It’s Earth Month! And since Earth is our one and only home, there’s no better time to talk about the strong connection between housing and climate justice.
A ton of good, reliable, powerful information is available all over the internet about the need for sustainable building practices for new housing, energy retrofits for existing housing, and beneficial electrification. All of these initiatives will help reduce the energy cost burden on homeowners with low incomes and the overall emissions generated in heating and cooling everyone’s homes.
Healthy, decent, affordable, sustainable housing MUST be at the core of the climate transition.
However, we’ve begun to see some challenges in this work.
In my conversations with other organizations in Portland doing important climate resilience work with low-income homeowners, I’ve heard over and over again that the homes in need of retrofits and electrification are often in significant disrepair. And while lower utility bills are a positive and necessary outcome, we need to address issues of general repair in order to improve the overall safety and health of residents.
The mold from a water leak, the challenge of a broken appliance, the risk of improper wiring…all of these elements and so many more are hazards that homeowners live with if they do not have the resources to fix them, and their health and quality of life suffer. Occasionally, homeowners lose their homes because these repairs become too unsafe, too overwhelming, or too far out of compliance with city code.
That’s why ReBuilding Center is building a home retention program to provide free materials and skills-building classes, supporting people living with low incomes to repair their homes.*
We are excited to lean into this work, and invite you to join us with a gift to help us launch the program later this year. With your support, we can harness the power of our reclaimed materials and repair education to help stem displacement and sustain safe and healthy homes for our neighbors.
*We’re currently recruiting for a Senior Manager of Partnerships and Programs to lead this work – check out the job description here!