisheries * Demography and Population * Economic Projections * Education and Training * Finance * Globalisation * Health * Industry and Service Statistics * International Trade and Balance of Payments * Labour *Monthly Economic Indicators * National Accounts * Prices and Purchasing Power Parities * Productivity * Public Sector, Taxation and Market Regulation * Regional Statistics * Science, Technology and Patents * Social and Welfare Statistics * Non-member Economies * Others

Information by Country - links to country information for all OECD countries
Click on the country of your choice and all OECD documents pertaining to that country will be listed.
NOTE: includes cross-country comparisons

Information by Country : Canada --- from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
- all OECD documents pertaining to Canada

OECD Website Sitemap

Source:
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Historical (sample reports):

OECD in Figures: Statistics on the Member Countries, 2003 Edition (PDF file - 830K, 97 pages)
November 2003
"Released recently by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), this important fact-book presents 97-pages of valuable statistics about the 30 member countries that constitute the membership of the OECD. The first 76 pages are largely devoted to presenting tables of statistical tables on key themes that include economic growth and performance, employment, trade, development aid, research and development, science and technology, and education expenditures. Pages 77 to 91 present tables of statistical information relating to consumer prices, health spending, road fatalities, life expectancy, investment flows, and consumer prices. For each table, there is a brief explanation of how the data was gathered and analyzed, along with a short discussion of what each table indicates. For persons working in the field of development studies or those with an interest in the performance measures of OECD countries, this document will be quite useful."
[Reviewed by The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2003]
- incl. stats on : Agriculture and Food - Development - Education and Skills - Employment - Energy - Enterprise, Industry and Services - Environment - Finance and Investment - General Economics - Health - Insurance and Pensions - International Migration - National Accounts - Nuclear Energy - Science and Information Technology - Sustainable Development - Taxation - Territorial Economy - Trade -Transport

Health at a Glance: OECD Indicators 2003
"...brings together the latest comparable data and trends concerning health status and risks, the activity and resources of health care systems, as well as health expenditure and financing across the 30 OECD countries. It contains a larger set of indicators than the previous edition. Overall, more than 30 indicators are presented.
NOTE: You have to purchase the book OECD Health Data 2003 (available on line at SourceOECD or on CD-ROM from the OECD’s online bookshop) for the detailed data
- incl. info about Canada in eight charts covering a range of topics, from health expenditure as a percentage of GDP (2001) and health expenditure by source of funding (2000) to acute care beds per 1000 population (2000) and increasing obesity rates among the adult population...
OECD Health Data 2003 - Frequently asked data - 20 tables offered as samples of variables that can be found in OECD Health Data 2003, including data from the 1st Internet update (July 9, 2003).
- incl. country comparisons of life expectancy, infant mortality, expenditures on health, acute care beds / hospital discharges per 1000 population, alcohol and tobacco consumption, % of population 65 years old and over, and more

Economic Survey - Canada 2003
September 2003
"Will the good economic performance be sustained? How can unemployment be reduced further? How can productivity growth be lifted? How can Canada make the most from migration? Is fiscal policy too focussed on the short term? How can the health system be improved?"
Assessment and Recommendations (PDF file - 189K, 12 pages)
Table of Contents (PDF file - 120K, 4 pages)
Policy Brief (PDF file - 125K, 8 pages)
Order the complete report

Social Policies,Family Types and Child Outcomes in Selected OECD Countries (PDF file - 295K, 56 pages)
May 2003
"The paper is organized in four parts: (1) a summary of child outcomes of concern in various OECD countries; (2) a discussion of one particular outcome, child poverty, and its negative consequences for children; (3) a summary of the research linking different family types with different outcomes; and (4) the social policies that may lead to different positive and negative outcomes"
- includes Canada...

The value of pension entitlements : A model of nine OECD countries (PDF file - 515K, 66 pages)
E. Whitehouse, OECD
June 2003
- incl. Canada - Finland - Germany - Italy - Japan - Netherlands - Sweden - United Kingdom - United States
"Pension systems are complex and comparing them across countries is therefore difficult. This paper adopts a standard methodology to calculate prospective pension entitlements in nine countries."

