The Centre’s executive director Stéphan Corriveau comments on the 2022 Budget released on April 7. He notes several good news items, including the financing of housing co-operatives and another round of the Rapid Housing Initiative, but also areas for improvement, such as addressing Indigenous housing needs and the lack of structural measures to curb speculation.
The Community Housing Transformation Centre’s staff began 2022 with a renewed zeal to act on our organization’s commitment to Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples. In our January newsletter, we invited other community housing providers, housing co-operatives or community-led organizations working with tenants to join us in learning about First Nations, Inuit and Métis People.
While we now know housing plays a significant role in carbon emissions, many community housing providers are confused about steps to take to reverse the trend. Concerned with rising energy prices and renovation costs, groups turn to the Centre’s regional energy coaches for valuable, free of charge, expertise.
Indigenous communities across Canada often face critical housing shortages and the Mi’kmaq of Newfoundland are no exception. The Flat Bay Band’s No’kmaw Village Tenants Strategy helps people with lived experience craft strategic housing plans that will allow more Mi’kmaq to return home.
For people with disabilities, “accessibility” means much more than a ramp or an elevator. From countertops to bathroom doors, most lodging fails to take their needs into consideration and finding affordable, adapted housing is the biggest barrier of them all. One Québec City group is working to tear down that wall with a housing inventory, an outreach campaign and by incentivizing builders to embrace “inclusive design” standards.