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What makes Holistic Neighborhood Development unique?
Place-Based
One of the greatest indicators of one’s life-long economic mobility is the neighborhood in which one lives. HND asserts that place is the most important factor to consider when seeking long-term outcomes, and it is one of the most neglected lenses within traditional poverty alleviation tactics. Place allows us to go deep, work broadly, and invest in the long-haul for real results.
Proximity
We cannot solve anything from a distance. We have to draw near, enter into relationship, and open ourselves up to the possibility of mutual transformation. Transactional giving between strangers will never end poverty. You cannot serve someone out of poverty. HND leads with neighboring and relationship.
Integrative
Poverty is neither caused, sustained, or solved by any one thing; it is the dynamic intersection of multiple factors, systems, and circumstances. The “holistic” dimension of HND is about committing to comprehensive engagement that seeks innovative, integrative strategies for long-term outcomes.
Agile
Cities, people, opinions, policies, and economies can all change in the blink of an eye. Strategies that worked last year might night work in the next. Work done for months may come up empty and expectations may get upended at a moment’s notice. HND can create real change because it is flexible and adaptive, constantly committed to the best, healthiest approach, even if that means a radical course correction mid-stream. We do not seek the perpetuation of our program; it is always about the thriving of a community and whatever it takes to make that happen.
Impact-Oriented
Results matter. Not activity, not busyness, not arbitrary program numbers, but impact. They may be hard to come by, hard to define, or hard to measure, but they are core to what it means to commit to HND. We want to see lives and communities thriving, not dependent on external support year after year. We do not settle for less than true and lasting change.
Data-Driven
Flourishing communities is not just a big vision for us. It is a process we have developed with tools to track and measure the health of a place. This process will define and create the strategies that will lead to long-term, lasting change in your neighborhood.
Hope for the Future of Housing
With the massive population shifts and the renewed investment in urban development, we are faced with a very real and pressing challenge of having enough housing – especially enough housing that is affordable to individuals and families across the economic spectrum. For those of us in the industry, it can feel overwhelming and the picture can seem bleak at times. However, there are so many courageous and creative people working to innovate and expand how we work for justice and equity. Three of those people joined Shawn on this episode to discuss the future of housing: FCS President, Jim Wehner; CEO of Purpose Built Communities, Carol Naughton; and CEO of Atlanta Habitat for Humanity, Alan Ferguson Sr.
What’s Next for FCS Housing
When it comes to housing, it doesn’t matter how strategic your plans are, how much experience you have, or how well-resourced you are, there will always be market forces, neighborhood realities, and local policies that are out of your control. What worked for the last 5 years may be detrimental to the neighborhood if repeated in the next 5 years. As FCS is looking at our own changing context, there are a few pivots and innovations that are shaping our next steps. Join Shawn as he talks about these innovations with Jim Wehner, Marvin Nesbitt, and Danielle Clay.
Caring Well for Families
Housing is hard work. From the cost and complications of acquisitions, to the challenges of sustainable development, to the complexities of the market, housing is not for the faint of heart. But, just getting houses built and made affordable is not the whole story. Ensuring that individuals are housed in ways that lead to flourishing people and places, means we have to care deeply for the people to ensure they have all the support necessary for succeeding in place. Joining Shawn to talk about how we care well for those who buy and rent from us are two of the rock stars on the FCS Mixed-Income Housing team – Shell Stafford, our Family Services Manager, and Ashely Edwards, our Resident Services Manager.