Inaugural Collaborative International Series on Innovation in Housing and Homelessness

From June 9-11, my office, in collaboration with the University of Ottawa’s Pop-Up Lab on Housing and Homelessness (housed within the Office for Research and Public Policy Outreach and the Office of the Vice-President Research and Innovation), the Centre for Research on Educational and Community Services (CRECS), the Alliance to End Homelessness Ottawa, and the City of Ottawa, jointly developed a new Speaker Series Collaboration.

The University of Ottawa is a great institution within Ward 12 that has expertise, both academic and prescriptive solutions, to some of the most challenging problems affecting our Ward and the larger city. Housing and homelessness, substance abuse and public safety are issues that require out-of-the-box solutions that are informed by a strong evidence-base. When I approached Drs Tim Aubry and John Sylvestre, over a year ago, about such a series after a meeting we happened to be in, they responded enthusiastically to the project, and it then took off with the uOttawa Pop-Up Lab on Housing and Homelessness, the Research and Innovation office, the Alliance, and the City joining the collaborative effort.

Please see here if you would like to know more about how this came about and the objectives we would like to attain of the Inaugural Collaborative International Series on Innovation in Housing and Homelessness. The format is to invite one internationally recognized subject matter expert to meet with decision-makers, public service officials and organizations operating within the homelessness and mental health sectors over three days: Day 1 – Municipal Day; Day 2 – University Day; and Day 3 – Federal Day.

Our international expert speaker for the inaugural series was Dr. Ligia Teixeira of the UK’s Centre for Homelessness Impact. All three days were very well attended and demonstrated that there is a passion amongst a great community of practitioners and providers to come together and offer solutions to all three levels of government.

Attached are the agendas for all three days:

• Day 1 – Municipal Day
• Day 2 – University Day
• Day 3 – Federal Day

In addition, I have provided the link to all of Dr. Teixeira’s presentations for the week. And here is the link to my YouTube site for the full morning session of June 9th. Once again, I would like to thank all those who attended over the course of the three days. Your attendance solidified that we hope to continue this series annually into the future. Special thanks to Alan Neeff from my office, and the incredible team of Valerie Stam, Nour Atrakouti and Cintia Quiroga from the University of Ottawa. They did all the heavy lifting, and the inaugural series would not have happened without their efforts.

This post is also available in French.