[homeles_ot-l] FW: UN SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR HOUSING - WOMEN!

Fri Jul 8 13:38:11 EDT 2011

FYI . . . Lynne Browne

Coordinator, Alliance to End Homelessness 

613-241-7913 ext. 205, lbrowne at ysb.on.ca <mailto:lbrowne at ysb.on.ca> 

From: Leilani Farha [mailto:leilani at equalityrights.org] 
Sent: July-05-11 4:33 PM
To: 'Arlene Hache'
Subject: UN SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR HOUSING - WOMEN!
Importance: High

Hi Everyone, 

I am working with the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, Raquel
Rolnick, as the North American focal point for a project she is
undertaking on Women and the Right to Land and Housing.  Women's Rights
to Land and Property is the thematic focus of the Special Rapporteur's
report which she will present to the United Nations Human Rights Council
in 2012.  The aim of the project, is to generate global discussion and
debate on women's housing and land rights and for these discussions and
debates to inform her report.  

This email invites you/your organization to participate in a web-based
discussion on women's housing and land rights in North America (US and
Canada).  As regional focal point, my job is to encourage participation
and to help guide discussion/debate in North America. I know we are all
overloaded with work and summer fun (!) so, here are 3 reasons to
participate: 

1.       It provides us with an important opportunity to continue our
own discussions on women's housing/homelessness, at a time when these
issues have little traction in Canada politically but are of course key
social issues;   

2.       The international human rights system is particularly important
to engage when we are faced with a government that has no interest in
the implementation of human rights at the domestic level.  At least at
the international level women's homelessness and poverty in Canada (one
of the richest countries in the world) are a real concern. It is
important for us to keep up international pressure on Canada - the
Special Rapporteur's report can help with this;  

3.       Canada will be reviewed by the Committee on Economic, Social
and Cultural Rights and by the Human Rights Council under the Universal
Periodic Review, in the near future. Strong statements from other UN
bodies/officials like the Special Rapporteur will help to inform those
reviews. 

I know some of you don't work on women's housing/land issues; I have
sent you this email because you might know of an individual or an
organization who would like to participate and who would have something
to say ... so please forward this email to them! In particular, it is
important that we try to  reach voices we don't always hear, for
example: women with disabilities, Aboriginal women, immigrant/newcomer
women; young women and girls.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE? 

Scroll down this email and read about the web based discussion platform.
Click on the URL provided <http://www.righttohousingdebates.org/>  and
you will be on the platform. Once there you will need to register. Then,
I suggest you familiarize yourself with the site. I have found the
platform takes some getting used to, but after you have engaged the
platform once, it's much easier to navigate thereafter.   Once you've
registered and have figured out how to navigate the site - find the
general introductions section and post an introduction of yourself so
that others know with whom they are in discussion.  Then go to the North
American discussion section ... and start talking!  I will post some
discussion questions to help initiate conversation and then we will see
where it goes! 

If you have any questions about your participation in this project,
please feel free to contact me directly. 

Sincerely, 

Leilani 

Leilani Farha

Executive Director

CERA - Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation

Cell: +1.613.302-7769

Fax: +1.416.352-5507

Skype: farwise

www.equalityrights.org/cera

The virtual platform of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to
Adequate Housing is now up and running. This new tool will be used
initially for developing the project "Women and the Right to Land and
Housing." People worldwide can now register and contribute to the
thematic report and the guide and leaflet which will be produced on the
subject. 

With the virtual platform, it is easy now to collaborate with the
Special Rapporteur. If you are interested in the topic "Women and
Housing Rights" and want to contribute to the production of the report
to be presented by the Rapporteur to the UN Human Rights Council next
year as well as with the guide and leaflet which will be produced on the
topic, please join the debate! www.righttohousingdebates.org
<https://sys.jaiminho.com.br/link.php?URL=aHR0cDovL3d3dy5yaWdodHRvaG91c2
luZ2RlYmF0ZXMub3Jn&Name=&EncryptedMemberID=MTc4OTcxNzg3Mjg%3D&CampaignID
=2664&CampaignStatisticsID=1975&Demo=0&Email=Z29tZXpfbWF5cmFAeWFob28uY29
t> 

The discussion system:

Introduction

The collaboration and discussion system and discussion of the UN Special
Rapporteur on the Right to Adequate Housing is an interactive
environment of debates, exchange of experiences, information and
documents about the Right to Housing in the world.

With a collective debate as a starting point, this system will make it
possible to think the priorities for the right to housing in each region
of the globe through debates carried out regionally in Portuguese,
Spanish and English.

The result of these discussions will be used to produce a Report, a
Guide and a Leaflet about Women's land and housing rights to be written
by the Special Rapporteur.

Who participates?

The Project will be coordinated by the team of the Special Rapporteur,
including a project coordinator and a team of 7 regional Focal Points.
Representatives of 7 regions of the globe will be able to take part in
the process as members of organizations and movements linked to the
right to housing, scholars involved with the theme and the population in
general public.

Why participate?

To take part in this network means:

*	To contribute with the thematic report of the UN Special
Rapporteur on Right to Adequate Housing;
*	To increase the visibility of regional and specific fights
through a channel with UN`s legitimacy;
*	To have the possibility to get acquainted with other
experiences;
*	To participate in the production of materials on the Right to
Adequate Housing.

How to participate

Anyone can register in the system
<http://righttohousingdebates.org/wp-login.php?action=register>  and
will automatically be allowed to:

*	Make comments on the proposed themes;
*	Share experiences, reports and complaints about the several
appointed themes;
*	To publicize documents, regional legislation and other
materials;
*	To contribute to the understanding of the concept of right to
adequate housing from the point of view of women from all parts of the
world;
*	To render available other pieces of information which might
contribute for the production of the report and for promotional
materials.

 Regions involved

*	North America
*	South America
*	Western Europe
*	Eastern Europe and Central Asia
*	Middle East and North Africa
*	Sub-Saharan Africa
*	South and Southeast Asia and the Pacific

 How will the interaction of the system take place:

 Creation of a discussion topic

*	Only the Focal Points and Coordinators will be allowed to create
a discussion topic;
*	For the creation of a debate it will be necessary to choose a
region, an idiom, define the title, insert a description as well as key
words of the proposed discussion;
*	The discussion will have a pre-established deadline, which might
be extended or shortened.

 Participation in the debate

*	Once the debate is created
<http://righttohousingdebates.org/?post_type=pauta&idioma_filtro%5b%5d=e
nglish> , all users will be allowed to make comments about the theme,
make proposals and share files which contribute to the debate;
*	Besides, the users will be able to make comment on other users'
contributions;
*	The users will also have permission to make comments on debates
of other regions;

 Voting

*	The system allows a discussion to be taken to voting whenever it
is the general wish.
*	When the deadline for comments and proposals is closed, the
Focal Points will have a pre-determined deadline to systematize the
proposals and present them for voting;
*	During the voting process, all users will be allowed to vote the
proposals so as to define the priorities;
*	From this point, a proportion of votes per proposal will be
generated.
*	Once the process is completed, there will be a page containing
the details of the discussion and the proportion of votes for each one
of the proposals.

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