Leading researchers question the relevance of popular thinking on how to fight poverty

A seminar hosted by the Brotherhood of St Laurence and RMIT University in Melbourne will question the relevance of the focus on ‘financial wellbeing’ among policy makers and service providers to the lives of those most affected by economic, technological and social change.

Dr Dina Bowman from the Brotherhood’s Research and Policy Centre says many people experiencing poverty are excellent financial managers. “But they simply don’t have enough money to make ends meet. It’s important not to lose sight of that,” she says.

“Sometimes we just focus on financial literacy and money management. That can be helpful, but our research shows we also need to address the other challenges confronting people living in poverty: insecure work, unaffordable housing, and rising health and energy costs,” she says.

Professor Roslyn Russell from RMIT University also questions the focus on financial wellbeing. “Is financial wellbeing another category or label that won’t be inclusive of those who don’t meet the criteria? Will they be labelled as financially ill if they aren’t eligible to have financial wellbeing?” she asks.

The seminar titled ‘All being well? Financial wellbeing, inclusion and risk’ will be held on Monday 5 December, 1.45 pm to 4.00pm at RMIT Building 80, 445 Swanston St, Melbourne.

Speakers:

• Dr Dina Bowman, Brotherhood of St Laurence Research and Policy Centre Principal Research Fellow, Work and Economic Security and Honorary Senior Research Fellow, University of Melbourne
• Professor Roslyn Russell, School of Economics, Finance and Marketing, RMIT University. Roslyn's research includes evaluations of financial literacy programs and also has a focus on gender and financial issues
• Professor Elaine Kempson, Professor of Personal Finance and Social Policy Research at the University of Bristol, an internationally acknowledged expert on personal financial services, currently working with the European Commission and the national consumer research centre in Norway
• Professor Jerry Buckland, Professor of International Development Studies at Menno Simons College in Winnipeg, Canada, expert on financial inclusion, microfinance, and financial literacy
• Dr Jack Noone, Research Fellow at the Centre for Social Impact- a collaboration of three universities: UNSW Australia, Swinburne University of Technology and The University of Western Australia
• Host Peter Mares ABC broadcaster and author.

Media Enquiries, please contact: Brotherhood of St Laurence Communications Manager, Sharon Lee, 0499 300 982 , sharon.lee@bsl.org.au or
RMIT Senior Manager Communications, David Glanz, 0438 547 723 , david.glanz@rmit.edu.au