Newsletter – May 2019

Education and Shelter

At first sight, you may think that “education” and “shelter” are not connected, however, knowledge and skills development are the base on which a person can make rational decisions and improve their home economy management. This is why education plays a fundamental role in HPHA’s work.

 

The cycle of workshops is open to the wider community where we work, everyone can participate. The main purpose is to support families by offering them the necessary tools to improve their income administration, understand their priorities and assure safer debt payment planning.  Another topic involved is the one of secure tenure, where many families share their personal experiences and benefit from them.

 

Several families have improved their economy planning and results are notorious -they were able to achieve goals that some time ago seemed impossible. This type of process is what we understand as “empowering through shelter”.

 

The lack of the necessary tools to manage home economy is a constant weakness, and in vulnerable areas it is more evident. If we also consider the lack of access to adequate housing or fair tenancy- because of the high costs and requirements impossible to meet- the search of new holistic solutions to improve life quality of individuals and communities triggers an urgent social commitment.

 

Daniela, one of the Seed House family members, explains that after the Home economy workshop her husband realized that he was spending a large portion of their income on cigarettes, even more than on his baby’s diapers.  Through this workshop he decided to stop smoking!

 

Contribution to Secure Tenure

During 2018, Hábitat para la Humanidad Argentina participated in the Solid Ground advocacy campaign by conducting several researches with key actors in Argentina and we would like to share them with you:

• Publication: Preliminary Study to design a Fair Rentals Program in the City of Buenos Aires – 2018

 

• Webinars Cycle

1^st Lab – April: The paradox between the housing need and unused buildings Buenos Aires, Latin America and The Caribbean.

 

2^nd Lab | July: Informal Tenants, renting inadequate housing in Buenos Aires, Latin America and The Caribbean.

 

3rd Lab | October: Successful experiences in public policies of urban voids and secure tenure around the world.

 

4th Lab | November: Publication presentation, conclusions and opportunities.

 

“Even though in Latin America the tendency to rent is getting stronger, it is still absent in the public agenda, there are legal voids, institutional problems, high costs and informalities in transactions, an emergent cultural acceptance, a weak social organization and a market based on the distrust of the parties”.

 

 

Estela
Shelter: a matter of health

“This home improvement is what I desired the most!” Estela is a well-known neighbor, whose empanadas and tortas fritas (Argentine typical dishes) are really popular! She shares and sells them –  an important part of her family income. For 25 years, she lived in a house with a roof that leaked and a room with no windows.  Her children grew up fearing the rain and the wind.

 

Estela and her husband joined Hábitat para la Humanidad Argentina and through our Home Improvements project, they were able to improve their house by adding a window, installing a new floor, painting the kitchen and repairing the roof. The house is completely changed and the whole family is delighted!

 

Some days before the improvements were finished, Estela’s youngest daughter had a motorbike accident, and fortunately she was able to take care of her in the new and improved room. A home improvement may be of great impact in the life of a family. Estela told us “God was kind to me because he knew I was going to need it”

 

 

Why I support HPHA

My first experience with HPHA was four years ago in a corporate build with company I work for. I was going through a hard year at a personal level and I had realized that what I actually needed was to spend some of my time helping others.

The build was a great experience to share with my coworkers, but more importantly, by the end of the day I could understand what it really meant that Yami and Leo had opened their door to me, allowing me to be part of something so valuable for them: their future home. I was fascinated with the experience, so the next day, at work, we decided to make an annual event of participating in a build day, and helping more families.

If we want to build a better world we must join hands with others and help them to improve their quality of life – and of this I am now convinced. Helping is not the only way; we should make others aware of these needs and make it a philosophy of life for us and those who surround us.

Thank you HPHA, volunteers and donors for being part of this amazing project!