Welcome to a new decade! 2020 is also the year we celebrate our 20th anniversary. It took 20 years to turn an idea into the Network that you know today. For this, we owe a great deal to a group of dedicated, visionary people. These thought-leaders had the expertise and the wisdom to see what no one else could see: that elder abuse was a much larger issue than most knew, that Canada was not ready for the upcoming demographic trends, and that addressing this growing issue required an informed, coordinated, and cross-sectoral approach and increased awareness and understanding of elder abuse. And then they did something about it. From the first informal meetings to talk about building a pan Canadian Network, to the launch of our innovative knowledge-sharing Hub in 2015, to today - it has been a long road.
We are proud of what we accomplished: in 2019, 14,000 visitors came to our site and triggered more than 73,000 downloads of various tools and resources. CNPEA was accredited to join the UN’s Open-Ended Working Group on Ageing, we spoke in front of the House of Commons about obstacles to the well-being for older women, and we received a record number of media requests to speak about elder abuse. We are on the right track, and our job is far from done.
So in 2020 we will celebrate with the people who helped us get here and who help us carry on today. Every month, we will publish a conversation between past and/or current supporters.They will reflect on what has been accomplished, what’s left to do, and how to get there together, from coast to coast to coast.
In 2020 we will engage and educate. Now more than ever, we look forward to connecting with you and sharing your work widely through CNPEA's channels. Along with a growing number of stakeholders (It’s Not Right, Neighbours Friends and Family, Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario etc), we also pledge to launch a collective effort to engage and mobilize all levels of government. We will ask them to commit to an elder abuse strategy and action plan, and to provide steady support for elder abuse networks across the country. We also look forward to assisting the new Minister for Seniors with her mandate.
In 2020, we will reflect and plan. There is still a lot to do. We will stay true to the vision of our founding members: always look ahead, explore emerging issues, and champion practices, research and policies that are ahead of the curve. We have a 2020 vision (sorry, too easy to resist!) and we hope you will be a part of it, as always. For our 20th anniversary, we are also launching our 20-20 campaign. We invite you to show your support for our team (all volunteers, save for one part time ED!), and to help keep our work going. $20 does not sound like a lot, but $20 x all of you can make a huge difference for us! You can donate here.
We look forward to working and celebrating with you this year.
Kathy Majowski Benedicte Schoepflin
Board Chair Executive Director
