Other Poverty Reduction Strategies
Poverty Simulations
Since the April 2007 publication of The High Cost of Poverty: It Affects Us All; The Erie Community Foundation has done much to promote an increased understanding of poverty and poverty reduction strategies such as hosting poverty simulations and supporting Erie Together.
Poverty simulations are a unique tool to help people begin to understand what life is like with a shortage of money and an abundance of stress. During a simulation, participants role-play the lives of low-income families, including single parents, people with disabilities, and senior citizens on Social Security. The task of each family is to provide for food, shelter and other basic necessities during four 15-minute weeks. Families interact with community resources.
In fall 2008, The Erie Women’s Fund of made a significant commitment to a specific poverty reduction strategy by funding the Erie Together Initiative for the next five years. The Erie Community Foundation provided additional funding to match this commitment of The Erie Women’s Fund.
Erie Together Questions and Facts:
Why? One in four Erie City residents—and almost one in six Erie County residents live in poverty. This has a detrimental overall impact on the community’s quality of life and economic growth. The underlying philosophy of Erie Together is that poverty is a community issue requiring a comprehensive community-wide response inclusive of all sectors and residents.
Who? Mercyhurst College, the Greater Erie Community Action Committee (GECAC) and United Way of Erie County partnered and serve as the catalyst for Erie Together’s community process. Ongoing efforts are being made to engage with other initiatives working to address poverty. Erie Together also seeks active participation from a cross - sector of organizations and residents, importantly low-income individuals, to work together to make Erie a more vibrant community.
Where? Four countywide action teams are underway. Additionally, Erie Together is involved with specific subsections of the city and county. Community members in the northeast side of the city, Girard/Lake City area, and Little Italy have developed action plans specific to their areas. Currently, the process of building a coalition of interested community members in North East is underway.
What? What is needed is your involvement. Please consider participating in some capacity.
Family Action Teams (FACTS): entails a mentoring experience for low-income families so that these families might move toward self-sufficiency and be brought into the community planning process. If you are interested in participating as a community partner or learning how a family can become involved, please call GECAC (459-4581) and speak to the FACT Facilitator, Amber Lyons (ext. 652) or email alyons@gecac.org.
Dialogue to Action Teams (FACTS): bring together community members within specific city neighborhoods and county areas to engage in dialogue leading to a concrete action plan to address the needs of residents and improve their community. If you are interested in becoming a facilitator and/or learning more about the DACT process in the target communities or how your city or county area can become involved, please contact Jen Bach, Project Coordinator, at 824-3357 or email by clicking here.
County-wide Action Teams: are working to align resources and address outcomes identified as necessary to achieve the community’s aspiration that was developed at community forums, attended by a diverse group of citizens from across the county. The community’s aspiration is: Working together to make the Erie Region a community of opportunity where everyone can learn, work and thrive.
The four action teams are:
1. Childhood readiness and success, pre-K through 3rd grade
2. Aligning education to careers, 4th grade through college
3. Individual and family stability
4. Balancing economic and workforce development
If you are interested in joining one of the county-wide Action Teams, please contact Bill Jackson at the United Way, 456-2937. You can also visit the Erie Together Website by clicking here.
A Steward Team- comprised of cross sector representation will help to guide the initiative and will focus on community-wide systemic change to reduce poverty and achieve the community aspiration. A traveling roundtable approach will be developed to assist in continuing to solicit input from across the county.
The following publications provide additional information on poverty in Erie County:
- The High Cost of Poverty—It Affects Us All (417.97 KB)
- Poverty Simulation Brochure (210.7 KB)
- What You Can Do (384.97 KB)
