Opening Doors: Private Sector, Philanthropy and Faith-Based Organizations
Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness calls for an unprecedented level of collaboration between the public and private sectors
in order to prevent and end homelessness. The federal government needs leadership and support from faith communities, businesses, and philanthropy to inspire and energize Americans to commit to preventing and ending homelessness.
USICH relied on the advice and support of many in faithbased organizations, businesses, and philanthropy as well as providers and advocates to develop Opening Doors. We will need their support and partnership to achieve these ambitious goals.
Organizations in the private sector can look at their own hiring practices and seek opportunities to hire or mentor people who have experienced homelessness who are striving to return
to the workforce.
Organizations in the health care sector have unique opportunities with the implementation of Health Reform to open doors to high quality integrated care to people with considerable and often complex health care needs who have not had access to insurance and health care in the past.
Leaders in the private sector, philanthropy, and of faithbased organizations can
- Educate the public, partner with local government leaders to renew their commitment in ending homelessness, and promote volunteerism to fuel the work that needs to be done.
- Sponsor research on those things we need to learn to be effective and efficient in our work, including research on targeting, prevention, and special populations.
- Promote best practices and build capacity of agencies that are being called upon to take best practices to scale.
- Strategically invest in strategies in Opening Doors to help expand the supply of affordable housing, serviceenriched housing, and permanent supportive housing.
- Create incentives and forums for organizations to come together to discuss and learn how to improve discharge planning and homeless crisis response programs.
- Encourage communities to support and make the changes needed to prevent homelessness whenever possible, rapidly return people who become homeless to homes, and finish the job of ending chronic homelessness.
