Future of Public Housing Scenarios

During the Housing for All Community Dialogue, local and international stakeholders came together to develop four future scenarios for public housing in Canada.  The results of that dialogue are summarized in the handout below, which was used to engage citizens prior to the 2015 federal election:Future of Public Housing Scenarios

Canada Poverty Audit: Election 2015

Are you concerned about housing but not sure how to vote in the next election?

The Future of Public Housing Project and the School of Community Planning are pleased to have contributed one section of the Canada Poverty Audit in advance of the 2015 federal election.  Dr Penny Gurstein and Research Assistants Aaron Lao and Emme Lee evaluated the four major parties’ platforms on their ability to improve housing and homelessness situation for low-income individuals.  Academics from across Canada analyzed party policies in their respective areas of expertise to produce an overall score for how likely each party’s policies are to reduce poverty in Canada.

Download the full report here: Canada Poverty Policy Audit Election 2015 (Housing & Homelessness section begins on page 10)

In our evaluation on housing policy, the Future of Public Housing Project gave the following ratings for how confident we are that each party’s policies in ousing will lesson poverty among Canadians:
Conservative Party: Very Low Confidence (1/5)
Liberal Party: Medium Confidence (3/5)
New Democratic Party: Medium Confidence (3/5)
Green Party: Pretty High Confidence (4/5)

Exploring Canada’s Housing Futures


The Future of Public Housing Project has released a new video, “Exploring Canada’s Public Housing Futures”, using the results of the scenario-building exercise at the  Housing For All community dialogue in May.  The video also draws on research conducted by the Future of Public Housing Project on trends in public housing internationally.  Canada’s housing system faces an era of uncertainty.  What future do we want for our communities?

4 Scenarios: Futures for Public Housing

On May 22, 2015, at the Dodson Conference Centre, in Vancouver, we convened leaders in public housing including policy-makers, politicians, the private and non-profit sector, tenants, academics and activists for an afternoon of dialogue and practical discussion. UBC School of Community and Regional Planning adjunct professor, Aftab Erfran, used a collaborative transformative scenario planning approach, adapted from a process used in post-apartheid South Africa,  to respond to the following situation:

We’re facing seemingly intractable housing challenges in the Lower Mainland. At times it seems there is little hope for maintaining, let alone enhancing public housing in our region. But if we drop the dominant narratives of a likely bleak future, what can we imagine in the space of possibilities for public, social and co-op housing? Are some paths into the future more desirable than others, and if so how can we influence decision-makers to steer into these desirable directions?

Graduate students from her class on Negotiation and Facilitation, facilitated the process. We had the unique opportunity of being joined by international housing experts who helped put regional public housing trends and issues into a global perspective, giving us new ideas and strategies for moving forward.

Please read through the 4 scenarios that emerged from this process, and vote on the future that you want to see for housing!

Which future for public housing appeals to you?

SCENARIO 1:“it’s a wonderful life”
SCENARIO 2: “lord of the flies”
SCENARIO 3: “the many legged octopus in a sea of change”
SCENARIO 4: complete just communities

Poll Maker

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SCENARIO 1: It’s a Wonderful Life

Low government engagement and high civic action

engagement

The story starts with an affordability crisis: the federal government says there is no more money in the budget for housing. The response is an increase in partnerships between the private and non-profit sectors. However, after a short time these partnerships start to fall apart, and society calls on government to act. The government still refuses support, and non-profits experience burn-out and low morale. Then civil society takes housing into it’s own hands, developing informal settlements and building it’s own communities. This is followed by a rise in civil lending institutions (in the form of VanCity): SurCity, RichCity, WestvanCity, etc. But the crisis is not really going away. Private sector gets involved – there is a reemergence of the company town: corporations build housing for employees. Yet, people still turn to informal settlements. Eventually a riot breaks out. There is occupation of offices, vandalism, and a huge fire breaks out. This gets the attention of the federal and provincial governments, who are finally forced to address the housing crisis and a federal election is called.

