Economic abuse is a form of intimate partner violence (IPV) that can have lasting impacts on survivors’ financial security, employment, housing, and ability to leave an abusive relationship. Yet, there is limited Canadian research on its prevalence and impacts, and significant gaps in how systems and services recognize and respond to economic abuse. The Economic Abuse in Canada Research Project is a multi-year research partnership led by the University of Windsor and community and academic partners, including Western University, McGill University, Camino Wellbeing + Mental Health, Canadian Center for Women’s Empowerment, The Rural Development Network, WomanACT, and Atira BC, working to build Canadian evidence on economic abuse and strengthen responses to survivors. The project examines how economic abuse affects women across Canada and how social, legal, financial, and criminal justice systems currently respond.

The research focuses on three key areas: understanding the prevalence, risk factors, and impacts of economic abuse in Canada; examining how service providers and systems identify and respond to economic abuse; and strengthening support for survivors and service providers. Through national research, engagement with frontline service providers, and the development of practical training and financial empowerment resources, the project aims to translate research into meaningful improvements in policy and practice. Ultimately, the project seeks to advance responses that recognize economic security as an essential part of survivor safety, recovery, and long-term independence.

This project has been funded through SSHRC Gender-Based Violence Research Initiative

The EASE Design Challenge report synthesizes key learnings, insights, and limitations from an initiative designed to engage students and professionals in developing innovative responses to technology-facilitated financial abuse. It highlights the persistent barriers survivors face when seeking support from financial institutions, underscoring critical gaps in current systems. In response, the Design Challenge aimed to catalyze survivor-centred, coordinated solutions that can identify and interrupt abuse, enable secure and autonomous account access, and provide clear, trauma-informed pathways for addressing coerced or fraudulent debt.

Learn more about the EASE – Economic Abuse Support & Empowerment Project

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Citation:

WomanACT. (2026). EASE Design Challenge Report. https://womanact.ca/publications/ease-design-challenge-report/

Survivors use a range of strategies and supports to navigate and resist the impacts of financial abuse, working to regain safety, control, and financial independence.

These infographics are based on a WomanACT survey (103) and interviews (11) with women and gender-diverse people in Ontario with lived experience of intimate partner violence. They highlight the impacts and lived realities of financial abuse, as well as the barriers survivors face when seeking support. The insights also surface practical strategies and advice shared by participants for navigating and responding to financial abuse.

Learn more about the EASE – Economic Abuse Support & Empowerment Project

Disclaimer: If you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety, please call 911 or your local emergency services immediately. Your safety is the top priority.

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Citation

WomanACT. (2026). Infographic: Strategies and Advice from Survivors. https://womanact.ca/publications/infographic-strategies-and-advice-from-survivors/

Financial abuse is often unseen. However, survivors say that its impact on their lives can be extreme.

These infographics are based on a WomanACT survey (103) and interviews (11) with women and gender-diverse people in Ontario with lived experience of intimate partner violence. They highlight the impacts and lived realities of financial abuse, as well as the barriers survivors face when seeking support. The insights also surface practical strategies and advice shared by participants for navigating and responding to financial abuse.

Learn more about the EASE – Economic Abuse Support & Empowerment Project

Disclaimer: If you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety, please call 911 or your local emergency services immediately. Your safety is the top priority.

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Citation:

WomanACT. (2026). Infographic: The Impact of Financial Abuse. https://womanact.ca/publications/the-impact-of-financial-abuse/

Survivors describe financial abuse as ongoing control over their finances, where access to money, decision-making, and independence are restricted.

These infographics are based on a WomanACT survey (103) and interviews (11) with women and gender-diverse people in Ontario with lived experience of intimate partner violence. They highlight the impacts and lived realities of financial abuse, as well as the barriers survivors face when seeking support. The insights also surface practical strategies and advice shared by participants for navigating and responding to financial abuse.

Learn more about the EASE – Economic Abuse Support & Empowerment Project

Disclaimer: If you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety, please call 911 or your local emergency services immediately. Your safety is the top priority.

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Citation:

WomanACT. (2026). Infographic: The Experience of Financial Abuse. https://womanact.ca/publications/the-experience-of-financial-abuse/

Financial systems are not neutral, they are embedded in broader social and gendered contexts and are shaped by them.

Being gender-inclusive in financial tech (fintech) design inherently requires a trauma-informed lens. Fintech tools are often designed from a gender-neutral perspective, which assumes all users have similar needs, risks, and relationships to money. This approach overlooks how financial control and coercion are gendered.

This factsheet outlines the principles of the trauma-informed approach, their definitions and examples of their application to financial technologies.

Citation:

WomanACT. (2024). Trauma-informed principles in banking technology design. https://womanact.ca/publications/trauma-informed-principles-in-banking-technology-design/

This brief present three key principles to guide the development of effective responses to technology-facilitated financial abuse in the context of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). Identified through literature from Canada, the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom and grounded in consultations with survivors.

Service providers are incorporating these principles when designing solutions and practices to better support survivors, reduce harm, and prevent the misuse of financial technology. The brief outlines case studies of emerging, innovative practices that reflect these principles, aiming to enhance survivor safety, promote trauma-informed interventions, and raise awareness of this growing form of abuse.

The term innovative practices is used intentionally rather than “promising” or “best practices,” as these initiatives are still relatively new and require further evaluation to fully understand their effectiveness and long-term impact.

WomanACT. (2025). Innovative Practices for Identifying and Responding to Tech-Facilitated Financial Abuse. https://womanact.ca/publications/innovative-practices-for-identifying-and-responding-to-tech-facilitated-financial-abuse/

This brief offers a summary of some of the key challenges East Asian women face in Canada, including racism, gendered violence, and economic exclusion. These challenges were specifically targeted at people associated with the diverse cultures of China, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, which are often called East Asia.

While this brief focuses on ongoing barriers, it also honours the powerful ways East Asian women have resisted, redefined, and reclaimed their place in Canadian society. 

We recognize that East Asian women in Canada are leaders, entrepreneurs, artists, and caregivers. Many are business owners and community advocates, creating support networks and spaces of care for others. They carry forward rich cultural traditions and strong family and community values, despite a long history of discrimination aimed at erasing or devaluing these contributions. 

Citation:

WomanACT. (2025). East Asian Women in Canada. https://womanact.ca/publications/east-asian-women-in-canada/

This Asian Heritage Month, we release our latest issue brief with heavy hearts, following the devastating tragedy that occurred on April 27, 2025, during the Lapu Lapu Festival Day in Vancouver, BC. What should have been a joyful celebration of Filipino heritage and resistance was tainted by a horrific attack that took the lives of 11 people and injured many more. We extend our deepest condolences to the victims, their families, and the entire Southeast Asian community affected that are grieving.

In the wake of this grief, we remain committed to honouring the lives, stories, and contributions of Southeast Asian women in Canada. Southeast Asia is a vast and diverse region encompassing Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. This brief is just a starting point in exploring the complex realities faced by women from these communities shaped by histories of colonization, displacement, and resilience.

Through this work, we uplift the voices and experiences of Southeast Asian women as leaders, artists, caregivers, and advocates, and we honour their enduring strength. In this issue, you’ll find Grace’s powerful story of migration and resistance, alongside many others who continue to shape and sustain vibrant communities in Canada.

Citation:

WomanACT. (2025). Southeast Asian Women in Canada: Migration, Structural Racism, and Community. https://womanact.ca/publications/southeast-asian-women-in-canada-migration-structural-racism-and-community/