The Human Cost of Homelessness: Understanding the Causes, Impacts, and Creative Solutions

Let's Talk Housing - Everyone Needs A Home - Discussion, Innovation, Solutions.

Detailed conversations and discussions about the challenges, concerns and real life pain caused by the lack of financially accessible, truly affordable housing in Canada. How the long term lack of supply has artificially increased the cost of housing to the point where many people simply can no longer afford basic housing. Steven is an expert in the ins and outs of building housing and in particular how to build housing fast.

The episode features excerpts from a PACE talk on why eliminating homelessness should matter to everyone. The talk includes presentations from Jacqueline Pierce and Dr. Daniel Pepe.

Jacqueline Pierce provides context on the scale and causes of homelessness in Canada. She explains that over 700,000 Canadians experience homelessness and that the main drivers are a lack of affordable housing supply and rising costs of living. Dr. Daniel Pepe then discusses the human toll of homelessness, describing it as a "palliative illness in slow motion". He explains the health challenges faced by those experiencing homelessness and higher rates of illness and early death. Both guests stress that homelessness is typically not a choice but rather the result of failures in social systems and structural barriers.

The episode highlights creative healthcare solutions developed in London, Ontario to better support those experiencing homelessness. Overall, the conversation aims to raise awareness of the scale and impacts of homelessness in Canada to encourage more community support for solutions.