 

SCENARIO 2: Lord of the Flies

Low government engagement and low civic action 

opposition

People have no faith in the housing situation and start to turn on each other; groups go off on their own paths. Those who have housing cling to what they have and become very isolated. Gated communities arise, and people no longer engage with each other. The situation gets considerably worse for those with no housing, and informal settlements rise up in response. The government is in a lot of trouble: there is a greater strain on resources than ever due to increasing demand for prisons, health care, etc. stemming from the housing problem. The situation only worsens because the government still provides no support. People start moving away, and the economy starts to collapse. There are small glimpses of hope: people on the fringes get resourceful. But there is no end, the housing crisis is terrible cycle filled with individualism and everyone clinging to what they have.

 

SCENARIO 3: The Many Legged Octopus in a Sea of Change

High government engagement and high civic opposition

civic

The government is in the habit of doing whatever developers want. Communities push for change and activism increases. This forces the government to become more involved in housing issues, and also results in a community land trust. Housing is now in the community’s control: they have their own targets for housing units, and development is negotiated based on an open dialogue between communities.

 

SCENARIO 4: Complete Just Communities

High government and high civic engagement

complete and just

Society rallies and protests to try to attain government support for public housing. Communities start to come together, and residents articulate that housing is a need and a right. Government acknowledges this, and develops a mandate to increase public housing. There is a year-long plan to create the necessary changes. New programs are funded and there is increasing support for current ones. Co-ops are supported, the minimum wage is raised, monitored public/private partnerships develop, and the government provides tax incentives to affordable housing developments. Time and resources are invested in identifying best practices for partnerships between government and non-profits. The results of government policies and support are: mixed neighbourhoods, healthy communities, housing choices, clean and safe SROs, mental health supports, reduced red tape to accessing housing and support, and no dead-zones. Additionally, there are side-effects such as better access to education, and a vibrant economy because people now have disposable income. The final result is that there is no longer any waitlists for public housing.

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Housing for All: a series of events on the future of public housing

The Future of Public Housing Project invites you to join us for:

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With thanks to our co-sponsors:

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All events are free and open to the public

Opening, Panel and Reception | Wednesday May 20

Doors open at 6:30pm
Talk runs from 7:15pm-9:30pm, with reception to follow
Interurban Art Gallery, 1 East Hastings
Keynote Address and Panel Discussion: “Just Public Housing?”
RSVP

Click here for speakers’ bios.

Keynote:

  • PETER MARCUSE
    Professor Emeritus of Urban Planning, Columbia University, New York City.

Panelists:

  • DAVID HULCHANSKI
    Professor, Housing and Community Development, Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work
  • RAY GEROW
    CEO, Aboriginal Housing and Management Association
  • ANACLAUDIA ROSSBACH
    Regional Advisor for Latin America, Cities Alliance
  • ETHEL WITTY
    Director Homelessness Services and DTES Programs, City of Vancouver at Carnegie Community Centre

Join us for an evening of art and dialogue, including a keynote talk, panel presentation, exhibition viewing and reception. “Just Public Housing?”, the keynote talk, will be delivered by Peter Marcuse, Professor Emeritus of Urban Planning, Columbia University, New York City. A panel of housing researchers and community organizations will respond. This evening is co-sponsored by the Housing Justice Project as part of Housing for All: a Series of Events on the Future of Public Housing. Doors will open at 6:30pm, with opening remarks at 7:15pm. Reception to follow.

Multimedia Art Exhibition | Thursday May 21 to Saturday May 23

Thursday 1:00pm-5:00pm
Friday 12:00pm-5:00pm
Saturday 1:00pm-5:00pm
Interurban Art Gallery, 1 East Hastings

The multimedia exhibition will engage visitors in dialogue about public housing, its uses and citizen involvement, past, present and future.

In collaboration with David Vaisbord, Patti Fraser, and the 19th Birthday Party Project.

More details here.

Academic Workshop | May 21-May 23
UBC Choi Centre

This event is for invited researchers, students and a limited number of community members. If you would like to attend, please contact Prajna Rao at futureofpublichousing@gmail.com.

 

Futures for Public Housing: A Dialogue with International and Local Housing Stakeholders

Friday May 22nd, 1:00pm-5:00pm.
Dodson Conference Centre
25 East Hastings, Vancouver
Doors open and registration begins at 12:30pm.
Light refreshments will be provided.
Free.

