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Keeping in Touch
The Housing and Homelessness Edition
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In this issue...
- 7 Cities Conference Registration now open
- Seeking success stories on successful affordable housing initiatives
- Research-to-Practice Spotlight: Risk and protective factors of precarious housing among Indigenous people living in urban centres in Alberta, Canada
- Invitation to attend a Housing and Homelessness Consultation focusing on Indigenous women who have experienced domestic violence
- Ask Me Anything!
- Registration now open for national conference on housing and homelessness
- Watch recorded sessions from the Edmonton Homelessness Research Symposium
- Resources of interest
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Registration now open for
7 Cities Conference on Housing First and Homelessness
The 7 Cities Conference on Housing First and Homelessness will take place in Calgary from May 5-6, 2016.
Early bird tickets are $240
Please note that the Call For Speakers form will close April 5, 2016.
The Conference is already 70% sold out, and the excitement is just continuing to build!
The 7 cities Conference on Housing First and Homelessness is an opportunity for the homeless-serving sector to come together to learn, share, create dialogue and collaboratively focus our efforts on ending homelessness in our local communities and the province of Alberta.
Keynote Speakers include:
Health and Productivity Expert, Michelle galvanizes people to blaze their own path and live a bigger life. An in-demand speaker, author, health expert and life coach, she empowers clients to break down the physical and emotional barriers that get in the way of growth - in business and in life.
A natural storyteller, Michelle transports delighted audiences on a journey of truth and laughter that will empower them to optimize energy and health, find better work-life balance, and gain momentum toward the personal legacy they long to create.
Rounded by 3 Chairs - A play by Alexis McDonald
A short play and talkback session that uses theatre as a means to connect individuals through the power of the arts to shift perceptions and provide insight into our human condition and the need for belonging, no matter where we live. Inspiring. Thought-provoking. Change-making.
Alexis, who wrote the piece as a twenty-year old volunteer with the arts program at the Calgary Drop-In, will lead a talkback session with the actors and audience on the experience of belonging and the role a shelter plays in creating it.
Dr. Patrick Finn is an Associate Professor in the School of Creative and Performing Arts at the University of Calgary. His primary interest is in performance with an emphasis on technology, where technology can be anything from alphabets and physical movement to computer programming. He has an active artistic and research publication profile and is the founding artistic director of the Theatre Lab Performance Institute. At one time or another he has been a professional writer, programmer, designer, musician and academic.
(also known as the CEO from Skid Row)
An author and professional speaker, Joe Roberts motivates and inspires audiences worldwide with his message about turning setbacks into an opportunity.
As a former homeless young person, Joe has transformed his difficult life to become a successful businessman. He has personally experienced the power of possibility thinking in the face of some of life's biggest obstacles, and he is dedicated to sharing this possibility mindset with others who are going through their own challenges.
Jerilynn is a Vancouver-based female hip hop/spoken word artist, beat-boxer, cultural dancer and youth educator. "using [her] words to go upwards/not backwards." These are lyrics that describe what JB tries to convey in her music. JB has performed at over 500 hip hop shows, anywhere from auditoriums to Annual General Meetings for community organizations. She is spreading the words of empowerment & the perspective of urban indigenous women in Canada.
To learn more about the Conference, please click here.
This is an opportunity for the homeless-serving sector to come together to learn, share, create dialogue and collaboratively focus our efforts on ending homelessness in our local communities and the province of Alberta.
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Seeking success stories about affordable housing initiatives
Examples may include changes in land-use or development policies, financial incentives and partnerships with the private or not-for-profit sectors. Other examples may include strategic actions used to overcome challenges of NIMBYism through the approval process.
Example stories may be profiled on the AUMA website to educate other Alberta municipalities about the strategies a community can implement to improve access to housing for all residents. If you have a story to share, please contact Darren Reedy at [email protected] with the AUMA.
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Research-to-Practice Spotlight
Risk and protective factors of precarious housing among Indigenous people living in urban centres in Alberta
Micheal L. Shier
, John R. Graham
,
Eriko Fukuda
, Alina Turner
Background
Research has found that precarious housing (e.g., homelessness, couch-surfing, or doubling-up with other families), as well as precarious employment (e.g., temporary or part-time) are becoming increasingly common in Canada (Wellesley Institute, 2010; Vosko, 2006). These components of precarious living can have negative effects on society such as increased rates of crime and addiction, as well as psycho-social effects on individuals and families, including decreased self-esteem and self-worth (Bourgois, 2003; Ehrenreich, 2001; Iverson & Armstrong, 2006; Smith, 2005). For these reasons, it is important to address precarious living through targeted public policy and programs.
This study focused on the precarious housing of Indigenous people living in Alberta. Precarious housing can describe several different housing situations such as experiencing homelessness and living in emergency shelters, staying with family or friends because a person cannot afford their own housing, or living in sub-standard housing facilities. Access to adequate housing has social and psychological implications, as well as individual and public health consequences, having been identified as a social determinant of health (Public Health Agency of Canada, 2004; Raphael, 2004).
In Canada, Indigenous people are over-represented among those experiencing homelessness and other forms of precarious housing. Previously identified risk factors for precarious housing include lower rates of employment and lower incomes than non-Indigenous populations, as well as the inability to afford housing, and instability caused by domestic migration (Fertig & Reingold, 2008; Fitzpatrick, 2005).