Financial resources and retirement in nine OECD Countries : The role of the tax system (PDF file - 415K, 45 pages)
G. Keenay and E. Whitehouse
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Social, Employment and Migration working papers, n° 8,
June 2003
- incl. Canada - Finland - Germany - Italy - Japan - Netherlands - Sweden - United Kingdom - United States
"(...) This paper provides the first cross-country analysis of the personal tax treatment of older people. Its results will be of interest to analysts of retirement-income systems. The value of direct-tax concessions and their pattern with income varies substantially between the countries studied. The cost of these concessions to the public purse can be large: they are important to fiscal policy as well as old-age support. The results also underpin the analysis of retirement and savings incentives. (...) It is important that policy-makers avoid comparing the rates and structure of retirement benefits across countries without also considering the effect on older people of systems of personal income tax and social security contributions."

Source:
Working Papers on Ageing - links to over 30 reports
Ageing Society - incl. info under the following headings: Economic Effects of Ageing - Older Workers - Pensions - Social Effects of Ageing.
From this page, you can also go to: Ageing Society | About | Statistics | Publications & Documents | Information by Country

OECD Statistics

Purchasing Power Parities (PPPs)
PPPs are currency conversion rates that both convert to a common currency and equalise the purchasing power of different currencies. In other words, they eliminate the differences in price levels between countries in the process of conversion. This site has been set up as a means of providing information on work undertaken by the OECD and Eurostat on PPPs to as wide an audience as possible, statistics and the latest research, reports and papers relating to PPPs.

 Canada and the World Summit for Social Development from the (federal) Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.
The Government of Canada, in consultation with provincial and territorial governments, submitted its report, entitled Implementing the Outcomes of the World Summit on Social Development: Canada's Response, at the end of July 1999.

Links to municipal government websites in 30 countries - including thousands of Canadian municipalities (organized by jurisdiction)
- from munisource, "...the largest collection of municipal government related infomation on the WWW, with direct links to over 2,800 official municipal sites in 33 countries" (including resources on a wide range of municipal government issues)

Keele Guides to Government & Politics (Keele University, England)
- includes myriad links in countries around the world (the Canada links section is quite impressive!)

TRENDS IN EUROPE AND NORTH AMERICA 1998 - Statistical Yearbook of the UN/ECE
- Statistical trends in 55 member countries

Australian Parliament
Embassies
Government links - Canada, U.S., other countries
HMSO Corporate Home Page
New Zealand Government Online
New Zealand Parliamentary Homepage
The Social Summit Home Page

International Social Policy Links

The History of the European Union: A chronology from 1946 to 2000
http://europa.eu/abc/history/index_en.htm

Yahoo search, list of countries
http://dir.yahoo.com/government/countries/

List of countries that maintain web site home pages
http://www.csustan.edu/social_work/mchu/world.htm

http://demography.anu.edu.au/VirtualLibrary/
The World-Wide Web Virtual Library is run by a loose confederation of volunteers, who compile pages of key links for particular areas in which they are expert.

World Socialist Web Site
http://www.wsws.org/index.shtml – The World Socialist Web Site is the Internet center of the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI). It provides analysis of major world events, comments on political, cultural, historical and philosophical issues, and valuable documents and studies from the heritage of the socialist movement.

Human Rights Watch World Report 2000
http://www.hrw.org/wr2k/

Bretton Woods Project
http://www.brettonwoodsproject.org/ - The Bretton Woods Project works to monitor and reform the World Bank and IMF. It tracks key policy statements and reports, and provides critiques and early warnings used by non-governmental organisations across the world.

OneWorld
http://www.oneworld.net/ – OneWorld is dedicated to harnessing the democratic potential of the internet to promote human rights and sustainable development.

The New Policy Institute
http://www.npi.org.uk/

Council of European Social Science Data Archives (CESSDA)
 http://www.nsd.uib.no/cessda/  - promotes the acquisition, archiving and distribution of electronic data for social science teaching and research in Europe.

About the Group of Ten G-10 Publications
http://www.bis.org/about/gten.htm

Political sites
http://www.politicalresources.net/ - Listings of political sites available on the Internet sorted by country, with links to Parties, Organizations, Governments, Media and more from all around the world

United Nations
http://www.un.org/

Millennium Assembly of the United Nations
http://www.un.org/millennium/

United Nations Children’s Fund
http://www.unicef.org/

State of the World's Children 2000 report
http://www.unicef.org/sowc00/

United Nations Office at Geneva
http://www.unog.ch/

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (Food for All)
http://www.fao.org/
The FAO was founded with a mandate to raise levels of nutrition and standards of living, to improve agricultural productivity, and to better the condition of rural populations.

