The Government of Canada will lend financial support to a project designed to develop a coordinated community response to victims of human trafficking in Red Deer, Edmonton, and surrounding communities.
Over the next four years, the federal government has pledged $500,000 to REACH Edmonton Council for Safe Communities (REACH Edmonton) – for a collaborative project called “Integrated Response for Victims of Sex Trafficking and Exploitation: Red Deer North, Alberta.”
“This funding will go a long way to raising awareness about human trafficking and helping survivors,” said REACH Edmonton executive director Jan Fox in a news release.
According to the release, REACH will work with community partners like Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams (ALERT) and the Centre to End All Sexual Exploitation (CEASE) to grow resources and provide safety as well as transitional support to victims of human trafficking.
The funding will also help develop Alberta-specific training, using experience from multiple resources for frontline workers who may come in contact with victims of human trafficking.
The program will also increase the capacity of law enforcement, service providers, and shelter workers to meet the needs of victims in a way that is trauma-informed, culturally sensitive, and respectful to the survivor’s lived experience.
“This project will increase Northern Alberta’s collective capacity to respond to human trafficking and support victims. Through projects like this one, we are working together to build a safer and more resilient Canada, where all people are protected from human trafficking and its harms,” said Bill Blair, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness.