Local organizations leading the crusade to eliminate poverty are calling on the federal government to come up with national anti-poverty and housing strategies.

Representatives from the groups, ranging from the Food Bank Society of Whitehorse to the Council of Yukon First Nations (CYFN), are addressing a parliamentary hearing on poverty at the High Country Inn today.

"We all share the cost of the problem,” Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition representative Laura MacFeeters told the committee today.

Housing was among the issues that dominated this morning's discussions as MacFeeters, Whitehorse Food Bank executive director Julie Menard and Amy Marty of the Yukon Council on DisABILITY were the first to speak.

They addressed NDP MP Tony Martin, who brought forward the motion which led to the hearings and the study that will come from it next February or March; Liberal MP Michael Savage and Conservative MP Dona Cadman.

All three anti-poverty advocates noted that in many cases in the territory, residents are forced to choose between paying the rent and buying food.

As Menard pointed out, the food bank opened on April 30 after years of discussion.

"It was obvious we needed that kind of service,” she said.

Months after opening, the food bank is serving 750 clients, representing 1,470 people.

In a given month, that means doling out about 300 hampers with each client able to get one hamper, or three days' worth of food, each month.

"We are not just serving Whitehorse,” Menard said, pointing out clients are driving in from communities as far away as Mayo to get a hamper of food.

Many come to the food bank because of the high cost of housing, she said. The start of the school year also proved to be a difficult time for many trying to feed their children while also buying school supplies, she added.

Menard then went on to recommend an anti-poverty strategy across the country that would provide clear objectives along with a housing strategy that could be part of the anti-poverty strategy.

MacFeeters, meanwhile, was quick to recommend the MPs give some thought to interagency collaboration along with user input into programs.

As she pointed out, it was that input which led to the establishment of the Kids Recreation Fund in the territory.

The federal government also needs to re-invest in housing, she said, pointing to the need for a strategy on that to address poverty.

Work also needs to be done on a national disability pension for those unable to work, while at the same time providing incentives for those who can, but need to get out of the cycle, the MPs were told.

The Yukon Council on DisABILITY is seeing a similar trend for its clients with a lack of affordable housing, Marty said.

Much of the housing available is substandard and can cost anywhere from $750 to $1,100 each month for a one-bedroom apartment, she said.

Many of those the council deals with are in need of support on a number of fronts.

The needs range from supportive housing to transitioning through the school system since there are many students who complete 12 years of schooling but aren't able to go on to post-secondary schooling – something they may have been able to do with extra supports. Often, those people end up in lower-paying jobs.

Others find themselves facing many employers who aren't willing to accommodate disabilities.

As the morning continued, the committee also heard from Patricia Bacon, representing the local outreach van; CFYN executive director Ed Schultz; Michael Dougherty, the Sacred Heart Cathedral social justice committee chair; Don Routledge, the Yukon Housing Corp. corporate relations director; and Charlotte Hrenchuk, the Yukon Status of Women Council co-ordinator .

Again, much of the focus was on the role housing plays in poverty, with witnesses noting that homelessness is very different in the North than it is in the South.

Here, it was suggested, those without a home find themselves couch surfing, trading sex for a place, staying at the Salvation Army's small emergency shelter or getting drunk so they can be admitted to rehab, where they will have a bed.

Recalling the history of land claims negotiations in the territory, Schultz also noted that while Yukon first nations have seen things greatly improve, there is still a long way to go.

There's no reason, he said, that communities should not have safe, clean drinking water, something that is still an issue. He called on the government to implement a national water policy.

Routledge first praised and cited examples of the initiatives that have seen partnerships between the territory and Ottawa.

He then noted the territory continues to deal with operational costs as well as the additional costs of building projects. He called for a sustainable long-term funding arrangement with Ottawa.

The hearings continued this afternoon. The committee will head off to Yellowknife for further hearings there tomorrow.