The Ottawa Mission’s Speakers Series – You’re Invited

This spring, The Ottawa Mission has been bringing together people interested in the issue of homelessness to learn more about the life-changing services at our shelter, and around the community. The 2017 Speakers Series has touched on the evolution of services for people experiencing homelessness; medical services in shelters; and addiction services at The Mission.

The next last session of this spring event will happen on Monday, April 24 @ 7:00 p.m., and will feature a presentation by Erin Dej, from the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness at York University. Erin received her doctorate in Criminology from the University of Ottawa. Her area of research includes homelessness, mental health, and autonomy among homeless men and women.

Erin will provide an overview of homelessness on a national scale, looking at the number of people who experience homelessness in Canada, how shelter use has changed in the past decade, and what homelessness looks like for key populations such as youth, families, and Indigenous Peoples.  She will also describe the opportunities to make significant change in homelessness – most notably, the development of the upcoming National Housing Strategy. The second part of the presentation will draw on Erin’s doctoral research on homelessness in Ottawa, including how people experiencing homelessness navigate the system, find services (in particular mental health services), and what supports they say they need to help them become safely and securely housed.

The session is free and open to anyone. It will be held in The Ottawa Mission’s dining room at 35 Waller Street. Refreshments will be served.

Please RSVP your attendance to Miriam Dupuis at volunteer@ottawamission.com