Advocate

Habitat for Humanity defines advocacy as changing policies and systems to eliminate barriers to adequate, affordable housing in order to create a world where everyone has a decent place to live.

In other words, while not visible like homes themselves, laws, regulations and rules about land and building are a major part of housing. Smart policies and systems can promote access to decent housing, while other policies and systems may create unnecessary barriers, making it harder than it needs to be to find land for construction, build the home itself or be able to afford a place to live. The essence of advocacy is not accepting shortcomings in current policy, but rather working to shape it in a way that supports people in need of adequate housing.

1 in 5 New York households spend half or more of their income on housing. Cost-burdened families are suffering and it must come to an end.  To build out of the housing crisis, each of our Habitat affiliates in New York would have to build 1 house per day, 365 days a year, for over 50 years.  The affordable housing problem requires a holistic approach.  Unfortunately, building is not enough to solve the problem.

Advocacy is needed to help solve the problem because advocacy:

• Keeps the pressure on politicians to support affordable housing legislation
• Changes community attitudes about families in need of affordable housing

Follow HFH-NYS on Social Media:  Every time you read, like, and share articles and facts posted by HFH-NYS, you are raising community awareness and support for affordable housing issues. Community support is essential to Habitat’s mission because without community support Habitat would not be able to recruit volunteers, fundraise, garner support from politicians, and spread general awareness. Please like, share, and re-tweet Habitat’s message on social media by following Habitat on Facebook and Twitter.

Join Us for Advocacy Events:  If you want to get involved with our growing advocacy efforts as a volunteer at our Capitol Build Day or join us for one of our advocacy days in Albany, please contact us and let us know!