In collaboration with the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation’s How Housing Matters Initiative, Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity will be running a series of commentaries in November and December around the key questions and issues raised in the How Housing Matters conference, held on November 2, 2011, in Washington, DC. 

The series will tackle the relationship between housing and three topics: health, economic opportunity, and education.

The How Housing Matters conference is a project of the National Building Museum in partnership with the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Office of Policy Development & Research, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.  For more information on the conference, please click here. To view case studies prepared for the conference by the Center for Housing Policy, click here.

The How Housing Matters Initiative is a five-year, $25 million research initiative to deepen the literature on the effect that investments in affordable housing have on social and economic outcomes, beyond shelter. It explores the notion that affordable housing may be an essential "platform" that promotes positive outcomes in education, employment, and physical and mental health, among other areas. For more information on the Initiative, please click here.