Making Zero Count – Working Towards Ending Homelessness

Abstract

What does it mean to end homelessness? How can we measure it? How can communities see progress in this area? What does it look like on the ground?

These questions have spurred three years of work, led by the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness (COH), and a number of national partners, including the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness (CAEH), the Calgary School of Public Policy, and Alina Turner (Turner Strategies). Most recently, these questions became the core of the Making Zero Count project – an initiative aimed at asking communities across the country what it means to end  homelessness.

The COH had the privilege of engaging with several communities to explore the creation of a definition and measurement of an end to homelessness in Canada. Despite using an individualized approach within each community, the themes that surfaced were surprisingly similar. Making Zero Count’s aim began as a way to refine a working definition of ending homelessness. Instead, communities have taken the conversation to the next level. As a result, this handbook is meant as a community-directed resource so that you can begin laying the groundwork to creating a framework for ending homelessness.