We’re facing seemingly intractable housing challenges in the Lower Mainland. At times it seems there is little hope for maintaining, let alone enhancing public housing in our region. But if we drop the dominant narratives of a likely bleak future, what can we imagine in the space of possibilities for public, social and co-op housing? Are some paths into the future more desirable than others, and if so how can we influence decision-makers to steer into these desirable directions?

In this highly interactive facilitated session, we use a collaborative transformative scenario planning approach to respond to the questions above. Join us for an event that convenes leaders in public housing including policy-makers, politicians, the private and non-profit sector, tenants, academics and activists for an afternoon of dialogue and practical discussion. We will have the unique opportunity of being joined by international housing experts who will help us put our regional public housing trends and issues into a global perspective, perhaps giving us new ideas and strategies for moving forward.

Please RSVP by May 17. Click here to RSVP.

For further enquiries, please contact futureofpublichousing@gmail.com.

* We also invite you to visit the multimedia exhibition at the Interurban Gallery, 1 East Hastings, open on Friday May 22nd from noon-5pm.

 

 

HOUSING FOR ALL: OPENING, PANEL AND RECEPTION

HOUSING FOR ALL: OPENING, PANEL AND RECEPTION

 

Wednesday May 20, Interurban Art Gallery, 1 E. Hastings
Event: 6:30 – 10:00 pm
Keynote and panel: 7:15 – 9:00 pm

Join us for an evening of art and dialogue, including a keynote talk, panel presentation, exhibition viewing and reception. “Just Public Housing?”, the keynote talk, will be delivered by Peter Marcuse, Professor Emeritus of Urban Planning, Columbia University, New York City. A panel of housing researchers and community organizations will respond. This evening is co-sponsored by the Housing Justice Project as part of Housing for All: a Series of Events on the Future of Public Housing. 

 

KEYNOTE, ‘JUST PUBLIC HOUSING’?: PETER MARCUSE

Public housing can serve multiple purposes, from social welfare to economic growth to public health to slum clearance to public order to filling market gaps to social justice. Its history in the United States illustrates many of these, some over-lapping, some conflicting. But if social justice is a key consideration, the term needs to be defined: meeting basic needs, reducing inequality, rewarding merit, and its scope needs to be agreed upon: providing shelter, fostering community, improving health, facilitating employment or education.

But its future will not only depend on deliberate choices among these policy options, but also on the political constellation in which it is supported. That can range from the hostile to the minimal reformist to the transformational bent, and is likely to be embedded in even larger and more controversial positions. Those concerned with the shape of public housing in the future face some challenging issues as to both policy and for political approaches. But whatever approaches are chosen, boldness and clarity in direction and goals is ever more vital today.

 

PANELISTS

  • Ray Gerow: CEO, Aboriginal Housing and Management Association
  • Anaclaudia Rossbach: Regional Advisor for Latin America and the Carribbean, Cities Alliance
  • David Hulchanski: Professor Housing and Community Development, Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto
  • Ethel Witty: Director of Carnegie Community Centre and Services for the Homeless, City of Vancouver

 

BIOS: KEYNOTE AND PANELISTS

Peter Marcuse


Special Research Scholar in the Faculty of Architecture, Planning and Preservation
Columbia University, New York City

 Peter Marcuse, a planner and lawyer, is Professor Emeritus of Urban Planning at Columbia University in New York City. He has a J.D. from Yale Law School, and a Ph. D in planning from the University of California at Berkeley. He practiced law in Waterbury, CT, for twenty years, specializing in labor and civil rights law, and was majority leader of its Board of Aldermen, chaired its anti-poverty agency, and was a member of its City Planning commission. . He was thereafter Professor of Urban Planning at UCLA, and President of the Los Angeles Planning Commission and member of Community Board 9M in New York City. His fields of research include city planning, housing, the use of public space, the right to the city, social justice in the city, globalization, and urban history, with some focus New York City. He has taught in both West and East Germany, Australia, the Union of South Africa, Canada, Austria, Spain, Canada, and Brazil, and written extensively in both professional journals and the popular press.

His most recent publication is Peter Marcuse, ed., with Neil Brenner and Margit Mayer, Cities For People, Not For Profit: Critical Urban Theory And The Right To The City, London: Routledge, 2011. He also has a blog on critical planning at pmarcuse.wordpress.com.

