Home & Wellbeing: Housing that Centres on People
“Stories have the power to humanize us. It’s what makes us human, but we need to have the courage to listen and to tell the stories”, Dorothy Ghettuba, Kenyan Edmontonian filmmaker. I can’t think of better words than Dorothy’s to describe what I’ve experienced through this round of discussions on Edmonton’s updated affordable housing strategy.
When the updated Affordable Housing Strategy report and Edmonton Affordable Housing Needs Assessment came to Council, I was all over it. I know that an extraordinary amount of work brought us to this step in the process - countless hours from City staff, researchers, members of the public, and community organizations. But I think this strategy is not yet headed in the right direction: I want us to not only work towards the goal of 59,000 more units down the road, but also the collective goal of everyone having a home and pursuing a life with purpose, connections, and overall wellbeing. I want us to be more people-centred.
The Updated Affordable Housing Strategy Report and Needs Assessment
Housing is a major priority for the City. And this was a major and complex report, with 8 attached documents and hundreds of pages (see the full Council proceedings and all documents here. In September/October, 2022, the Community and Public Services Committee was provided with an update on the work completed to date to support an Updated Affordable Housing Strategy, including: the completion of the first five phases of research,leaving only the final phase: strategy development. I was impressed by the breadth and scope of the work, and the calibre of researchers involved in the project - researchers I personally know and respect, and some I have worked with in the past. The needs assessment paints a picture of the current challenges and needs faced by Edmontonians when it comes to housing, using a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods.
It took two meetings to present and discuss the report, which marks the end of the research phase of work; the next step will be the development of the full strategic framework and implementation plan.
On Sept. 27th, in addition to a presentation by City staff, we had many members of the public speak about their take on the current housing situation. Many of these speakers had participated in the project by sharing their stories as part of the lived experience research conducted by InWithForward and by EndPovertyEdmonton. It was an emotional day. Seeing their words on paper is one thing, but hearing their stories first hand struck me hard. I walked away thinking, “It is one thing to be moved by stories, but another to translate that into policy. What might that look like?” (Read more about that meeting here.)
We then returned on October 11th to discuss the housing needs assessment and dig into questions for City staff and the researchers. We tried to figure out whether, after this last round of research, the housing strategy is focused in the right direction.
I think we have a good start but I worry about the direction it’s heading. There was a big disconnect between the stories shared by people struggling with housing - the housing they have and the housing they don’t have - and the strategic direction for our housing policy (in what’s called the Foundational Elements for the Updated Affordable Housing Strategy). I’ll share some of the pieces that I think are missing and what we can do to build more humanity in our policies, housing or otherwise.
We Need More Balance Between a Human Rights Approach and an Economic Approach to Housing
During the Council discussion and in the report and attachments, I saw two distinct narratives emerging. One about supply, demand and how we as institutions (government, non-profits, agencies) can better provide services; and another about empowering individuals within the system, breaking down existing barriers, and enabling and facilitating communities around us in playing that supporting role. This to me, is the distinction between a human rights approach to housing and an economic approach to housing, the latter is what our City Council has been advocating for, to other orders of government, for years. Both approaches are equally important but one narrative, the economic approach, clearly dominated.
Members of the public told us: housing is more than just a roof over one’s head; it’s more than just the number of units built. Housing is Home-ing: it’s about home, capability, and wellbeing. But this theme is not currently embedded in the goals and guiding principles of our housing strategy, which is largely service-delivery focused. This inherently isn’t a bad thing. But it is if it’s the prevailing focus.
How are the formal systems we create facilitating wellbeing, on people’s own terms and conditions?
When I read the stories and listened to the speakers’ words, I struggled with the fact that we are stuck in a constant refrain. We’ve stepped up as a builder of housing, but we continuously lack the funding to operate it, which we harp on with other orders of government. At the same time, I saw and heard that we have people who are clearly housed, who have learned to navigate around the system to achieve their own sense of wellbeing. And yet their interactions with formal systems and services have only resulted in eviction and life back in shelters and streets, where they are very clear about not wanting to be at (see the story of “The House that is More Than a House” that starts on pg. 124 in the InWithForward Lived Experience Engagement document “From House to Home to Wellbeing”). How are the formal systems we create facilitating wellbeing, on people’s own terms and conditions?
Beyond building more housing, what systems changes do we need to make so that people who are housed do not get evicted? How can we challenge and adjust our assumptions or norms about what is an acceptable home? What supports can empower these folks to advocate for themselves, and build homes on their own terms and conditions, so that challenges do not result in evictions? What other research do we need?
The Affordable Housing Strategy Needs to Be Grounded in Lived Experience
To address my concerns about what is missing, I made a motion to try to incorporate the themes that emerged from everyday people’s stories about housing (housing as it relates to human agency, belonging, and participation) at the foundational level to guide the development of the housing strategy. Not just at the implementation stage; not just as public engagement. But for the strategy to be grounded in lived and living experiences right from the start, side by side with the existing goals and principles in setting direction and developing strategy. It’s Both And. It’s giving power.
The guiding principles are a good place to start. All the right ideas are there: lived experience, human dignity, wellbeing, choice, collaborate. But I failed to see how these were translated into practice and policy while remaining true to those who came forward to share their own stories. The bulk of the narrative and the report including the goals and objectives for our upcoming housing strategy still very much focused on service provider perspective and on service provision. We need to make sure these principles are brought to life in the next, action-oriented part of the work: the strategic framework and implementation plan
The motion failed. And in the end, I did NOT vote to accept the strategic direction for housing in its current state because it did not reflect people’s lived experiences. I felt it was a disservice to all those who came forward to share their journeys and stories when we are simply “moved” and there’s no follow up. The housing work will now move into the final stage of strategy development.
We Need More Opportunities for People to Share Lived Experience Directly with City Council
Another dichotomy that was evident in this housing conversation was how we saw people struggling with housing. There was a distinction between how the system saw them, and how people saw themselves. On one hand, it’s about vulnerability - specifically, 13 vulnerabilities (i.e., single moms, people with disabilities, seniors, Indigenous people, homeless, immigrants and refugees etc.). On the other hand, people saw themselves as resourceful, curious, loving, protective, etc. These perspectives are important; they are strength-based and invite a multiplicity of solutions beyond supply and demand of housing units. There is much we can learn from other jurisdictions like Ireland who are seeing local innovations taking root like “choice-based letting” and “tenant handbooks.”
For those people who came out to speak about their personal experiences, I’m glad they came. They participated remotely, in a separate safe space, together, with support, and guidance on how to tell their stories effectively. The five minutes they each had weren’t just a moment to share their two cents; they were opportunities to challenge the assumptions of policy and decision-makers in the room, and the narrative that dominated the discussion. This is true each and every time members of the public speak to the City Council directly. (If you are ever interested in registering to speak on any item - please see this page or reach out to our office.)
Plenty of research (like this and this one) demonstrates the benefits, dangers, and ethical responsibilities of organizations engaging people with lived experience who offer unique insights, challenge assumptions and pinpoint areas for change. Engaging directly with people matters, whether inside or outside the council chamber. In fact, the dynamic and atmosphere were palpably different between the two days we spent on talking about housing, for when we had public speakers and when we didn’t.
So I think we need more opportunities for people with lived experience to connect directly with City Council.
In Closing
I want more humanity in our policies, housing or otherwise. I want to see people’s stories and firsthand experiences honoured and prioritized in the same way as we do for institutional perspectives. At the end of the day, it’s not only about the courage to listen and tell stories, but also the courage to develop policies, strategies, services, and programs that reflect these stories and share power.
