What’s the Best Way to End Poverty?

Published Friday, April 18th, 2008 in Culture & Society

Roughly 12% of Americans live in poverty today and are unable to consistently pay for basic needs. That’s according to federal guidelines established in the 1960’s that have not factored in the increasing costs of housing, healthcare, utilities or transportation in the last four decades. The number of people under the real poverty line in the U.S. could be two to three times higher. Non-profit organizations and government agencies are attempting to eradicate poverty, but the numbers show they are not succeeding.

“It’s time to rock the boat,” proclaims Scott Miller, CEO of Move the Mountain Leadership Center – which provides training, technical assistance, consulting and coaching to leaders and communities who are focused on ending poverty. “It’s caused by numerous factors so we need to understand that there is no quick fix. Poverty CAN be dismantled, but it’s going to take a radical change in the mindset within our individual communities.”

Miller believes there are two ways out of poverty: education and social capital, “One of the largest common denominators for those living in poverty is social isolation. Think about it. People with adequate and more-than-adequate incomes simply don’t mingle with people with low incomes and vice versa.”

In his new book “Until It’s Gone: Ending Poverty in Our Nation, in Our Lifetime,” Miller says this social compartmentalization leads to a popular denial that there is little to no poverty in a community, and, if there is, then those people are getting what they deserve.

Enter the Circles Campaign, which creates partnerships among individual volunteers (“allies”) and families (“leaders”) pursuing economic well-being. Miller developed the approach in order to systematically support communities in addressing poverty. By partnering impoverished families with those how have middle and upper income means, the community learns from both sides of the “tracks” what will work to reduce and eventually eliminate poverty.

“We’re not throwing money at the problem,” explains Miller. “Instead, the Circle allies, consisting of two to three community members, join families in solving their specific challenges of getting out of poverty while working together to approach the complex community dynamics that hold so many others in poverty.

That’s Millers plan. What say you? If you were a world leader, how would you end poverty?