Courting citizens to solve homelessness

Harnessing the energy of a civil society may be the way to solve this social problem, ex-premier says
Frances Bula, Vancouver Sun
Published: Saturday, April 05, 2008

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Mike Harcourt has a dream about how to solve homelessness in this region by 2015. His dream is not that federal and provincial governments will reverse 20 years of policy and start pouring money into housing the way they used to.

Instead, he thinks it can be done by tapping into the willingness of many people with "deep pockets" in the community -- people who are aghast at what they see in Vancouver and are willing to do something about it.

"There are lots of people in town who are disgusted and upset by the homelessness on the street," said the former premier. "They are people with deep pockets and big hearts and they want very concrete projects they can give to."

If Harcourt and those who have been working with him on the still-evolving project can pull off harnessing the energy of "civil society" to help solve homelessness, they will have achieved something that no one else has in North America.

But he believes it can be done.

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