ADVOCACY EFFORTS

Why We Advocate

We believe that systems-level action centering youth voice is a key part of making long lasting and effective change in our community. Additionally, we recognize our position of privilege related to our respective identities and association with a large, well-respected research university. Therefore, a key part of our work is using our power and privilege to advocate for issues related to youth, health, and housing, and center the voices and experiences of youth experiencing homelessness.  

How We Advocate

We collectively keep tabs on the bills being reviewed in the Minnesota legislature related to youth, health and housing. Frequently, we review these bills during our weekly Lab team meetings and have conversations about ways they intersect with our work. From this monitoring and our community connections, we then move to engage in advocacy, often via submitting written testimony or oral testimony, writing letters to legislators, consultation regarding the relationship between housing and adolescent health, authoring op-eds, and supporting multi-sector consortia. We also strive to include youth in our advocacy efforts whenever possible and in ways that are both trauma informed and empower youth.

Policy Priorities

We support policies that dismantle structural oppression and address inequities for youth housing and health. We believe in centering youth voices and those with lived experiences of homelessness. We support the following priorities: 


Examples of Policies and Community Initiatives We Have Supported

Interested in a letter of support for a particular issue from the YHHL lab? Contact yhhl@umn.edu. We’d love to hear from you!