Tuesday, October 1, 2024

Strategies to End Homelessness leads and coordinates the local Continuum of Care (CoC). To work effectively with our partner organizations and foster communication, we convene work groups monthly. And one of them is the People With Lived Experience work group.

For the past two years this dedicated group of advocates meet to help improve our services and housing programs. Additionally, HUD encourages CoCs to seek out the expertise of people who experienced homelessness. Because experience equals expertise.

National Conference

Two of the members of the People With Lived Experience work group are presenting at the National Lived Experience Leadership Conference. Hannah Schilling and Erica Parks will travel to San Jose, California in November to present. And this is the first year this national conference is taking place. Furthermore, the purpose of the Conference is to empower people who experienced homelessness to go back to their communities and effect change.

Their presentation is “Be the Bridge – Integrating Meaningful Inclusion of Lived Experience into Practice and Policy.” Both Hannah and Erica are important members of the the People With Lived Experience work group. Additionally, Hannah works for Hamilton County Public Health and is the CEO of On the Front Lines Community Alliance. And Erica works at the Hope Line.

A Unique Perspective

People with lived experience of homelessness have a unique perspective. They are experts on what works when it comes to exiting homelessness. And experts on what doesn’t work.

The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) recently tapped into the expertise of people who experienced homelessness for their Federal Homelessness Prevention Framework:

“The framework . . . was informed by people with lived experience of homelessness and formally adopted by agency leaders during today’s USICH meeting that included several White House Cabinet members.”

Lived Experience Locally

Locally, Erica, Hannah, and the other advocates in the work group suggest improvements that move the needle on ending homelessness. They are in integral part of making our local homeless services system more effective. Both at preventing and ending homelessness.

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