Putting Research and Evaluation in the Service of Policy and Practice: Housing and Homelessness Research Strategy for Alberta Presented by: Roxanne Felix-Mah April 22, 2015 A place for your notes.

“Research can have an impact on the solutions to homelessness by providing those working to end homelessness with a deeper understanding of the problem, strong evidence for solutions, and good ideas from other countries that can be replicated and adapted locally. Research has also helped us understand how and why people become homeless” (Gaetz, Donaldson, Richter & Gullier, 2013, p. 41). State of Homelessness in Canada (2013) put out six recommendations – and one was the need for comprehensive data collection, performance monitoring, analysis and research

Strengthening Research Capacity Interagency Agency Council (IAC) on Homelessness is tasked with providing strategic recommendations to guide the next phase of the Ten Year Plan IAC entered into a partnership with Alberta Centre, for Child Family and Community Research IAC is a Unique partnership between community leaders and all orders of govt. … talk about their task And they identified the need for adequate and reliable evidence to inform decisions made within the context of the Ten Year Plan. As we all know Alberta is a leader in the area of homelessness, it was the first province to develop a strategic response to end homelessness by creating A Plan for Alberta in 2009. The Plan was built upon the foundational work that was already happening at a regional level. Only natural building research capacity in Alberta followed this same approach – create and build on partnerships, leverage on good work already done, recognize that it requires integrated, cross ministerial work, and efforts from a number of sectors and social organizations. The Ministry of Human Services facilitated a partnership between IAC and The Centre - The Centre’s role is to develop and implement a provincial housing and homelessness research strategy to support the 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness.

The Alberta Centre for Child Family and Community Research Our Vision: Alberta is a leader in creating and mobilizing evidence to ensure the well-being of children. Our Mission: To develop and integrate evidence to inform, identify and promote effective public policy and service delivery to improve the well-being of children, families and communities in Alberta, Canada and internationally. The Centre was established as a not-for-profit corporation in 2003 and is a partnership between Alberta’s universities, the community and the Government of Alberta. We exist to improve child well-being by conducting, funding and mobilizing research for evidence-informed policy and practice. We inform many areas of social and health policy that impacts child well-being as well as groups such as vulnerable populations, aboriginal communities, new immigrant families and single parents. Our goal is to provide an unbiased, evidence-informed foundation for identifying and promoting effective social policy and service delivery. We believe that social policy and practice is only as good as the evidence used to support its development. Policy and practices based on solid and relevant evidence are powerful tools in improving individual, family, and community outcomes. The Centre has developed an approach that is built on collaboration with multiple partners and stakeholders across sectors and disciplines to develop capacity, knowledge, and skill in researchers, policy makers, service providers, and families. We work with all child-serving ministries.

Housing & Homelessness Research Strategy How was it developed Previous and regional research strategies, literature review, interviews & consultations Who is it for? Researchers, practitioners, policymakers What is it for? To identify how research and evaluation can be used in the service of policy and practice to prevent and end homelessness in Alberta The research strategy is intended to support the priorities the IAC has identified as necessary to achieving the goals of the 10-year plan I need to especially acknowledge the work of the Alberta Homelessness Research Consortium who built a strong foundation for the research strategy – by strengthening networks, commissioning an environmental scan by Dr. Kovacs Burns and Dr. Richter, funding some exceptional community-based research and facilitating knowledge exchange forums across the province. Building upon that foundation, The Centre completed a literature review and engaged in extensive stakeholder consultation with nearly 40 key informant interviews and focus groups with Albertan researchers, practitioners, decision makers and other key stakeholders. We did a comprehensive examination and analysis of local and national policy directions, community and regional research agendas, research funding sources, existing networks, and the state of existing evidence on housing and homelessness. We also gathered input and advice from 15 leading national and international experts on homelessness research.

Housing & Homelessness Research Strategy What does it provide? Priority topics for research investments Principles for a collective and collaborative approach Key activities to support and build capacity to address these priority topics In essence – everyone’s always interested in the priority topics … and I do have a slide for that … BUT – coming up with a list of topics is the easy part … see what regional priorities – you stakeholders and policy makers – where there’s a gap – we look at the state of evidence to see what already exists …. The reality is that the resources and time for research is limited. There is a need for information to inform the programs and policies as they develop … and as our CEO Robyn Blackadar likes to say – what’s essential is ensuring the right information gets to the right people at the right time. So, what’s more important, I think, about the Strategy are these last two bullets - > which help strategically invest limited resource funds to ensure meaningful impact from the research to end homelessness.