UN Internet Gateway on the Advancement and Empowerment of Women
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/

Follow-up to Beijing
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/followup/index.html

Commission on the Status of Women (CSW)
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/csw/44sess.htm – The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) was established to prepare recommendations and reports to the Council on promoting women's rights in political, economic, civil, social and educational fields.

United Nations Development Program
http://www.undp.org/ - The United Nations Development Program helps countries in their efforts to achieve sustainable human development by assisting them to build their capacity to design and carry out development programmes in poverty eradication, employment creation and sustainable livelihoods, the empowerment of women and the protection and regeneration of the environment, giving first priority to poverty eradication.

United Nations Development Program, Towards the Elimination of Poverty
http://www.undp.org/poverty/ -  UNDP addresses poverty as a denial of human rights.

United Nations Development Program, Poverty related publications.
http://www.undp.org/poverty/publications/pov_red/

United Nations Development Program, Publications
http://www.undp.org/toppages/publications/pubs.htm

http://www.un.org/ecosocdev/geninfo/- Economic and Social Development General Information

http://www.globalpolicy.org/ - A group of citizens from several countries founded Global Policy Forum to monitor global policy making at the United Nations

http://www.familis.org/anglais/menu.html – World Organisation for Families

http://www.oecd.org/- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development groups 29 member countries in an organisation that, most importantly, provides governments a setting in which to discuss, develop and perfect economic and social policy.

http://www.issa.int/engl/homef.htm - The International Social Security Association (ISSA) is an international organization which brings together institutions and administrative bodies dealing with one or more aspects of social security in different countries of the world.

http://www.issa.int/ssw/ - Social Security Worldwide databases.

http://www.americascanada.org/menu-e.asp - AmericasCanada.org is Canada's leading online source for information about the social, cultural, political and economic issues and events that bind the 34 democratic countries of the Western Hemisphere.

http://europa.eu/index-en.htm – European Union

http://europa.eu/pol/socio/index_en.htm – Employment and Social Policy of the European Union.

http://europa.eu/comm/dgs/employment_social/index_en.htm – European Union – DG for employment and social affairs.

http://www.ilo.org/ - International Labour Organization

http://www.iiasa.ac.at/ - The International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) is a non-governmental research organization located in Austria. The institute conducts inter-disciplinary scientific studies on environmental, economic, technological and social issues in the context of human dimensions of global change.

http://www.imf.org/ - The International Monetary Fund

http://WWW.CAS.FLINDERS.EDU.AU/iag/ - The International Association of Gerontology promotes gerontological research in the biological, medical, behavioural, and social fields (social psychological fields) by member organisations and to promote co-operation among these organisations.

http://www.web.net/ccpi/un - Charter Committee on Poverty Issues

http://www.web.net/ccpi/un/ - Promoting Compliance with International Human Rights Law in Canada
The website for the Canadian Non-Governmental Organizations that participated in the review of Canada's compliance with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESC)

http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/ - Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (Canada)

United States

See also:

- American Government Social Research page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/us.htm
- American Non-Governmental Social Research (A-J) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/us2.htm
- American Non-Governmental Social Research (M-Z) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/us3.htm

http://www.gao.gov/ - The General Accounting Office is the investigative arm of Congress. GAO's mission is to help the Congress oversee federal programs and operations to assure accountability to the American people.

http://www.aphsa.org/ - The American Public Human Services Association (APHSA) educates members of Congress, the media, and the broader public on what is happening in the states around welfare, child welfare, health care reform, and other issues involving families and the elderly.

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/ - Social Security Administration

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/policy/ - The Social Security Administration's Office of Policy is responsible for conducting policy analysis, research and evaluation to produce useful, objective, credible and timely data and policy options.

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/other.html - Links from the Social Security Administration to other sites

http://www.pbgc.gov/ - The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is a federal government corporation established to encourage the growth of defined benefit plans, provide timely and uninterrupted payment of benefits, and maintain pension insurance premiums at the lowest level necessary to carry out the Corporation's obligations.

http://www.ssab.gov/ - The Social Security Advisory Board is an independent, bipartisan Board created by Congress and appointed by the President and the Congress to advise the President, the Congress, and the Commissioner of Social Security on matters related to the Social Security and Supplemental Security Income programs.