His current projects include a historically-grounded political history of urban planning, the formulation of a theory of critical planning, including the attempt to make critical urban theory useful to the U.S. Right to the City Alliance, and an analysis and proposals to deal with the subprime mortgage foreclosure crisis in the United States.

David Hulchanski, PhD

Professor, Housing and Community Development
Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work
University of Toronto

David Hulchanski is a professor of housing and community development at the University of Toronto. His PhD is in urban planning. His research and teaching is focused on neighbourhoods, community development, social change, housing need, and social and economic rights. In the 1980’s he was a professor of community planning at the University of British Columbia and director of the UBC Centre for Human Settlements. He is currently the principle investigator of a 7-year $2.5 million research partnership focused on neighbourhood change and socio-spatial inequality in Canadian cities with international comparisons. See: www.NeighbourhoodChange.ca

 

Anacláudia Rossbach

Regional Advisor, Latin American countries
Cities Alliance

Anacláudia Rossbach from São Paulo is Master in Political Economics and despite starting her professional life as an external auditor, she has being working in the last 10 years in the housing field, as a public sector staff or as an external advisor for the government, the World Bank and non-profit organizations, working in Brazil and in other countries, such as China, Philippines and South Africa. She also worked for Cities Alliance as the Regional Advisor for Latin America and the Caribbean and holds the position of Director President for a NGO, Rede Interação, an affiliated in Brazil of Slum Dwellers International, supporting community organization in slums from São Paulo and Pernambuco.

She worked as consultant for World Bank on housing and metropolitan governance, working close to the Federal Government of Brazil/Ministry of Cities since 2005 and participated on the major reforms on the housing sector in the country, including the Growth Acceleration Program (slum upgrading), the subsidies program “My House, My Life” and the National Housing Plan. In Brazil, she also supported the State Government of Rio on establishing a new governance management for the metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro on disaster risk, housing, transportation and economic development as part of the World Bank team. Additionally, as a consultant for the World Bank she was part of a technical assistance team on low income housing and slum upgrading for policy reforms in the Philippines in the last two years.

In 2014 she was appointed as Regional Advisor for LAC for Cities Alliance, where she is now responsible for designing the organization’s strategy for the region as well as to manage projects and partnership.

 

Ethel Whitty

Director –Homelessness Services
Carnegie Community Centre – City of Vancouver

Ethel Whitty’s work in social service has focused on youth, families and isolated adults whose lives have been defined by poverty and its attendant struggles. That work took her from Cape Breton to an inner city neighborhood in Halifax, Nova Scotia and eventually to Vancouver where she has worked in several different environments providing residential treatment, housing, and reunification support to youth and their families. Her counselling, training and management experience includes addictions counselling, support to women fleeing relationship violence and community development programs. Along the way she received a BA from Dalhousie University and a Masters in Social Work from UBC and took some time out to study at NSCAD and to work in the arts as a writer and actor, further expanding her understanding of what people need to survive.

During her ten years as Director of the Carnegie Community Centre she has been supported by a team of 75 front line staff, whose work is spread across the Downtown Eastside through facilities at Carnegie Centre, Oppenheimer Park, and a street outreach program. In 2007 the Carnegie Street Team began its evolution as a Homeless Outreach Team in partnership with BC Housing and the City of Vancouver. In the last several years the team has housed an average of 400 – 500 individuals per year in SRO and social housing. Recently that work transitioned to a city- wide mandate. Deep connections in the DTES community are supported by a partnership with members of the Carnegie Community Centre Association who have a mandate to provide advice to the Director of the Carnegie Centre on issues of importance to the community. Their well of wisdom, so graciously shared, continuously reflects the magnitude of the obstacles people face in their search for dry, warm, clean housing, nutritious food and a minimal income.

 

Ray Gerow

Chief Executive Officer
Aboriginal Housing Management Association

Ray Gerow has been active in Aboriginal Economic Development for over 20 years, and has been active in the small business world for double that time. He is currently the CEO of the Aboriginal Housing Management Association (AHMA), a provincially funded non-profit that supplies leadership, funding, organizational direction, and support services to 42 Aboriginal Off-Reserve Community-Based Organizations across British Columbia. He aims to create a collective impact within the Aboriginal housing sector through working with Aboriginal CBOs to create stronger organizations and working with communities to create an understanding of the communities’ roles in addressing the housing needs of Aboriginal people in BC.

