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Join this network
The York Homelessness Research Network is an initiative of York University bringing together scholars, students and community members who share an interest in research related to homelessness, housing and poverty.
One of the challenges in understanding homelessness and responding to it is that it is often framed as an urban, inner-city issue. Most Canadians who live in cities do not live in downtown cores like Toronto. They live in suburban areas, or in municipalities in regions like York, Peel, Durham and Halton. These are the fastest growing regions in Canada, and are also destinations for many new Canadians.
While perhaps not as visible to the naked eye as is the case in downtown Toronto, homelessness is an important issue in such areas. The factors that produce and sustain homelessness are not limited to the inner city. People who become homeless come from every kind of neighbourhood, from every population group.
The Working Group was conceived based on the idea and value of exploring and exchanging ideas and research related to homelessness, housing and poverty in such regions. Our interests include providing opportunities among the diversity of groups and researchers involved in homelessness through collaboration and knowledge exchange with various stakeholders. This entails exploring, discussing and exchanging ideas about homelessness through regular "seminar series" meetings, which consist of presentations by Working Group members on their work relating to homelessness issies.
We are an excited and ambitious group of individuals who are constantly seeking new ideas and new ways of addressing issues surrounding homelessness, housing and poverty. We want to explore ways that research can more effectively engage the general public, policy makers and other decision-makers in the homelessness sector. This, however, requires a more robust strategy of engaging the public with research results. To that end, we support arts-based community engagement strategies around homelessness, such as film, theatre and music, so that Canadians in all walks of life can engage in public discussions about homelessness, its causes and potential solutions, with the best information at their disposal. Good research on homelessness can lead to better solutions to a problem that is of concern to all Canadians in every community.
We can all make a difference! To support this idea, we want to find ways to extend the reach of the group (to people like YOU), and ensure that people from York region and beyond have access to the meetings and events. Everyone who is interested in welcome!
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