New Advocate

Basics of RESULTS Canada

What we’re about

We know for a fact that there are enough resources in the world so that no one needs to live in extreme poverty; what is lacking is the political will to act

With this knowledge compelling us, our mission is to create the political and collective will to end hunger and the worst aspects of poverty, and to empower individuals to exercise their personal and political power.

How do we fulfill our mission?

We build the skills and confidence of everyday people.  We support “volunteer advocates” to use their personal political power to communicate powerfully on cost-effective, proven strategies to reduce poverty. We have proven advocacy techniques that we teach, practice with volunteers, practice again, and refine.  A lot of this is letter writing, it’s also learning to speak powerfully and persuasively on the issues.

We communicate with 3 key groups:

• Policy makers – including the Canadian government, World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF);
• Media - through letters to the editor, op-eds, encouraging articles and editorials.  Why is this important? 1) Policy makers monitor these mediums for public opinion and, 2) To influence readers
• Community – to bring them onboard with us, support us, act with us.

It’s important to remember that most of the people we are advocating for do not have the access to policy makers or the media that we do. This privilege and this opportunity further compel us to take action.

What’s our track record?

One of things that fuels our volunteer advocates to keep acting with us is our collective record of success: concrete changes to policy and increases in aid brought about by the advocacy of our volunteers. Click here to read more about our successes.

What makes us unique?

RESULTS Canada is recognized throughout the international development sector and in policy maker circles for the unique and important role we play as the primary Canadian organization dedicated to global anti-poverty advocacy. Other international development organizations have come to rely on us to shape platforms they can participate in and be the strong voice many of them cannot be due to Revenue Canada’s severe restriction on the advocacy activities of charities.  We are not a charity, we are a not for profit organization, receiving no government funds and relying entirely on individuals and some forward-thinking foundations to support our work.

Solutions we advocate for

We advocate for the cost-effective, proven solutions to eliminate extreme poverty.  Extreme poverty is a World Bank term referring to people living on less than $1.25 (US) per day.  The very, very poor.  And they are living in the developing world.  They do not have proper nutrition, often no primary school education, lack access to essential medicines like immunizations for their children, are desperate and often depressed and ill.

But we know from our own research and the research of other organizations we collaborate with that there are several key proven, inexpensive strategies that if widely executed in the developing world would pull millions of families out of extreme poverty:

1. Medical interventions to help children survive and thrive – these include: immunizations, Vitamin A supplements, bednets to protect from malarial mosquitos, and improved maternal health
2. Primary school education – 75 million children don’t have access to even basic education. A single year of primary school increases the wages people earn later in life by 5-15% for boys and even more for girls
3. Sanitation and Hygiene- People suffering from preventable water, sanitation and hygiene-related diseases occupy more than half of all hospital beds in the developing world at any given time
4. Diagnosis and treatment of Tuberculous – The #1 killer of people with HIV in the developing world and the #1 respiratory illness affecting women worldwide.  Curable for only $20
5. Microfinance – Small loans, often less than $50, available to those who traditional banks often wouldn’t touch, which have brought over 100 million families worldwide out of extreme poverty