Poverty & Homelessness                                                                                 

The Poverty & Homelessness spoke connects the current efforts around the state who work on initiatives, programs, policies, and strategies that focus on poverty, homelessness, and other related challenges with an eye toward the impacts of girls and women. This spoke focuses on working together in our communities to solve poverty by providing resources, helping people rebuild their lives, and assisting women to stabilize the crises in their lives. In terms of homelessness, the goal is to ensure that it is rare, brief, and non-recurring. The hope is that everyone has access to safe, decent, affordable housing with the needed resources and supports for self-sufficiency and well-being. Although spoke leaders, partners, affiliates, and participants work on these challenges for all genders, they will be increasing conversations, gathering data, and considering solutions by gender. To learn more, listen to the spoke leaders discuss the work on this 15-minute podcast.

Spoke Leaders

Bold Vision & Goals

To make Utah a place where more girls and women can thrive, the Poverty & Homelessness spoke leaders and partners have crafted the vision and goals below. Spoke leadership and UWLP team members are currently working to collect baseline data that will assist in adding numbers to the changes we want to see by 2026 and 2030.

Vision: To significantly reduce poverty and homelessness for girls and women in Utah. 

Goals: 

1. Reduce the number of Utahn’s living in poverty by 5% in 2026 and 10% by 2030. [Metric Forthcoming]
2. Reduce the number of Utah women accessing homeless services by 5% by 2026 and 10% by 2030. [Metric]
3. Decrease the number of cost-burdened families by 5% in 2026 and 10% by 2030. [Metric Forthcoming]
4. Increase the availability of affordable and “deeply affordable” housing for low-income families in Utah by 5% in 2026 and 10% in 2030. [Metric Forthcoming]
5. Implement at least two policies that facilitate staged disqualifications from public assistance to mitigate the ‘cliff effect’. [Metric Forthcoming]
6. Change Utahns’ agreement (understanding and perceptions) in the following areas: [Metric Dashboard]
   1. If one is experiencing poverty in Utah, it is the result of their own choices. [Decrease agreement by 10% by 2026 and 20% by 2030]
   2. If one is experiencing homelessness in Utah, it is the result of their own choices. [Decrease agreement by 10% by 2026 and 20% by 2030]
   3. I don’t think there is much I can do about poverty and homelessness in my community. [Decrease agreement by 10% by 2026 and 25% by 2030]
   4. Home is the first step toward positioning children and families for the opportunity to thrive and to plan for the future. [Increase agreement by 5% by 2026 and 10% by 2030]

Thriving Statement: Women and girls thrive when their families have access to safe, decent, affordable housing with the needed resources and supports for self-sufficiency and wellbeing.

Partners