Housing & Homelessness Research Strategy What does it provide? Priority topics for research investments Principles for a collective and collaborative approach Key activities to support and build capacity to address these priority topics These principles and activities are intended to ensure that research has a meaningful impact on our collective efforts to end and prevent homelessness and also provide opportunties for stakeholders to partner on research projects that will guide local and provincial responses to housing and homelessness issues. Knowledge Mobilization The Centre will work with partners to further develop processes and pathways to share and discuss research findings, build relationships and foster collaboration through networks, roundtables, webcasts, social media platforms, forums, policy-researcher sessions, and conferences. Data Development, Linkage and Use Better information is the first of five priority areas for action in the Plan to End Homelessness, and good progress has been made towards achieving that goal. There is excellent potential in Alberta to advance this work. Our Centre has worked in partnership with the government of Alberta for many years to link administrative data across multiple datasets to create new information to guide decisions. Based on stakeholder consultations, the ultimate goals is to develop a provincial homelessness data resource centre to house and support analytic needs for housing and homelessness research priorities. This is something we can work towards achieving. Primary Research Primary research involves the collection of data directly from new sources. Focus will be placed on mobilizing knowledge where evidence already exists (e.g. promising or best practices), and where there are wide gaps in knowledge, or relevance to the Alberta context is uncertain, research will be undertaken to address these gaps. Next steps include identifying research projects for implementation based on the priorities in the research strategy and working to secure funding to enable researchers to apply for grants. Evaluation and Monitoring Stakeholders expressed interest in regular measurement and reporting of progress towards achieving outcomes of A Plan for Alberta: Ending Homelessness in 10 Years. Government ministries have accountability processes in place for this purpose. These monitoring processes can be used as a foundation to enhance how we measure the impact of strategic investments at the program and population level. Through this work we were able to provide a number of other products which we think captures and can further support the already exceptional research capacity that exists in Alberta. We will be emailing a link to these products to you, after the conference, where you will be able to access: A report on Rural Homelessness in Alberta, conducted by Dr. Waegemakers-Schiff and Dr. Turner Three annotated bibliographies: One focused on the research conducted in Alberta in the last four years (2010-2014) on the identified research priority areas of the research strategy One focused on research regarding community inclusion frameworks for engaging the homeless in housing consultations & strategies to combat Not in My Back Yard (NIMBY) attitudes with respect to social housing One focused on interventions for homeless families to end homelessness or prevent family homelessness We also have a list of researchers in Alberta that were active between 2010-2014.

Priority Topics 1. Homelessness Prevention & Early Intervention Cross Cutting Themes 1. Homelessness Prevention & Early Intervention Structural Factors Gaps in Systems of Care & Support Migration & Employment Identification of Those At Risk 2. Effectiveness of Interventions 3. Continuum of Housing & Homelessness Supports & Services Rural Homelessness Coordinated Planning for Long Term Housing & Supports Community Support, Engagement and Mobilization Vulnerable Peoples Aboriginal Peoples These are the priority topics identified for Research and Knowledge Mobilization. You will find the Strategy elaborates on each of these topics in detail. While all of the priorities are important, today, I would like to emphasize the Cross Cuttings themes. Cross Cutting Themes: Populations with Unique Needs Cross-cutting themes refer to specific populations whose issues are relevant to all types of research and should be considered a focus under each identified research priority. These groups align with the specialized populations currently recognized by the IAC: youth; seniors; women and families fleeing violence; immigrants, and refugee newcomers; persons with disabilities and Aboriginal people. Youth (especially between the ages of 13 and 24): There is currently a lack of research about best practices for interventions for youth. Their pathways into homelessness, its impacts, and the types of interventions used are often distinct from adults. Women and families: When women become homeless, they are at increased risk of violence and assault, sexual exploitation and abuse. The increasing incidence of family homelessness is a concern to many in Alberta. Family homelessness is largely underpinned by structural factors, including inadequate income, lack of affordable housing, and family violence. Persons with disabilities: This group is especially vulnerable to poverty and homelessness. In Alberta and nationally, there is a large gap in research with respect to this population and their vulnerabilities to homelessness. Immigrants, refugees and migrants: Alberta’s economy and employment opportunities have produced patterns of inter-provincial and international migration that are unique in Canada. Homeless-serving agencies have identified gaps in Alberta’s service system for immigrants, refugees, refugee claimants, and temporary foreign workers, and a corresponding gap in related research and information. Aboriginal Peoples (First Nations, Métis, and Inuit) are over-represented in the homeless population in Canada and in Alberta. In order to develop effective prevention and intervention services there also needs to be recognition and consideration of the Aboriginal experience of colonization. This experience has resulted in intergenerational trauma, extreme poverty, lack of opportunity, ongoing discrimination, racism and systemic oppression that continue to affect Aboriginal People’s access to services, programs and supports (Gaetz, Donaldson, Richter, & Gulliver, 2013, p. 26). Alberta’s stakeholders agree that any research undertaken in the area of Aboriginal homelessness should be developed, designed, implemented and disseminated in partnership with Aboriginal communities. Today we will hear about local research projects that aim to further our knowledge about homelessness and vulnerable populations in our province. All of these projects fit with the priority topics identified in the Research Strategy.

