Dr. Andres Lopez, research director for the Coalition of Communities of Color (CCC), and Dr. Mira Mohsini, CCC’s senior researcher, talk about community based participatory action research and research justice. Their work recognizes and uplifts the expertise that exists within the community, and the ability of those most impacted to offer insight into solutions that work best.

Todd Ferry from Portland State University shares the results of his study on villages as alternative shelter and the how-to guide developed from the research. A key finding in the Village Research and How-To Guide was that 69% of villagers said that they should share in decision making at the village, and it was a key contributor to villager satisfaction. Homelessness Research & Action Collaborative researchers Dr. Marisa Zapata and Dr. Greg Townley were also part of the research team. Ferry also talks about how he got into this work and a little bit about the history of villages in Portland. 

People living doubled up with friends or family due to economic hardship, sometimes called invisible homelessness, is not always clear to communities or even those experiencing it due to stigma and lack of resources. The Chicago Coalition for the Homeless teamed up with advocates and researchers to develop a unique way to count people living doubled up using U.S. Census microdata. In this episode, we talk with researcher Molly Richard, a student at Vanderbilt University, Samuel Carlson, manager of Research and Outreach at Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, and Edrika Fulford, a community organizer with lived experience of doubled-up homelessness. 

We dedicate this episode to Edrika who died shortly after this recording. Those who knew her said that Edrika brought immense passion and resolve to all that she did as a leader and advocate, whether speaking at rallies, testifying at press conferences, officiating events, or providing interviews with the media. She will be deeply missed and forever part of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless’s mission and legacy.