| This month we are proud to feature our partnering organization BACI – Burnaby Association for Community Inclusion! |
| The Burnaby Association for Community Inclusion (BACI) is a non-profit organization that has spent over 65 years providing innovative services for children, youth and adults with disabilities and their families in Burnaby and Metro Vancouver. BACI provides a wide range of development, training, social and recreational opportunities for over 1,000 individuals and their families. Through our employment initiatives and collaborations with local businesses, we support the economic inclusion of adults with disabilities. We continue to partner with local and provincial government, other agencies and groups to offer affordable and accessible housing for people we serve and other low-income members of the community. Over the past two decades, BACI has dedicated our efforts to eradicating poverty. We supported the PLAN Institute to develop the Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) as a tool to eliminate poverty across Canada. The RDSP is the world’s first savings plan specifically designed for people with disabilities. Even with little to no personal contributions, there are significant government contributions available to help many people in Canada with disabilities save for their future. Learn more about the RDSP here: https://bit.ly/3Q2WELU BACI also worked withpeople with disabilities, government and community partners to change economic policies in BC and allow people with disabilities to keep assets under the general asset exemption ($100,000), as well as increasing the annual earning exemption (to $15,000) without claw-backs. These are important steps in the right direction. In 2017, we began working with former Senator Hugh Segal, The Plan Institute, BC Aboriginal Network on Disability Society, Disability Alliance BC, Inclusion BC and Vancity, to advance the idea of a Basic Guaranteed Income for people with disabilities across Canada. We look forward to continuing our work with Disability Without Poverty and other partners – working to move closer to an economic model that reduces inequality and the stigma of poverty and propels people towards full economic citizenship. |