Canadian Observatory on Homelessness
The Canadian Observatory on Homelessness is the largest national research institute devoted to homelessness in Canada. The COH is the curator of the Homeless Hub.
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The Canadian Observatory on Homelessness is the largest national research institute devoted to homelessness in Canada. The COH is the curator of the Homeless Hub.
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Author(s): Alina Turner, Camilo Camacho Escamilla
Organization: University of Calgary
Publication Date: 2020
The pandemic is forcing Canadians to re-examine civil society’s place in addressing social problems. This presents a good time to probe where the line between government and civil society ought to be drawn. Civil society is understood as the cumulative actions of people, community groups, labour unions, social movements and other groups pursuing a common good outside of the state or market.
As the province of Alberta comes to grips with COVID-19’...
Author(s): James Stauch, Alina Turner, Camilo Camacho Escamilla
Organization: Institute for Community Prosperity, Mount Royal University
Publication Date: 2019
Although the consequences of a world dominated by AI are difficult to predict, the rise of AI does not have to be a terrifying prospect. As this paper will argue, AI can be made to be generative, beautiful, and not merely ethical, but rationally compassionate and just, enriching our lives beyond what we can currently imagine. But it will only do so if civil society — including citizens living at the margins, and people involved in social good pur...
Author(s): Jeannette Waegemakers Schiff, Rebecca Schiff, Alina Turner
Publication Date: 2016
Until recently, there was little acknowledgement that homelessness existed in rural areas in Canada. Limited research and scarce data are available to understand the scope and dynamics of rural homelessness in Canada. As suggested in our previous work, there is a need for rural homelessness research to examine themes from a provincial perspective. The aim of this research was to contribute to expanding the knowledge base on the nature of rural ho...
Author(s): Alina Turner, Andrew Harvey
Organization: End Homelessness St. John's (EHSJ)
Publication Date: 2016
The Plan to End Homelessness in St. John’s (2014-2019), led by End Homelessness St. John’s (EHSJ), prioritizes the development of a systems approach grounded in Housing First where diverse services are organized and delivered in a coordinated manner to advance common community priorities. The purposeful, design and management of St. John’s homeless-serving system is critical to meeting the community’s objective of ending homelessness.
To this end...
Author(s): Micheal L. Shier, John R. Graham, Eriko Fukuda, Alina Turner
Publication Date: 2015
In Canada, Indigenous people are over-represented among people experiencing homelessness and other forms of precarious housing. In an effort to better understand the varied factors that might contribute to this situation, administrative data collected about individuals utilizing housing support services in seven Alberta, Canada cities were analyzed. Logistic regression was used to analyze the relationship between a categorical dependent variable...
Author(s): Alina Turner, Jaime Rogers
Publisher: Canadian Observatory on Homelessness
Publication Date: 2016
As a community gaining considerable attention for approaching the goal of ending homelessness, Medicine Hat provides an important case study through which to examine the evolution of system planning approaches following Housing First. This case study relies on qualitative data from 18 key stakeholder interviews to elicit information about key learnings highlighting Medicine Hat’s evolution as a community working to end homelessness using a system...
Author(s): Jeannette Waegemakers Schiff, Rebecca Schiff, Alina Turner, Karine Bernard
Publication Date: 2015
Until recently, there was little acknowledgement that homelessness existed in rural areas in Canada. With a few exceptions, most research and intervention has concentrated on individuals and families living in urban areas; consequently homelessness has most often been framed as an urban phenomenon. Rural homelessness was unacknowledged, until reports from diverse rural areas began to emerge in the last decade which shed light on the unique contex...

Author(s): Alina Turner, Dagan Harding
Organization: YMCA of Regina
Publication Date: 2015
This document gives full details on the first-ever Point-in-Time Count of homelessness in Regina held on May 13, 2015.
This effort is part of a broader collaboration with the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness to develop a harmonized approach to homeless counts nationally. Regina is among the first jurisdictions to implement measures towards a more standardized methodology, leading the way in Canada. This count serves two important functions: i...
Author(s): Alina Turner
Organization: University of Calgary, School of Public Policy
Publication Date: 2015
Sobering centres provide a safe place for those under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol to sober up as a more effective alternative to police responses to public intoxication. Evidence suggests sobering centres are cost efficient and reduce emergency health services and police use; they can be important facilitators for vulnerable clients to connect to treatment and long-term housing. Such services can be effective vehicles for improving indi...