Greater efforts of public policy and programming need to be made to address the over-representation of Indigenous people in precarious housing situations. To provide insight into the nature of protective and risk factors for precarious housing among Indigenous people, the following research question was asked: To what extent do demographic and socio-economic risk factors, along with personal health problems, predict housing situations for Indigenous people who are at risk of homelessness in Alberta?
Based on previous literature, the following hypotheses were made:
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A higher employment status (such as working full-time) will result in a lower likelihood of living in a precarious housing situation.
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Having a higher income will result in a lower likelihood of living in a precarious housing situation.
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Being married or living common law (as opposed to being single) will result in a lower likelihood of living in a precarious housing situation.
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Having children will result in a greater risk for living in a precarious housing situation.
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Lower levels of education will be associated with a greater likelihood of living in a precarious housing situation.
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Having a mental illness, addiction, or physical illness will result in a greater likelihood of living in a precarious housing situation.
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Housing and Homelessness Consultation: Challenges faced by Indigenous Women who have experienced domestic violence
Edmonton - May 3, 2016 from 9 am to 1:30 pm
Radisson Hotel Edmonton South, 4440 Gateway Boulevard, Edmonton
Calgary - May 4, 2016 from 11 am to 4 pm
Radisson Hotel and Conference Centre, 6620-36 Street, NE, Calgary
Please note, due to the significance of this issue and limited space,
preference will be given to organizations that serve Indigenous women.
The Alberta Centre for Child, Family and Community Research invites you to share your knowledge and experience on housing and homelessness issues affecting Indigenous women who have experienced domestic violence. In follow up to a consultation with stakeholders in March 2015, the Centre has conducted a review of documents from academic, government and community sources for existing policy recommendations on this issue.
At this consultation, we plan to share this review and get your input. We hope that by providing a forum for a diversity of voices, this dialogue will generate insight on next steps to build provincial public policy options to better support housing outcomes for Indigenous women experiencing domestic violence in Alberta.
Limited travel and accommodation bursaries are available for attendees from not-for-profit organizations. Bursary amounts offered will be dependent on number of requests received.
History of Initiative
The Centre has been working in partnership with the Inter-agency Council on Homelessness (IAC) to implement the
Housing and Homelessness Research Strategy for Alberta
. The IAC and the Government of Alberta identified housing and homelessness issues for
Indigenous
women fleeing domestic violence as a top priority for research.
An initial consultation was held in March 2015. Researchers and service providers requested The Centre undertake a "scoping review" -- a synthesis of policy recommendations gathered from
academic
,
government, and community-based
research focusing on Indigenous women experiencing domestic violence and housing challenges from Canada and internationally.
Questions/Comments
If you have questions or comments please contact Roxanne Felix-Mah at 780-408-8727 or e-mail her at
[email protected]
.
If someone you know should be invited to these consultations,
please e-mail their name and contact information to
[email protected].
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Ask Me Anything!
Ask Me Anything (AMA) sessions provide an opportunity for members of the Community Workspace on Homelessness to ask experts questions about homelessness. Each AMA features a different topic.
The second AMA took place on March 22 and focused on youth homelessness with speakers Stephen Gaetz from the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness and Sheldon Pollett, Executive Director of Choices for Youth.
It is estimated that homeless youth make up about 20% of the population that uses emergency shelters in Canada. As a result of the increased visibility of youth homelessness in recent years, many responses to the problem have emerged. In spite of our best efforts and some excellent programs, youth homelessness continues to persist.
Examples of topics covered in the session:
The causes of youth homelessness
Prevention and early intervention
Access to accommodation and supports
Systems responses to youth homelessness
Mental health supports and harm reduction
LGBTQ2S youth homelessness
You will need to sign in or join the Homeless Hub to access the transcript of the Housing First AMA.
Click here to access.
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Registration now open for national conference on housing and homelessness
The National Conference on Ending Homelessness arms policy makers, funders, researchers, advocates, community leaders and front line workers with the inspiration, information, tools and training they need to end homelessness.
The conference will include 60 concurrent sessions delivered over two and a half days. The deadline for proposal submissions is April 22nd, 2016.
The conference will be held at the London Convention Centre in London, Ontario November 2 to 4, 2016.
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Watch recorded presentations from the Edmon
t
on Homelessness Research Symposium: Mobilizing Data and Research for Action on Homelessness
The Edmonton Homelessness Research Symposium took place in February. The event provided evidence-based practice to a broad base of practitioners, service providers, community stakeholders, policy-makers, and researchers.
Agencies presented on the data they collect and discussed how these datasets can be accessed to conduct research that helps to end homelessness.
This session was of use to:
- Researchers looking for new and extensive data sets
- Researchers interested in homelessness issues
- Civil servants whose departments serve homeless populations, especially those looking to collaborate with other departments and agencies
- Homeless-serving agencies looking to share or combine data
This moderated panel discussion explored approaches to ensure community-engaged research drives system changes to ending homelessness. Panelists included researchers, frontline workers, and individuals with lived or living experience of homelessness.
This session was of use to:
- Frontline workers from community agencies who serve individuals experiencing or at-risk of homelessness
- Researchers interested in homelessness issues
- Policy and decision makers
This event was hosted by Homeward Trust and sponsored by
The Alberta Centre for Child Family and Community Research.
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Did you know that Calgary Homelessness Foundation has a blog?
Access it here.
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