Fixing up housing policy - from research to reality

More and more older Canadians are struggling to stay in their homes. Sarah Canham is the project director for the Aging in the right place partnership. She is a CHEC node leader whose primary focus is housing and homelessness among Canada’s rapidly growing aging population.

The tables are turned in this episode. Host Jim Dunn is in the hot seat, interviewed by Damian Collins. Jim talks about his journey to housing research, and his focus on data that leads to solutions to our housing crisis.

Dr. Catherine Leviten-Reid focuses on affordable housing and vulnerable populations. She is passionate about rural and smaller communities including her home base of Sydney, Nova Scotia.

Justin Lewis takes a look back at the big thinkers we’ve had as guests this season. As Director of the Housing Secretariat for the City of Hamilton, Justin is a creative thinker finding solutions to the city's homeless crisis. He's also a friend of the pod: CHEC Director Jim Dunn and Executive Advisor Steve Pomeroy were the academic thought leaders and part of the core team who developed the City of Hamilton’s Housing Sustainability and Investment Roadmap.

Rebekah Young of Scotiabank wrote a report titled "Canadian Housing Affordability Hurts". In it, she says that the government needs to build more non-profit, affordable housing. She talks to Jim Dunn about why non-profit housing is good for business.

Leilani Farha talks about what it means to declare housing a human right and what we must do to live up to that commitment.

What is unaffordability migration? How has it affected cities and towns across Canada? And most importantly, how do we fix it? Hosts Jim Dunn and Cynthia Belaskie look at evidence-based solutions to the "drive 'til you qualify" phenomenon. This episode's experts: Penny Gurstein, Nemoy Lewis, Alix McLean, Mike MoffattLove the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share! Learn more about fixing Canadian housing policy at:chec_ccrl.ca | Safe, affordable, and appropriate housing for all Canadians. (chec-ccrl.ca)

How housing is a huge corporate money maker and what that means for us as renters and homeowners. Today's experts: Mohamad Bsat, Penny Gurstein, Nemoy Lewis.

To what extent does evidence actually influence public policy? We answer that question and more as Cynthia Belaskie, Robbie Brydon and special guest host Jim Dunn talk to Molly Harrington, former Assistant Deputy Minister with the BC government, and Norm Helfand, former Director of Income Security Policy with the Ontario government. They talk about how data and evidence are used to craft public policy and how health effects are - or are not - considered in income security policy. Tune in to learn more about how public policies are made, how research and evidence are used and what researchers and policymakers need to do to support each other's work.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://mihe.mcmaster.ca/

How do we solve the issue of LGBTQ2 vulnerability in housing? In this episode, Cynthia Belaskie and Robbie Brydon's guest is Kenna McDowell, a graduate student in the Human Geography program at the University of Alberta. Kenna explains that expanding the social and affordable housing sector could solve so many issues that queer people experience. Especially because queer people are more likely to experience violence and discrimination in emergency shelters. Join in the conversation to learn more about LGBTQ2 vulnerability in housing and what you can do to help in your little way. Tune in! Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share! https://mihe.mcmaster.ca/

Canada had a basic income pilot before Ontario. Evelyn Forget’s research on the 1970s Mincome basic income experiment in Manitoba showed that hospital admissions declined and children were more likely to finish high school. Her latest work explores the lives of people who access government supports and frontline service providers. Evelyn is a professor and health economist at the University of Manitoba and the author of the book Basic Income for Canadians. Evelyn joins Cynthia Belaskie and Robbie Brydon to talk more about her research into basic income in Canada, the evidence and the principles behind decision making on income security policy.

Long-term care is not an easy thing to process whether it be for the patient or the family. It can be stressful because you need to think about the relocation to a new environment, the expensive price tag on long-term care services, and most importantly, the needs of the patient. Diving deeper into this topic, Cynthia Belaskie and Robbie Brydon sit down with Dr. Tamara Sussman, an Associate Professor at the School of Social Work at McGill University. Join in and learn from Tamara’s insights about the challenges and bad practices that some provinces still do regarding long-term care.

Cynthia Belaskie and Robbie Brydon share what the show is all about: the messy place where evidence meets policy in income security and housing. Dr. Jim Dunn, Director of the McMaster Institute for Health Equity and the Canadian Housing Evidence Collaborative, joins them to talk about the origin of the show and some of the cases he has encountered where evidence can inform what’s needed, but doesn’t clearly tell governments and decision-makers what to do.