FEANTSA

📢 Workshop Report - 'Challenges and Opportunities of Building Renovation for Hungarian Homelessness Care Organisations' 🔴⚪️🟢 This week our Energy Poverty team Anna Zsofia Bajomi, Dr. and Fanni Szöllősi hosted a workshop as part of the 2024 National Conference of Homeless Service Providers in Balatonföldvár, Hungary. The workshop began with a presentation of the results of a FEANTSA membership survey conducted in the second quarter of the year which aimed to identify the different financial, technical, administrative, and renewable energy challenges faced by homeless service providers across Hungary. A number of the concerns expressed in the survey highlighted the fact that rising energy costs and inefficient buildings are often causing discomfort for clients and resulting in the decrease of the quality of services 🌿 Following the presentation, a panel discussion was held with the aim of identifying a range of solutions to some of the challenges encountered in the survey. Guest speakers had been carefully selected with these challenges in mind, with experts from sectors such as the building technology, architectural and financial sectors present to offer their opinions on how best to address these issues! 💡 We were lucky enough to be joined by 🗣 Norbert Ercesnorbert - Engineer at the Department of Building Services and Mechanical Engineering, Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME) Péter Vedres - Head of the Sustainable Development Department at the Hungarian Energy and Public Utility Regulatory Authority (MEKH) Gabriella Ocsi - Architect, Közti Zrt and the Department of Residential Building Design, Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME) Agnes Szalkai-Lorincz - Community Energy Expert at Friends of the Earth Hungary (MTVSZ) The panel discussion was followed by a workshopping session where participants had the chance to plan and design the renovation of a number of buildings belonging to institutions that participated in the survey. The building profiles selected were those that posed the most complex financial, technical, and administrative challenges 🏠 We would like to express our thanks once again to our wonderful guest speakers for their insights and discussions, and to those who participated in our workshop and helped to make it a success. A special thanks also to Hajléktalanokért Közalapítvány for organising this year’s National Conference of Homeless Service Providers - and for giving us the space to have these important discussions and conversations! You can find out more about their fantastic work here - 🔗 https://bit.ly/47gbfeR Below you can check out a more detailed breakdown of the findings from the FEANTSA Energy Poverty Survey, and take a look at some of the solutions offered up by our guest speakers and workshop participants 👇

Just registered for the launch of the 9th Overview of Housing Exclusion. This edition focuses on children in Europe facing homelessness and poor housing. See you there.

⚡ It's that time of year again! On the 19th of September, in collaboration with Fondation Abbé Pierre, we are launching the 9th Overview of Housing Exclusion in Europe. This edition focuses on children's homelessness. Register here: https://bit.ly/3yFqfpV #HousingExclusion2024

Registrations close on Sunday! Hurry up if you want to join us in Budapest! ⌛

Tomorrow is International Overdose Awareness Day 💡 FEANTSA emphasises the urgent need to address the connection between homelessness and overdose. People experiencing homelessness face heightened risks, often due to barriers to accessing healthcare and support. 🏠 Stable housing is key to reducing drug-related harm. We call for stronger support, stigma reduction, and harm reduction services to help save lives. 🔗 Read our statement here: https://bit.ly/3Xmh731

From 2002 to 2022, household expenditure on housing in the EU rose from 21.1% to 24.1%—a 3 percentage point increase. 🚨 Ireland, Spain, and Italy saw the largest increases, with household spending rising by 7.1, 6.3, and 5.4 percentage points, respectively.

📣 Final call! Registrations for the 18th European Research Conference on Homelessness end this week! This event will take place on 12-13 Sept 2024 in Budapest, Hungary. This is your final opportunity to join top researchers and academics! With only 20 places left, the registration deadline is this Saturday (01/09) Don't miss out, register today 🔗 https://bit.ly/3xFG7ID

This week we're taking a look at how Valente empowered vulnerable individuals, such as people experiencing homeless, during the 2023 General Election in the Netherlands! 🔵 ⚪ 🔴 Kim van de Wetering, Communications Advisor at Valente, takes us through this campaign, which saw the group advocate for the rights and well being of people experiencing homelessness, send a pamphlet containing their five key policy points to ever party's electoral preparatory committee, and design & produce a visual which illustrated every party’s position on a range of important social issues! 🗳 You can read all about Valente's campaign and check out a whole host of other interesting articles in the Spring edition of the FEANTSA Homeless in Europe magazine: A Democratic Europe? Elections, Homelessness and the right to vote! 👇 🔗 https://bit.ly/3yE0aHW

💬 'Through active engagement with the democratic process, people who have experienced any form of housing precarity, can assert their agency and demand accountability from elected officials' This week we're taking a look at Focus Ireland's innovative Voter Registration Drive, launched in response to recent reforms in Irish electoral legislation which seek to enhance accessibility to the electoral register! 🗳 In this article, Louise Bayliss, Campaign Coordinator for Focus Ireland, takes us through the the Drive's two main objectives: to give agency back to individuals experiencing homelessness, and to create real political change to help end homelessness! 🏠 The piece highlights how the campaign aimed to empower voters to engage with candidates and to use their vote ahead of Local and European Elections in Ireland this past June. Staff and volunteers were available to assist potential voters with the online registration process and collaborated with the National Postal Service to create 'AddressPoint' - a free service enabling people without a fixed address to receive regular post and to register to vote in their local constituency! 📫 You can read all about this campaign and check out a whole host of other interesting articles in the Spring edition of the FEANTSA Homeless in Europe magazine: A Democratic Europe? Elections, Homelessness and the right to vote! 👇 🔗 bit.ly/FEA-Mag-Spring24

🌟 Exciting News for EU Cities! 🌟 This October 2024, 15 cities across the EU will be organising a #homelessness count within the framework of the European Homelessness Counts project. As we look ahead to 2025, we're thrilled to announce a call for new cities to join this impactful initiative! If your city has over 200,000 inhabitants and political support from your city council, we want you on board — whether you have previous homelessness count experience or not. 💡 Why Join? ✅ Funding provided ✅ Be part of a meaningful project 📅 Interested? Join our online information session by filling in the form. 🗓️ Friday, 23rd of August 🕙 10-11 AM (CEST) For more details and to register, contact Laura Fritz at [email protected]. More information can be found on our webpage. Don't miss out—the deadline for applications is 30th August! A project funded by the European Commission in collaboration with FEANTSA, LUCAS KU Leuven, and Metropolitan Research Institute - Városkutatás Kft. ✍ Sign up for the information session: https://bit.ly/4eSmSfA ℹ Learn more: https://bit.ly/3xSE4Ry