This Week in Homelessness (TWIH) April 23-29

Tiffany Connolly
Apr 28, 2017
4 min read

Homelessness in Bratislava, Slovakia

According to the 2016 Census of People Experiencing Homelessness in Bratislava, there are more than 2,000 people experiencing homelessness in the capital city of the country of Slovakia. Specifically, homelessness in the city is occurring the most in the Ružinov borough, while the remaining percent of this population are people of the Nové Mesto and Vrakuňa boroughs. This census presented a number of demographics of the population as well, including gender ratios, age groups, what categories of homelessness people are experiencing and how long they've been experiencing homelessness. It was reported that about 21 percent of this population had been experiencing street homelessness, or living without any accommodation - the category of homelessness that IGH aims to solve. People experiencing street homelessness sleep in the streets and/or in open or public spaces, inside forms of transportation or in a regular spot(s) with some form of makeshift cover. The collection of data on those experiencing homelessness is an essential component to the development of effective policies and measures to bring an end to the issue.

Read the full article here. (This article's original text is in Slovak)

Honolulu Welcomes New Housing Projects for People Experiencing Homelessness

Families experiencing homelessness in Honolulu, Hawaii will soon be placed into permanent housing. In November of 2015, the city bought the former site of two schools - Island Paradise School and Loveland Academy - and converted the adjacent buildings into living facilities for people experiencing homelessness. The facilities now hold apartment units that range in size - from studio to three-bedrooms. Honolulu has recently been putting forth much effort to increase housing opportunities for individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Recently, the city enabled individuals and families experiencing homelessness to occupy a 24-unit apartment complex. The city is currently working in collaboration with the state to create additional housing in Chinatown for people experiencing chronic homelessness, apart of the city’s Winston Hale and Pauahi Hale housing projects. In addition, all of Honolulu's most recent supportive permanent housing projects is that they all follow the housing first approach.

Read the full article here.

India: Urban Homelessness

The government of India often refers to individuals and families experiencing street homelessness - living without any accommodation - as "homeless households".

People experiencing homelessness in India. Source: Praveen Khanna

According to data collected from censuses over a 10-year span - from 2001 to 2011 - revealed that rates of homelessness in urban areas of India saw an increase of nearly 37 percent while homelessness in rural areas decreased by nearly 26 percent. Mohammed Tarique, coordinator of a Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) Field Action Project on Homelessness and Destitution, says that the disparities in urban and rural areas of India is a direct result of social assistance schemes that favor rural areas and, thus, are not as readily available to those experiencing homelessness in urban areas. In addition, since solicitation of alms in public spaces is illegal under the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act of 1959 and many people experiencing homelessness are often accused of engaging in such acts, homelessness is frequently criminalized in India. However, the act of criminalizing homelessness does not improve the issue. How can measures on local and national levels be altered to improve the issue?

Read the full article here.

Topeka, Kansas Advocates Hope to Keep Momentum in Their Fight Against Homelessness

Whenever Chris Lynch finds an abandoned sign that belonged to someone experiencing homelessness, he keeps it and sometimes uses them as educational tools. As the outreach director at the Topeka Salvation Army, Lynch interacts with people experiencing homelessness on a weekly basis. Data collected from the city's annual point-in-time count showed that the number of people experiencing homelessness, across multiple categories, decreased since last year. Specifically, the number of people living without accommodation, or experiencing street homelessness, decreased from 47 people to 34. According to the annual count, the demographics of those surveyed changed only slightly over the year-long span. Development director, Shelley Robertson, says that the city lacks affordable housing which contributes to the issue of homelessness.

Read the full article here.

Challenges of Homelessness in Taipei, Taiwan

Human rights advocates and organizations of Taipei, Tawian, such as Homeless of Taiwan and Taiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR), are working on negotiations with the local government to develop a task force group to address the issue of homelessness.

In addition to support from city legislation, advocates hope for the collaboration and participation of Non-Governmental Organization (NGOs), as well as representatives of the homelessness population, in efforts to combat the issue. In a recent interview, Deputy Secretary General of TAHR, Shih Yi-hsiang, shared facts pulled from a recent count of the people experiencing homelessness in the city, in an attempt to drive out misinformation and stigmas that surround people experiencing homelessness. People experiencing homelessness in Taipei express the challenges that they face, not only while living on the streets but, also in their past attempts to maintain stable employment and housing. Although the experience of homelessness may differ from region to region, challenges like these are common globally. How can legislation and service providers ensure that people exit homelessness and transition into permanent housing effectively?

Read the full article here.

Johannesburg Organisation of Services to the Homeless

The Johannesburg Organisation of Services to the Homeless (JOSH) is one of a number of non-governmental organizations working with the city of Johannesburg, South Africa to find an effective solution to solve homelessness. The founder and CEO of the NGO, Mary Gillet-de Klerk, says that one of the things the organization wants to do as part of their efforts to combat homelessness is go out and extend their services to people living on the streets in Johannesburg. The organization is offering social and skill development programs to the people of Johannesburg who are experiencing homelessness – measures intended to help them exit homelessness and obtain and maintain employment. In addition, with the help of the members of their team who are social workers, JOSH provides counseling to those experiencing homelessness. The organization is expected to continue their efforts with the city to fight homelessness. “This will allow us to deal with this huge social problem in our midst. We still deal with people who continue to live on the streets”, says Gillet-de Klerk.

Read the full article here.

If there is news you would like to include in a future update, contact us here: http://www.ighomelessness.org/contact