Poverty is growing in the Milwaukee area, something that many residents identify as a major problem. Hundreds of persons got together to learn more about the problem and work on ways to deal with it at the 4th Annual Symposium on Poverty.

The Symposium on Poverty was coordinated by the Social Development Commission and engaged members of community and faith based organizations, businesses, governmental agencies and private individuals. The meeting used as the basis for discussion a recently completed Community Needs Assessment done by the UW-M Center for Urban Initiatives. UWM staff presented a summery of the study that polled members of the public as well as stakeholders about the current state of the community as well as its needs.

Build Milwaukee, a coalition of persons interested in urban development, presented their four-year employment and development strategy for a Northside Milwaukee neighborhood. Ed McDonald Symposium goers the group is aiming to help create as many as 11,000 jobs in the target area which is bounded on the west by 60th Street, on the north by Burleigh, the south by Highland and on the east by the Milwaukee River.

Members of Build Milwaukee said the model they had drawn up can be replicated in other areas of Milwaukee or in other communities. Their proposal prompted a number of statements of support from Symposium participants including several young budding local entrepreneurs who are trying to get their own small businesses running and thriving.

The Symposium also featured a series of five presentations by different organizations and partnerships on topics that included job creation, homelessness, lead poisoning, community health, and healthy relationships. Those sessions solicited feedback from attendees.

The goals of the Symposium on Poverty were to bring together members from all walks of life and backgrounds and to then engage them in initiatives that address poverty. It was recognized by event organizers that no one idea or program can solve a complicated problem like poverty but that by bringing together people to discuss and evaluate each idea, a comprehensive response to poverty can be designed and then implemented.

The results of the proposals, presentations and discussions will be posted on the Social Development Commission website in the near future at www.cr-sdc.org. for review and action by the public.

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Popular Interests In This Article: Annual Symposium on Poverty, Social Development Commission, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee