In June of 2023, Green Violin, a community development company that delivers sustainable housing in Edmonton, Alberta, and Intelligent Futures, a Solutions Lab Consultant that navigates complex challenges, launched the 2SLGBTQ+ Seniors Housing Solutions Lab - a National Housing Strategy Solutions Lab funded by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).
The CMHC Solutions Lab program offers organizations with funding and expertise to help them solve complex housing problems, and explore new ways of making progress on a housing challenge. These labs fuel bottom-up collaborative innovation by bringing diverse groups of people together to solve complex housing problems to help inform decision making at all levels.
CONTEXT
The 2SLGBTQ+ Seniors housing lab is working to find innovative, affordable housing solutions that explore issues of discrimination, ageism, and isolation in housing amongst 2SLGBTQ+ seniors in Edmonton. While recognition of the rights and freedoms of the 2SLGBTQ+ community has improved over time, many 2SLGBTQ+ individuals still feel the impacts of past discriminations. For context, Canada decriminalized homosexuality in 1969. This means that the youngest seniors (those 65 and over) today were 11 years old when this legislation was passed, formative years that lead to different life experiences with regards to their gender identity and sexual orientation.
18.8% of
Canadians
are over the age of 65. By 2030, this is expected to grow to over 25%.
(Statistics Canada, 2022)Every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. Currently, many affordable housing solutions lack consideration for the needs of those who fall outside of the ‘traditional family’ structure. This process will serve as an opportunity to build knowledge, relationships, and empathy among community members to expand the understanding of the lived experience of 2SLGBTQ+ seniors. Exploring non-traditional housing solutions that can meet the needs of 2SLGBTQ+ seniors who want to live with their partners has the potential to greatly impact community health and well being, while ensuring the latter years of these individuals lives are as rewarding as they can be.
COMPLEX CHALLENGE
Through a collaborative, innovative process, this Solutions Lab will take a holistic approach to understand the factors that influence the challenge question at hand.
Through the Lab process, an interdisciplinary group of committed individuals and organizations will collaborate to explore this complex system, co-creating and testing potential solutions to improve housing in Edmonton for 2SLGBTQ+ seniors. The intended result is a roadmap that reflects the learning of the Lab and provides other Canadian cities with ideas, models and solutions that can be applied to help improve housing across the country.
2% - 13%
of seniors
in Canada identify as part of the 2SLGBTQ+ community.
(SHARP Foundation, 2019) 12,480+
Albertans
identify as transgender
or non-binary
(Statistics Canada, 2021)