The GSC Annual Meeting 2020 Open Space session on Homes and Communities was led by Sahdia Khan, Richard Evans, Seki Hirano and Miriam Lopez- Villegas.

Key take aways from the session:

• A validation from our peers that shifting from “Shelter and Settlement” to “Homes and Communities” gets closer to the experience of the people we serve, opens up various dimensions that relate to the wellbeing of the people we serve and better reflects our aspirations even when we acknowledge we do not always achieve them.
• Mostly consensus on “Shelter to Home” shift (Home is a more comprehensive concept and we acknowledge we have a direct contribution at this level). Less agreement on “Settlement to Community” shift. We argue that deciding how suitable the term Community might be, is not necessarily defined by the services our ‘sector’ provides but firstly by considering the interactions among the population we serve.
• There is nearly 100% appetite for a deeper dive into the H&C concept. It helps recognize the value of the work we do (a child that is displaced when is 5 years old, will become a teenager in a camp, in this home and setting). Further, the choice of words we use makes a difference and expanding the sector reductive terminology might also be an instrument to raise awareness and mobilize resources.

Materials shared:

• Explanatory video

Participants and Feedback

• Participants list
• Feedback