Watch the first of our Emergency Shelter webinar series on the effective role of shelter in a crisis response system. Emergency shelters play a critical role in ending homelessness. Effective shelters should embrace a Housing First approach, offer immediate and low-barrier access to anyone facing a housing crisis, and measure shelter performance in order to improve results.

Do homeless people need help? This article explores the 7 top reasons for why the government should provide shelter to the homeless.

For those experiencing homelessness or who have mental health issues, transitional or supportive housing and homelessness shelters are a good place for you to stay. A person who is homeless is commonly suffering from poverty, unemployment, or a lack of affordable housing.

#TinyHomeVillages are helping to lift people out of the streets into practical, safe, and secure transitional housing. Seattle is experiencing a staggering homelessness crisis. Innovative affordable housing and transitional shelter solutions are needed, and that's where the Low Income Housing Institute comes in. In partnership with the city and other nonprofits, especially Nickelsville, they create micro shelter villages for individuals and families experiencing #homelessness.

In Finland, the number of homeless people has fallen sharply. The reason: The country applies the “Housing First” concept. Those affected by homelessness receive a small apartment and counseling –without any preconditions. And: All this is cheaper than accepting homelessness.

It is clear there are significant geographic differences in the progress toward ending homelessness that we’re seeing in communities. While some communities are documenting significant reductions in their annual Point-in-Time counts, other communities are faced with increasing numbers of people living unsheltered.

Brad Gibson had been homeless for years, going from low paying jobs to no job at all, when he connected with a group of highly organized homeless activists in Portland, OR. The group had banded together to demand the right to exist somewhere, in spite of a totally monetized, expensive consumer society that seems to chew up and spit out those who can’t make enough money to "exist".

Welcome to the most talked about neighborhood in Austin, Texas! Community First! Village is a 51-acre master planned community that provides affordable, permanent housing and a supportive community for men and women coming out of chronic homelessness.