ACT Alberta
In response to a growing concern about human trafficking in their community, Changing Together, a centre for immigrant women, conducted an environmental scan entitled “Trafficking of Women and Girls to Canada.”
Healthcare providers, social service agencies, law enforcement bodies, immigration and settlement agencies, as well as faith-based groups were consulted. Nearly half of respondents shared that they knew of human trafficking cases in the community.
Respondents were asking for training and education on how to identify victims of trafficking, what victims’ most pressing needs are, and the state of existing legislation on human trafficking in Canada. The results were clear: there was an urgent need for more training and awareness on the issue. That’s how a fledgling organization, the Alberta Coalition Against Human Trafficking (ACAHT), was formed.
The Action Coalition on Human Trafficking (ACT) Alberta was created out of ACAHT in 2010. Since this time, ACT Alberta has been critical in advocating for the rights of victims of human trafficking and providing front-line, direct services to victims and survivors.
With funding from Status of Women Canada and the Canadian Women’s Foundation, ACT Alberta developed a Community Action Plan to prevent and reduce sex trafficking of women and girls in Edmonton. The result was the report "Engaging Community: Addressing Sex Trafficking in Edmonton."
Read the Report
Under the supervision of Dr. Joanna Harrington, ACT Alberta partnered with the University of Alberta’s Law Department to undertake new research projects. The results were three critical white papers that highlighted the gaps in anti-trafficking service provisions across Canada.
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ACT received funding from Public Safety Canada and a donation from Tammy Johnson, a prominent advocate to end human trafficking, to undertake research into the intricacies of labour trafficking in Edmonton. The result was the report “Labour Trafficking in Edmonton: Holding Tight to a Double-Edged Sword.”
With the help of the City of Calgary’s Crime Prevention Investment Fund, ACT Alberta completed the Calgary Community Action Plan on Human Trafficking. The project was designed to improve the response to human trafficking across Calgary and surrounding regions.
Through the changing waves of the COVID-19 pandemic, every industry around the world felt the strain, especially those already experiencing hardship. ACT Alberta worked, and continues to work tirelessly to address the changes in the human trafficking landscape in Alberta, providing direct support to those who need it most.
