When Sr. Nancy Brown began serving as pastoral counsellor at Covenant House Vancouver in 1998, her eyes were opened to the sex-trafficking crisis happening right under the nose of everyday Canadians.

Human trafficking incidents reported by Canadian police declined from 546 in 2019 to 515 in 2020, according to Statistics Canada, but advocates for victims are under no illusion that the numbers are dwindling.

The Government of Alberta is upping its efforts to combat human trafficking and support survivors by adopting 18 of the 19 calls to action outlined in a final report from the Alberta Human Trafficking Task Force.

It has been nearly a decade since Sr. Nancy Brown was named a 2012 Order of British Columbia recipient in recognition of her dogged advocacy on behalf of youth and young people at risk of human trafficking and sexual exploitation.

VANCOUVER -- The Archdiocese of Vancouver is urging a parliamentary committee to support the strengthening of legislation that bans most activities associated with prostitution, including the buying of sex, pimping and the keeping of a bawdy house.

The Calgary Catholic School District is partnering with country music star Paul Brandt’s non-profit #NotInMyCity to raise awareness and inspire action to end sexual exploitation and trafficking.

This past week, I had the pleasure of interviewing Leanne Timko. She is the director of learning services for the Calgary Catholic School District (CCSD) and an instrumental builder of the school board’s new human trafficking awareness education program. 

In a new pastoral letter on human trafficking and sexual exploitation, Canada’s bishops are calling for the continued criminalization of prostitution while also decrying treating sex as work.

The Joy Smith Foundation’s new National Human Trafficking Education Centre (NHTEC) is aiming to increase awareness of the scourge while providing greater support for survivors and their families.

When appraising the landscape through a global lens, a case can be made that 2021 has been a banner year in the fight against the evil, entrenched practice of human trafficking.

OTTAWA -- Ontario's government used the newly declared National Human Trafficking Awareness Day Feb. 22 to unveil major new funding and legislation as part of the province’s anti-human trafficking strategy, as governments in Canada continue to take action against what Pope Francis has called “a crime against humanity.”

VATICAN CITY -- As governments and world leaders struggle to contain the coronavirus pandemic, they must also work harder to protect victims of human trafficking, said the Vatican-based international network of Catholic charities.

VATICAN CITY -- Addressing the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, a Vatican representative said the protection of rights and human dignity is not exclusive to the wealthy but also to the most vulnerable, especially victims of human trafficking.

Ontario’s new five-year, $307-million strategy to combat human trafficking “looks really great on paper,” said Catholic Women’s League Ontario president Colleen Perry.

What’s a teenage girl worth? About $280,000 per year in income for sex traffickers, according to Covenant House research.