Author(s): Alina Turner
Organization: Canadian Observatory on Homelessness
Publication Date: 2015
In its renewal of the Homelessness Partnering Strategy (HPS), the Government of Canada has prioritized Housing First as a key strategy to reduce homelessness. A Housing First approach focuses on moving people who are experiencing chronic or episodic homelessness as rapidly as possible from the street or emergency shelters into permanent housing with supports to maintain housing stability.
This Guide to performance management was developed specifi...
Author(s): Alina Turner
Organization: 7 Cities on Housing & Homelessness
Publication Date: 2015
The count was part of an initiative led by the 7 Cities on Housing & Homelessness (7 Cities) in collaboration with the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness to develop a harmonized approach to homeless counts nationally.
Alberta is the first jurisdiction to implement measures towards a more standardized methodology, leading the way in Canada. Though counts across Alberta are becoming more aligned, this is the first time this effort has been un...
Author(s): Alina Turner
Organization: University of Calgary, School of Public Policy
Publication Date: 2014
The concept of “Housing First” has taken on a powerful status in the complex of government, non-profit and academic systems that study and seek to eliminate homelessness. It is a compelling concept, in that it has brought our society to the realization that housing instability itself is often the culmination of various underlying and intersecting issues, ranging from mental health and addiction issues to domestic abuse and poverty.
The “Housing F...

Author(s): Jeannette Waegemakers Schiff, Alina Turner
Organization: University of Calgary, Faculty of Social Work
Publication Date: 2014
This study examined rural homelessness dynamics in 22 communities spanning Canada's provinces and territories. The main aim of the research was to develop a preliminary understanding of the scope of rural homelessness from a comparative lens and identify whether and how Housing First as an approach and program type can be implemented in a rural context.
WEBINAR
Dr. Jeannette Waegemakers Schiff (University of Calgary) and Dr. Alina Turner (Turne...
Author(s): Jeanette Waegemakers-Schiff, Alina Turner
Organization: Alberta Centre for Child, Family and Community Research, Alberta Interagency Council on Homelessness & Ministry of Human Services, Alberta
Publication Date: 2014
This study examined rural homelessness dynamics in 20 communities across Alberta’s economic regions. The primary objective of the research was to develop a preliminary understanding of the nature and context of rural homelessness in Alberta using a comparative lens. The study was limited to rural communities with populations under 25,000 in the towns proper to align methods to a concurrent national study. Homelessness was defined according to the...
Author(s): Jeannette Waegemakers Schiff, Alina Turner
Organization: Alberta Centre for Child, Family and Community Research, Alberta Interagency Council on Homelessness & Ministry of Human Services, Alberta
Publication Date: 2014
This review of the literature on rural homelessness is part of a larger study commissioned by the Alberta Centre for Child, Family and Community Research to support the research work of the Alberta Interagency Council on Homelessness. The researchers are complementing this literature review with case studies from 18 communities across Alberta, as well as interviews with key provincial stakeholders in a forthcoming report. This review sets out a f...

Author(s): Stephen Gaetz, Carolann Barr, Anita Friesen, Bradley Harris, Bernie Pauly, Bruce Pearce, Alina Turner, Allyson Marsolais
Organization: Canadian Observatory on Homelessness (COH)
Publication Date: 2012
The Canadian Observatory on Homelessness (COH) has developed a definition and typology of homelessness intended to improve understanding, measurement and responses to homelessness in Canada by providing a common ‘language’ for addressing this complex problem. Working in collaboration with national, regional and local stakeholders, including people with lived experience, we have developed a definition that draws on our shared history of attempting...
Author(s): Alina Turner
Publication Date: 2012
Purpose
At the request of the Calgary Poverty Reduction Initiative’s Stewardship Committee, the Affordable Housing Working Group was convened to develop a strategy focused on the issues of housing and homelessness in the context of poverty reduction. The proposed strategic direction was presented to key stakeholders for further refinement and submitted to the CPRI for incorporation in the final Poverty Reduction Plan.
An “Affordable Housing Chart...