Homelessness has been a challenge in the United States since before it was a country, as the early colonies struggled to address the “wandering poor.” Today, it is a full-on crisis. The Department of Housing and Urban Development reports that in 2023, more than 650,000 people in the U.S. were unhoused due to factors including rising housing costs, immigration, and the end of COVID-19 relief programs. Among the states, California tops the charts, with nearly 30% of America’s homeless and 50% of the nation’s unsheltered homeless.

However, innovative new solutions are bringing fresh glimmers of hope. As part of that solution, we’re using our business models to move the process forward. Here’s how we’re doing it.

Founded during the pandemic, nonprofit DignityMoves is developing interim supportive housing communities in California on temporarily vacant land with prefabricated, relocatable “tiny home” structures, to give every resident their own room with a door that locks. In these communities, service providers offer critical case management, supporting residents in achieving the stability and security needed to transition out of homelessness.

As a new model, interim supportive housing is proving to be a lynchpin solution to homelessness. Of the 610........

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