Four Pillars of Activity Evaluation & Monitoring Knowledge Mobilization Data Development & Use Primary Research So this is the “Framework for Key activities to support and build capacity to address these priority topics” – and I’ll give you a bit of an update on progress in each of these areas as I discuss them.

Four Pillars of Activity Webcast Events Rural Homelessness – June 2014 Launch of Research Strategy Event – Oct 2014 Housing First Toolkit – Nov 2014 Calgary Research Symposium – April 2015 Seven Cities Conference – April 2015 Alberta Rural Development Network – May 26 & 27 Annotated Bibliographies & Reports Rural Homelessness, Alberta Research (2010-2014), NIMBY’ism, community inclusion frameworks, family homelessness interventions, domestic violence & housing and homelessness issues with a focus on Aboriginal women Knowledge Mobilization Homeless Hub Alberta Page & Networks Knowledge Mobilization The Centre will work with partners to further develop processes and pathways to share and discuss research findings, build relationships and foster collaboration through networks, roundtables, webcasts, social media platforms, forums, policy-researcher sessions, and conferences. Webcasts – still available … we also do other series on mental health for children and youth and other related issues (harm reduction, addictions, children in care etc., Aboriginal research) Annotated – bibliographies and reports- We also have a list of researchers in Alberta that were active between 2010-2014. Homeless Hub - Work is still in progress for creating a tab specifically for Alberta-based research and researchers in housing and homelessness on the national website – Homeless Hub, (www.homelesshub.ca). Draft elements of this webpage have been identified. Stakeholders have been consulted regarding the utility of these elements. We will ensure this tab builds upon the infrastructure and tools already provided by the Housing Hub website.

Four Pillars of Activity Supporting Current Activity Providing expertise when requested to support Government of Alberta Facilitating opportunities to identify shared goals with respect to housing and homelessness administrative data Data Development and Use is one of three key priority areas identified by IAC for 2015 Evaluation & Monitoring Data Development & Use Data Development, Linkage and Use Better information is the first of five priority areas for action in the Plan to End Homelessness, and good progress has been made towards achieving that goal. There is excellent potential in Alberta to advance this work. Our Centre has worked in partnership with the government of Alberta for many years to link administrative data across multiple datasets to create new information to guide decisions. Based on stakeholder consultations, the ultimate goals is to develop a provincial homelessness data resource centre to house and support analytic needs for housing and homelessness research priorities. This is something we can work towards achieving. Evaluation and Monitoring Stakeholders expressed interest in regular measurement and reporting of progress towards achieving outcomes of A Plan for Alberta: Ending Homelessness in 10 Years. Government ministries have accountability processes in place for this purpose. These monitoring processes can be used as a foundation to enhance how we measure the impact of strategic investments at the program and population level. What does this look like? Supporting meetings, bringing together collaborators, learning more about your dataset and having partners learn more about what ACCFCR can do – we look forward to future conversations – come and talk to us.

Four Pillars of Activity Expanded our current bi- annual call for research to include housing and homelessness (seed grants, grants and doctoral awards) IAC identified two research areas as priority for 2015 NIMBY’ism as a barrier to affordable housing development Intersections between housing and homelessness and women fleeing domestic violence Collaborating with Government of Alberta & Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Building capacity through how our research funding is structured and other opportunities (ARDN) Primary Research Primary Research Primary research involves the collection of data directly from new sources. Focus will be placed on mobilizing knowledge where evidence already exists (e.g. promising or best practices), and where there are wide gaps in knowledge, or relevance to the Alberta context is uncertain, research will be undertaken to address these gaps. Next steps include identifying research projects for implementation based on the priorities in the research strategy and working to secure funding to enable researchers to apply for grants. A number of rural communities are exploring community-level assessments as a first step to addressing rural homelessness, based on the model of community-based research undertaken by Drayton Valley with Dr. Solina Richter from the University of Alberta. ACCFCR is working with Dr. Richter to explore the possibility of creating and supporting a network among these communities to share practices in community research, data analysis, and knowledge mobilization.

Thank you We look forward to supporting your work! Roxanne Felix-Mah rfelix-mah@research4children.com www.research4children.com We at the Centre do look forward to building research capacity and strengthening partnerships to further our collective efforts to end homelessness.