The Shift is a new worldwide movement to reclaim and realize the fundamental human right to housing – to move away from housing as a place to park excess capital, to housing as a place to live in dignity, to raise families and participate in community.
The Shift has been initiated by the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to housing, Leilani Farha, in partnership with United Cities Local Government and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
It brings together civil society, all levels of government, multilateral institutions, national human rights institutions, academia, philanthropists, artists, the private sector, and grassroots movements, and represents the interests of the individuals, families, communities, slum dwellers, and neighbourhood associations who understand and live the deep connections between housing, home and well-being.
The Shift calls for a change in the way we think and interact with housing and home.
- The Shift sees housing as a human right not a commodity
- The Shift affirms housing as a vehicle for equality, dignity and inclusive community, rather than for inequality and the concentration of wealth
- The Shift rejects forced evictions and displacement especially where they occur without the exploration of alternatives, without consultation and without provision of adequate alternative housing as defined in international human rights law
- The Shift understands homelessness as a systemic failure to effectively and fully implement the right to housing and rejects the criminalization of homelessness
- The Shift affirms the social function of housing and land and supports the agency of individuals to hold governments accountable so that their right to housing can be realized
The Shift calls for participatory human rights based housing strategies, that include ending homelessness, at local, national and global levels in accordance with international human rights obligations and the commitments articulated in Agenda 2030 and the New Urban Agenda to ensure the right to adequate housing for all.
The Shift will unite, support and foster local, regional and global activities and initiatives that claim the right to housing.
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Rights-based housing strategies are not one-size fits all, but there are some key requirements that can be shaped to fit national and local contexts. As a starting point, housing strategies must guarantee that no one is left behind, which, among other things, means they must commit to ending homelessness by 2030.
Each of us must help make the shift if we believe in humanity and human rights.
If you want to help make the shift, you can do so by subscribing to Leilani’s newsletter, following her on social media, and using the hashtag, #maketheshift when promoting your right to housing events and statements 
