On 3 October 2015 over a hundred people came together in Liberty Hall to address the current housing and homelessness crisis. Included were activists, academics, community organisers, trade union representatives, and various individuals who have been personally affected by the housing crisis. There were those who had been made homeless through economic evictions, or were experiencing problems with their private landlord. There were those who have been on the social housing waiting list for years, with no end in sight. And there were many others who, for one reason or another, were being affected by the lack of affordability, supply, and security of tenure that is characteristic of housing in Ireland, and Dublin in particular.

While a number of talks by academics and others placed the current housing crisis within the context of Ireland’s increasing moves towards a commodified system of housing, the real purpose of the day was to create a participatory dialogue about the problems and more importantly solutions to the problem of housing.

In attendance on the day were students from the MA in Geography at Maynooth University. In this series of posts, they report back on the conference presentations, discussions, and proposed solutions.

#1 Samantha Smallhorne Dunne gives an overview of the themes and talks of the day.
#2 Sasha Brown reflects on the democratic structure of the conference and on making decisions collectively.
#3 Kellie Payne looks at practical housing solutions to address homelessness suggested by the group.
#4 Patrick Geaney looks at the prospect of changing the remit of NAMA to address the housing problem.
#5 Caoilfhionn D’Arcy looks at renting solutions and funding social housing.

A follow-up event, The People’s Housing Forum, will be held this Saturday 28 November in Liberty Hall. Anyone interested in the issue of housing, please come along and join the discussion.

peopleshousing forum

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