With the exception of Finland, homelessness is on the rise across the whole of Europe, even in countries with strong economic growth like Germany or countries on the economic rebound like Spain and Portugal. In Dublin, in 2015, family homelessness increased by almost 60% in 12 months. One in 70 people in Athens experience homelessness, while on any given night in London more than 8,000 people can be found sleeping rough. In Warsaw, rough sleeping has increased by more than a third since 2013.

These shocking facts about homelessness in Europe reflect trends around the world. Homelessness is growing in all socioeconomic contexts — in developed, emerging and developing economies, in prosperity as well as in austerity.

Though there is no international data to indicate the scale of the problem, I have yet to visit a city where I didn’t see the problem firsthand and where it wasn’t recognised as a significant issue.

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Homelessness is the most egregious violation of human rights. Homeless people live in the harshest conditions, without anything: no shelter from the elements, no drinking water or sanitation facilities, no bed to lie on of their own, and certainly no hope of long-term housing options. They are subject to horrific violence, discrimination, criminalisation and stigmatisation, with life expectancies far lower than the housed population.

In response to these conditions, three organisations have launched a homeless bill of rights for the European region. Their aim is to get local councils across Europe to recognise their duty to ensure the right of all homeless people to exit homelessness. The bill also ensures that once a person becomes homeless they may still be able to live with some dignity, and be accorded equal treatment, access to emergency accommodation and the use of public space.

While the engagement of local governments to address homelessness is essential, it is only one part of the solution to the homelessness crisis. What we can learn from Finland is that we need to identify and then focus on addressing the structural causes of homelessness in order to end it.

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The causes of homelessness have been identified by many. Worldwide, there is evidence of a pattern: governments have abandoned their critical role in ensuring social protection, including affordable housing; they have cut or privatised social benefits; and they have deferred to the private market and have allowed those with access to power and money to dominate the housing market, resulting in speculative capital guiding land use and urban development. Governments have taken a series of decisions and actions that create homelessness and allow it to grow unabated.

But perhaps the tide is turning. States have recognised the unsustainability of current housing conditions, including homelessness. Through both the Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda, they have, en masse, committed to ending homelessness by 2030. But how on earth will they manage this when they certainly haven’t got it right so far?

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Governments must make an immediate and bold shift. They will need to embrace human rights and adopt rights-based housing strategies. A human rights framework has the capacity to recognise that homelessness is amatter of life and death and dignity. At the same time, its central aim is to protect vulnerable populations against inequality and the conditions that breed inequality.

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