(Toronto, ON – October 29, 2011) In a national Ipsos Reid survey conducted on behalf of ABC Life Literacy Canada in May 2011, it was revealed that six in 10 Canadians say they need help with their financial management skills.
Financial Literacy Week is a national awareness and engagement campaign starting tomorrow, through November 5, 2011, that seeks to increase the financial literacy and math skills of Canadians through access to tools, resources and community events and celebrations.
“As we saw from Ipsos Reid research announced in May, more than half of Canadians admit to needing help with their financial management skills,” said Margaret Eaton, ABC Life Literacy Canada president. “This initiative allows us to engage with everyone, no matter their financial situation, providing tools, resources and connecting them with local programs to help them gain confidence and understanding.”
Finances and math should not be a taboo subject. To support Canadians on their financial learning journey and to bring them into the financial literacy discussion, FinancialLiteracyWeek.ca is an inspiring digital platform that demonstrates how one small change adds up.
Special features include:
- Interactive tips page where Canadians can share their winning formulas for handling personal financial matters.
- Three Financial Literacy Week handbooks that can be used by an individual or group to learn about budgeting, borrowing and RESPs.
- I Promise page where Canadians can select or submit their own small step that they promise to take to help improve their knowledge and comfort with financial literacy.
- Video posts by financial expert Gail Vaz-Oxlade.
- Tip sheets and activity pages at SmallChangeAddsUp.ca.
In addition, ABC Life Literacy Canada has scheduled the following national events as additional touch-points with Canadians:
Financial Literacy Week National Online Forum
Tuesday, November 1, 2011 from 12:30 – 2:00 p.m. ET
Online at Life Literacy Live
Hear from Canadian financial experts as they discuss important financial issues to be aware of during five key life stages (childhood, post-secondary student, young adult, parent/mid-life and senior). Panelists include Craig Alexander (TD Bank Group), Stephen Ashworth (Junior Achievement Canada), Jeanette Brox (Investors Group), Preet Banerjee (The Globe and Mail & W Network), Dan Bortolotti (MoneySense Magazine), and Adam Mayers (Moneyville.ca).
Release of national Ipsos Reid research results
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Look at data revealing Canadians’ skills with money math problems and where they rank the importance of financial literacy in their daily discussions.
Financial Literacy Week kicks off tomorrow, Sunday, October 30, and runs to Saturday, November 5, 2011 as part of the larger Financial Literacy Month initiative. Get in on the conversation and increase your financial literacy skills and confidence at FinancialLiteracyWeek.ca.