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/history/chrono.html - The following pages present a detailed historical chronology of the evolution of Social Security. (1700s – present)

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/international/ - Social Security's Office of International Programs (OIP)

Moving Ideas (U.S.)
News and Resources from the Policy Action Network (formerly the Electronic Policy Network)
"The Policy Action Network is dedicated to explaining and popularizing complex policy ideas to a broader audience. Our goal is to improve collaboration and dialogue between policy and grassroots organizations, and to promote their work to journalists and legislators. (...) Moving Ideas posts the best ideas and resources from leading progressive research and advocacy institutions, as well as promotes high-quality websites and publishes original content. We hope to strengthen democratic participation by providing a more inclusive and intelligible debate about the issues that shape our world."
Link Library - large collection of annotated links under the follwoing categories : Alternative News Sources - Building Democracy - Criminal Justice - The Economy - Education - Energy and the Environment - Families, Children, and Youth - Foreign Policy and Defense - Gay Issues - Gender - Globalization, Immigration, and Trade - Health Care Policy - International Policy Resources - Media Old & New - Poverty, Income, and Wealth - Public Policy Programs & Political Science Departments - Race - Rights and Liberties - Science and Culture - Social Security and Aging - Welfare & Families - Working America - Urban Issues/Livable Cities.

Sample content:

Welfare Wars: In Brief
"Those who support the welfare reform law have pointed to the more than 50 percent reduction in the welfare rolls -- from 12.2 million in 1996 to 5.5 million in March 2001. But many of the families leaving welfare aren't leaving poverty. In 1999, 41 percent of former welfare recipients were poor, and 64 percent of parents who had left welfare for work found themselves struggling to support their families on a median hourly wage of $7.15."
Source : Shaping the Debate

http://www.epn.org/ideacentral/welfare.html - Idea Central, the virtual magazine of the Electronic Policy Network

http://www.clasp.org/ - The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) is a national non-profit organisation with expertise in both law and policy affecting the poor. Through education, policy research and advocacy, CLASP seeks to improve the economic security of low-income families with children and secure access for low-income persons to our civil justice system.

http://www.familiesusa.org/ - Families USA is a national non-profit, non-partisan organisation dedicated to the achievement of high-quality, affordable health and long-term care for all Americans.

http://www.acf.hhs.gov/ - The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is responsible for federal programs which promote the economic and social well-being of families, children, individuals, and communities.

http://www.cbpp.org/ - The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is a non-partisan research organisation and policy institute that conducts research and analysis on a range of government policies and programs with an emphasis on those affecting low- and moderate-income people.

http://www.tcf.org/ - The Century Foundation sponsors and supervises research on economic, social, and political issues. TCF is strictly non-partisan, but not neutral.

http://www.ufenet.org/ - United for a Fair Economy is part of a broad social movement of people concerned that the concentration of wealth is hurting our nation. Its goal is to revitalise America through a more fair distribution of wealth. We are an independent, non-partisan organisation.

http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/us.htm – Links to American Social Research

http://www.ffhsj.com/fairlend/ncrc.htm - The National Community Reinvestment Coalition is a non-profit membership organisation which seeks to increase fair and equal access to credit and banking services for lower income and minority communities.

http://www.mdrc.org/ - Manpower Demonstration and Research Corporation (MDRC) is a non-profit, non-partisan social policy research organisation. We are dedicated to learning what works to improve the well being of low-income people. Through our research and the active communication of our findings, we seek to enhance the effectiveness of social policies and programs.

http://www.urban.org/ - The Urban Institute is a non-profit policy research organisation. The Institute's goals are to sharpen thinking about society's problems and efforts to solve them, improve government decisions and their implementation, and increase citizens' awareness about important public choices.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/fsbr/ssbr.html - The purpose of the Social Statistics Briefing Room is to provide easy access to current Federal social statistics. It provides links to information produced by a number of Federal agencies.

http://aspe.os.dhhs.gov/poverty/poverty.htm - Poverty Guidelines, Research, and Measurement

http://www.os.dhhs.gov/ - The Department of Health and Human Services is the United States government's principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves.

http://www.heartland.org/ - The Heartland Institute is a non-profit public policy research organisation dedicated to meeting the information needs of the nation's state and national elected officials, journalists, and its members.

http://www.princeton.edu/~progrev/ - The Progressive Review is a journal of news, analysis, and occasional cultural critique. We exist as a voice for social justice.

http://www.aclu.org/ - The American Civil Liberties Union is the nation's foremost advocate of individual rights -- litigating, legislating, and educating the public on a broad array of issues affecting individual freedom in the United States.

http://www.mcc.org/ - Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) is a relief, service, community development and peace agency of the North American Mennonite and Brethren in Christ churches. Report on an extensive array of topics.

http://www.huduser.org/ - Hud User: Policy development and research’s information service

http://www.hud.gov/ - US Department of Housing and Urban Development

http://www.usatoday.com/ - News

http://www.brook.edu/ - In its research, The Brookings Institution functions as an independent analyst and critic, committed to publishing its findings for the information of the public. In its Conferences and activities, it serves as a bridge between scholarship and public policy.

http://www.fedworld.gov/index.html - FedWorld offers a comprehensive central access point for searching, locating, ordering and acquiring government and business information.

http://www.irp.wisc.edu - The Institute for Research on Poverty (IRP) is a national, university-based centre for research into the causes and consequences of poverty and social inequality in the United States. It is non-profit and non-partisan.

http://www.sc.edu/cosw/ - College of Social Work, University of South Carolina

http://lcweb.loc.gov/ - The Library of Congress

http://thomas.loc.gov/ - Legislative Information, Library of Congress

http://www.childrennow.org/ - Children Now is a non-partisan, independent voice for children, working to translate the nation's commitment to children and families into action.

http://www.lib.lsu.edu/gov/fedgov.html - U.S. Federal Government Agencies Directory

http://www.igc.org/gateway/index.html - The Mission of IGC is to advance the work of progressive organisations and individuals for peace, justice, economic opportunity, human rights, democracy and environmental sustainability through strategic use of online technologies.

http://www.aphsa.org/ - APHSA is a nonprofit, bipartisan organization of individuals and agencies concerned with human services. APHSA educates members of Congress, the media, and the broader public on what is happening in the states around welfare, child welfare, health care reform, and other issues involving families and the elderly.

http://www.bea.doc.gov/ - The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) is an agency of the Department of Commerce. BEA's national, regional, and international economic accounts present basic information on such key issues as U.S. economic growth, regional economic development, and the Nation's position in the world economy.

http://www.cato.org/ - The Cato Institute is a non-partisan public policy research foundation.

http://www.dfa.state.ny.us/ - New York State Department of Family Assistance

http://www.heritage.org/ - The Heritage Foundation is a research and educational institute whose mission is to formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defence.

http://www.ssw.upenn.edu/ - University of Pennsylvania School of Social Work

http://www1.york.ac.uk/depts/spsw/ - The University of York Department of Social Policy and Social Work

Belgium

http://www.belgium.fgov.be/ - Belgium Federal Government Online

http://www.socialsecurity.fgov.be/ - Social Security in Belgium

Chile

http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/chile.htm – Pensions in Chile

France

 http://www.ambafrance-ca.org  – Embassy of France in Canada

http://www.emploi-solidarite.gouv.fr/index.html – Site du Ministère de l'emploi et de la solidarité

http://www.35h.travail.gouv.fr/ - The law on negotiated workweek reduction in France

http://info-france-usa.org/ - Embassy of France (Washington, D.C)

http://www.caf.fr/ - Allocations Familiales

Japan

http://www.mhlw.go.jp/english/index.html – Ministry of Helath, Labour and Welfare

United Kingdom

http://www.ukonline.gov.uk/ - A first entry point to UK public sector information on the Internet.

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/ - The Department for Work and Pensions

http://www.gnn.gov.uk/ - Government News Network

http://213.38.88.195/coi/coipress.nsf – Central Office of Information (COI) organisation links

http://www.sprc.unsw.edu.au/ - the Social Policy Research Centre at The University of New South Wales. The Centre operates as an independent unit of the University and undertakes research into a wide range of social policy issues.

http://www.hmso.gov.uk/ - Her Majesty's Stationary Office

http://sosig.ac.uk/ - The Social Science Information Gateway (SOSIG) aims to provide a trusted source of selected, high quality Internet information for researchers and practitioners in the social sciences, business and law. It is part of the UK Resource Discovery Network.

See also Social Research in Other Countries (NGO) - Globalization - U.S. Social Research Links - Human Rights Links - United Nations Links - International Children, Families and Youth - Health pages

 

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