Subject: Harm Reduction

I'm Josep and I have 10 years of experience working in the social sector as a Social Educator. I started working with people with disabilities, with children in care and since 2016 I'm working with this new paradigm HF in Lleida. I believe in this new paradigm and I also think that it is possible to adapt it to the needs of each city. We can do it!

Peter-Jan started working in day shelter for homeless people during his studies, combined with working in the crisis shelter and night shelter in the city of Ghent. In 2012, he started his job as a Housing First support worker for the public welfare of Ghent, this project was part of the Belgian Housing First project, funded by the Belgian government. I was then asked by SAM VZW to assist in the Flemish housing first training to provide insights from his daily practice. His interest on Housing First still growing he took part of the Hub’s Train-the-Trainer, followed by the Outreach! Course organized by SAM Vzw Belgium. He still works as a Housing first support worker for the city of Ghent, and provide the Housing First and Outreach! courses for he Flemish region and as a freelance commissioned by SAM vzw Belgium.

Juha has been working for 10 years in the field of homelessness. He started as a frontline support worker in 2010 for the Finnish Youth housing association services (NALPA) before becoming Housing First service manager and then CEO of NALPA. He joined Y-Säätiö in 2018 as coordinator for the National Housing First Development Network and became the Lead Coordinator in 2020 and is currently head of international affairs at Y-Säätiö. As part of his role at the Network, Juha organises training courses at national level, and is working on developing the Housing First model together with dozens of NGO’s and cities.

Muriel is a Psychologist with 10 years of experience in Harm Reduction. She has been a Housing First Manager since 2013 - including ACT + ICM team management - and has rehoused more than 50 clients to date. As a Housing First trainer, Muriel shares her expertise in Harm Reduction, Recovery, Peer work, Crises management, and Violence.

David has over 15 years of work with drug addicts, including as an outreach worker, frontline worker, community therapist, and parental counsellor. He also has 3 years experience working in a halfway house, and is now participating in change of Czech social system to reduce and end homelessness in the Czech Republic. In addition to his training in Housing First, David is also a trainer of motivational interviewing, Buddhist meditation, psychodrama and focusing.