Camp teaches students about poverty
HALIFAX, NS—Poverty Justice Camp is taking participants deep inside the problem of Canadian poverty in order to help others find a way out.
The camp, held August 9-15, is an initiative of the Anglican Church of Canada and is sponsored by the diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. Along with Bible study and prayer, participants are immersed in the practical challenges facing the disenfranchised.
"Justice Camp is based upon experiential learning," says Andy Sharon, co-chair of Justice Camp, "You're going to learn by doing. We hope to give participants a gut feel for what it's like to live in poverty and also to go away with some ideas on what they can practically do, in their own community."
The camp is based at the University of King's College with immersion experiences planned across the two provinces.
One immersion group will meet Nova Scotia fishermen and work alongside migrant workers in Annapolis Valley, while those learning about combating cultural poverty will walk in the footsteps of the Black Loyalists in Shelburne. Other immersions include housing and homelessness, economic development and disabled and marginalized groups.
Dave Puxley is a leader for the immersion group on public policy and education that looks at how both information and perception can affect someone's access to social services.
"We're looking at the information divide," he says. "For example, if you don't have a permanent address, how do you get a job? What do you put on a resumé?"
While hesitant to confirm the exact challenges participants will experience, he says they could include "something like a poverty scavenger hunt, where people have to get from one place to another without a bus pass or driver's license, or try to get a library card without proof off address.
"They might also work alongside certain street venders, or go to a place where people in poverty can access meals—not just to help prepare food, but to sit with the people there, eat with them, and learn from them about their challenges and experiences."
Immersion groups will also visit local charities and government organizations to hear how front-line workers are addressing the problem.
This is the fourth justice camp since the initiative began with a Food Justice Camp in Winnipeg in 2005. Dave Puxley and his wife Katie Puxley attended Environmental Justice Camp in Victoria in 2007 and were inspired to bring the initiative to Halifax.
"What I think is really amazing about Justice Camp is the fact that social justice issues are being looked at through a lens of biblical reflection," says Katie. "What it means to be a Christian living out our beliefs in the world and incorporating those values into the way we live.
"But we do get theists and activists of no religious affiliation attending as well," she adds. "There is a lot of diversity and input, so you can really chew on these questions from a lot of perspectives."
The conference is open to anyone. However, the composition of delegates is based on three "50 per cent" principles—half older than age 30 and half younger; half male and half female; and half local and half national.
David Puxley adds, "As everyone has a chance to digest the powerful experiences they are having, especially as small group reflection … there is a wonderful sense in which you can really feel the Holy Spirit at work in the process of deliberating together.
"When you can figure out how to better calibrate your understanding of a problem, it becomes clearer what can be done on a really immediate level and what needs to be done on a larger scale. We have the resources we need—we just need to discover those resources."
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