Ray built an extensive background in economic and community development, both as an entrepreneur and as a business development service provider. He has ran and/or managed numerous small businesses during his career, including a roofing business, chimney sweep, towing company, first aid, arts and crafts store, and a specialty cake business, to name a few. In addition to having served the community as a Board Member on a number of Boards, he is also an avid writer and reader of industry literature, publishing many articles, reports, and research documents.

A small example of Ray’s past involvement in the community is as follows: Chair of Board of Governors for the College of New Caledonia, Nechako-Kitamaat Development Fund Society, Prince George Performing Arts Centre Society, 16/97 Economic Alliance, BC Rural Network, Centre for Not for Profit Sustainability, and the SD57 Aboriginal Education Board. He is a founding Board Member of the Northern Sports Centre at the University of Northern BC. He is the past Chair of the Economic Development Advisory Board for the Province of BC, past Chair of the BC Counsel for Aboriginal Economic Development, and is a founding Board Member and past Treasurer of the Log Building Industry Association of BC.

Ray is also a founding Board Member and past President of the B.C. Native Contractors Association. Ray has also served on the Aboriginal advisory boards for Simon Fraser University and Royal Roads University. He was also a long-time Board Member and past President of the United Native Nations and the British Columbia Association of Non-Status Indians.

Housing for All: Multimedia Art Exhibition

HOUSING FOR ALL: Multimedia Art Exhibition

Presented by The Future of Public Housing Project,
in Collaboration with David Vaisbord

Thursday May 21 – Saturday May 23
Interurban Art Gallery, 1 East Hastings

Housing for All Multimedia Exhibition Poster

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Gallery hours:
Thurs. May 21 1:00pm – 5:00pm
Fri. May 22 12:00pm – 5:00pm
Sat. May 23 1:00pm – 5:00pm

Featuring works from: David Vaisbord and the Little Mountain Project, the UBC School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture‘s Little Mountain Studio Course, the Carnegie Community Action Project, the Future of Public Housing Project, Patti Fraser and Corin Browne’s Housing Matters Media Project: Young Artists Explore the Housing Crisis and The 19th Birthday Party, Habitat for Humanity-Tajikistan, and Wilson Mendes and the SRO Collaborative.

The exhibition runs as part of Housing for All: a Series of Events on the Future of Public Housing, which also includes an academic workshop at UBC of top housing researchers from around the world, as well as Futures for Public Housing: A Dialogue with International and Local Housing Stakeholders, Friday May 22nd, 1:00pm-5:00pm at the Dodson Conference Centre. Co-sponsored by the UBC School of Community and Regional Planning’s (SCARP’s) Housing Justice Project and the Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies.

Opening, Panel and Reception | Wednesday May 20

Doors open at 6:30pm
Talk runs from 7:15pm-9:30pm, with reception to follow
Interurban Art Gallery, 1 East Hastings
Keynote Address and Panel Discussion: “Just Public Housing?”
RSVP here.

Keynote:

PETER MARCUSE
Professor Emeritus of Urban Planning, Columbia University, New York City.

Panelists:

DAVID HULCHANSKI
Professor, Housing and Community Development, Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work

RAY GEROW
CEO, Aboriginal Housing and Management Association

ANACLAUDIA ROSSBACH
Regional Advisor for Latin America, Cities Alliance

ETHEL WITTY
Director Homelessness Services and DTES Programs, City of Vancouver at Carnegie Community Centre

Join us for an evening of art and dialogue, including a keynote talk, panel presentation, exhibition viewing and reception. “Just Public Housing?”, the keynote talk, will be delivered by Peter Marcuse, Professor Emeritus of Urban Planning, Columbia University, New York City. A panel of housing researchers and community organizations will respond. This evening is co-sponsored by the Housing Justice Project as part of Housing for All: a Series of Events on the Future of Public Housing. Doors will open at 6:30pm, with opening remarks at 7:15pm. Reception to follow.

For more details, visit https://scarp-futureofpublichousing.sites.olt.ubc.ca/

 

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Housing for All: Academic Workshop

Download the Workshop-Program

 

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